Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike
Hemipus picatus
A small passerine bird with black-and-white plumage. The head, upperparts, and tail are black. The sides of the neck and underparts are white. The wing shows a prominent white slash, and the outer tail feathers are white. The bill is black and the upper mandible is hooked at the tip. Usually found in mixed-species foraging flocks, feeding on insects in the mid-canopy by hawking prey in mid-air like flycatchers, hence the name. Inhabits a wide range of forested habitats. Song is a sweet-sounding series of bouncing notes: “tsilikee-tsilikee-tsilikee!”
Identification
The bar-winged flycatcher-shrike is black capped with black wings that contrast with the white of the body. A white slash across the wing and a white rump stand out in contrast. They sit upright on branches, flying around to glean insects. The nostril is hidden by hairs and the upper mandible of the beak has a curved tip. Males are velvety black while females tend to be greyish brown but the pattern varies across the geographic populations. Both males and females of the Himalayan H. p. capitalis have a brown back but the males have a black head. The Sri Lankan population leggei lacks sexual dimorphism in plumage. H. p. intermedius has only the females with a brownish back. The tail is black but the outer tail feathers are white while the non-central tail feathers are tipped with white.<p>The call is a rapid and high tsit-it-it-it or a whriri-whirriri-whirriri and sometimes a sharp chip. Male-female pairs of the subspecies leggei of Sri Lanka have been reported to duet with precision.<p>Young birds are said to have a broken pattern of white and grey giving the appearance of lichens.<p>The exact systematic family position is unclear but the genus Hemipus has been found to be closely related to the genus Tephrodornis and show affinities to the Malaconotidae of Africa.
Taxonomy
Genus: Hemipus; Family: Vangidae; Order: Passeriformes.
- Scientific name
- Hemipus picatus
- Authority
- (Sykes, 1832)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Vangidae
- Genus
- Hemipus
Range and habitat
The nominate race is found mainly in the Western Ghats of India but becoming very rare towards the Surat Dangs. They are also found in some parts of central and eastern India, extending into Bangladesh. The subspecies capitalis is found along the Himalayas from Simla, east to Manipur and Chittagong in India and extending into northern Thailand, Myanmar and Laos.<p>Subspecies leggei of Sri Lanka (southern Western Ghats populations included in older works) has the sexes indistinguishable. It is found in the hill forests of Sri Lanka.<p>Subspecies intermedius is found in Southeast Asia in Sumatra, Borneo, and parts of the Malay Peninsula. The brownish grey wash on the breast of females is darker, contrasting with the white of the abdomens. The back is darker brown than in other subspecies. The males also have darker breasts.<p>Other subspecies that have been described such as Walter Koelz's pileatus (described from the Lushai Hills) and insulae (from Sri Lanka) are not considered valid.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Common Woodshrike
Tephrodornis pondicerianus
A medium-sized woodshrike with grayish-brown upperparts, black facial mask, white rump, and gray tail with white outer tail feathers. Bill strongly hooked, dark grayish-brown in color. Underparts white. Similar to Malabar Woodshrike and Large Woodshrike, but generally found in drier forests; also note prominent white supercilium. Usually found in dry forested areas and shrublands. Bright, fast-paced song starts out with two strident “wheeet” notes, followed by a descending series of shorter notes. Calls vary, but usually sound like isolated fragments of song.
Crossley's Vanga
Mystacornis crossleyi
Brown-backed, babbler-like vanga of the forest understory. Male has a black hood, and female a white throat. Endemic to Madagascar, in eastern rainforest at low and middle elevations. Shy and elusive bird that walks along the forest floor and through thick tangles. Song is a long, penetrating whistle given from a low perch. Coloration and habits make it distinctive.
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