Hair-crested Drongo
Dicrurus hottentottus
A large and stocky black drongo with glimmering blue iridescence on the wings, breast, and neck. Note triangular tail with flaring tips that curl out sideways and a large, curved bill with which it crushes insects and probes for nectar. Long, thin, hair-like feathers on its forehead, present only in some subspecies, may be visible at close range. Birds in Java and Sulawesi have white eyes. Encountered singly or in small flocks; also joins foraging flocks with other species. Found in a wide range of forested habitats, where it often uses exposed perches. Calls include a varied jumble of various harsh screeches, nasal yelps, metallic sounds, and beeps.
Identification
The hair-crested drongo (Dicrurus hottentottus) is an Asian bird of the family Dicruridae. This species was formerly considered conspecific with Dicrurus bracteatus, for which the name "spangled drongo" – formerly used for both – is now usually reserved. Some authorities include the Sumatran drongo (D. sumatranus) in D. hottentottus as subspecies. It is native from Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, and Bhutan through Indochina to China, Indonesia, and Brunei. Hair-crested drongos move in small flocks and are very noisy. The "spangled drongo", Dicrurus bracteatus, is native on the east coast of Australia and its name is a pejorative slang for a silly person. This may be due to its strange chattering and cackling.
Taxonomy
In 1760, French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the hair-crested drongo in his Ornithologie based on a specimen that he mistakenly believed had been collected from the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. He used the French name Le choucas du Cap de Bonne Espérance and the Latin Monedula Capitis Bonae Spei. Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. When in 1766, Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the 12th edition, he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. One of these was the hair-crested drongo. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name Corvus hottentottus and cited Brisson's work. The type locality was subsequently corrected to Chandannagar in West Bengal. The specific name hottentottus is from "Hottentot", a term formerly used for the Khoikhoi, a nomadic pastoral people of southwest Africa. This species is now placed in the genus Dicrurus that was introduced for the drongos by French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot in 1816.<p>Twelve subspecies are currently recognised, although some have been proposed as separate species:<p>Notes:<p>Several other former subspecies are now recognised as separate species or subspecies of other species in the species complex, the Tablas drongo (Dicrurus menagei) and the Palawan drongo (Dicrurus palawanensis, including subspecies cuyensis).
- Scientific name
- Dicrurus hottentottus
- Authority
- (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Dicruridae
- Genus
- Dicrurus
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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Alectoris graeca
This well-marked European endemic prefers rocky slopes and dry areas of hill and montane forest. Up to 3,000 m (10,000 ft), but can be found in lower-lying open flat areas with sparse grass and low bushes in some regions. Highly territorial and vocal, giving an irregular series of "chick chek pe-ti-chek chi-chek" notes, particularly in the early morning. Often runs away rather than flying. Throat is white, while similar looking Chukar has a creamy throat; virtually no overlap in range with other similar species.
Black-faced Bunting
Emberiza spodocephala
A small songbird that often skulks deep in shrubbery but emerges to forage in the open more than some buntings. Adult male has grayish head and chest, yellow belly, and chestnut back and wings. Female is drab brown and extensively streaked overall. Female is somewhat similar to Gray or Masked buntings but has a paler base to the streaked underparts. Song consists of a variable series of alternating buzzy and warbled notes. A sharp “dink” call often betrays its presence.
Red-breasted Sapsucker
Sphyrapicus ruber
Striking medium-sized woodpecker of far western North America. Beautiful plumage with mostly red head and breast and bold white slash on the shoulder. Some show vague pattern of black-and-white on the head, but always more extensive red than Red-naped Sapsucker. Also note limited white mottling on back, and no black on the breast. Juveniles are dark brown on the head and breast. Beware that some hybrids with Red-naped occur, and might be best left unidentified. Breeds in coniferous and mixed forests, descending to lower elevations in winter, as far south as northern Baja. Like other sapsuckers, drills rows of sap wells into tree bark. Listen for irregular drumming (like morse code) and various nasal calls.
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