Imitator Sparrowhawk

A small bird of lowland and foothill forest and more open woodland. Black upperparts are glossed blue, while white underparts are washed with pale gray. A red stripe runs down the belly. Note the fairly long slender bill. Similar to Fire-breasted Flowerpecker, but lacks the black line down the belly. Voice includes sharp, repetitive “chik!” calls, sometimes descending into a more varied, rapid series and a trill.

The adult is a large, distinctive, chestnut-and-white eagle that sits prominently on perches near rivers, lakes, and other waterbodies. The scruffy immature is dark brown and mottled with white on head. In flight the white windows in the wings and pale, dark-tipped tail make the juvenile distinctive. It catches fish with a graceful, shallow plunge to the water’s surface, but it will also eat birds, reptiles, and carrion. It tosses its head backwards while making a loud penetrating “wheeee-ah-kleeuw-kleeuw-kluuu” call; it is one of the most distinctive bird sounds of Africa.

Handsome male is gray above with a bright red throat, black chest, and white belly. Also note white eyebrows and “moustache” stripe, as well as white panels and edges on a black tail. Female is duller, cold gray-brown above with a white belly and throat. Extremely similar to Himalayan Rubythroat: note gray flecking on white flanks of male and white “moustache” (striking in males, pale and sometimes unnoticeable in females). Breeds in alpine and subalpine open areas with scattered scrub and boulders; preferred habitat averages higher and more open than Himalayan. Winters in lowland scrub. Song is a series of loud rich warbles, which average shorter and less varied than those of Himalayan Rubythroat.