Bates's paradise flycatcher

Bates's paradise flycatcher
NR
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Monarchidae
Genus: Terpsiphone
Species: T. batesi
Binomial name
Terpsiphone batesi
Chapin, 1921
Subspecies

see text

Bates's paradise flycatcher (Terpsiphone batesi) is a passerine bird belonging to the genus Terpsiphone in the monarch-flycatcher family, Monarchidae. It was formerly considered to be conspecific with the rufous-vented paradise flycatcher (T. rufocinerea) but is now regarded as a separate species. The sexes are similar in appearance with the upper parts being rufous and the head and underparts being bluish-grey. It is native to Central Africa where it is found in the understorey of forests.

Taxonomy

Bates's paradise flycatcher was formerly included in the rufous-vented paradise flycatcher (T. rufocinerea) but is now recognized as a separate species.[1] Its name commemorates the American ornithologist George Latimer Bates.

Subspecies

There are two subspecies recognized:[2]

Description

Bates's paradise flycatcher is usually 18 centimetres long but males in parts of Cameroon and Angola have elongated central tail-feathers making them 23-28 centimetres long. The head and underparts are blue-grey while the upperparts are rufous. The sexes are similar in coloration. The song is a series of ringing "tswee" notes.

The rufous-vented paradise flycatcher is similar in appearance but has a darker head with a crest and males always have elongated central tail-feathers.

Distribution

It inhabits the understorey of forests. It occurs from Cameroon and the south-western Central African Republic through Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, the Republic of the Congo and much of the Democratic Republic of the Congo south as far as north-west Angola.

References

  1. "Terpsiphone batesi - Avibase". avibase.bsc-eoc.org. Retrieved 2016-10-24.
  2. "IOC World Bird List 6.4". IOC World Bird List Datasets. doi:10.14344/ioc.ml.6.4.
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