Black-naped Monarch
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| Black-naped Monarch | ||||||||||||||
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| Hypothymis azurea (Boddaert, 1783) |
The Black-naped Monarch (Hypothymis azurea), also known as the Black-naped Blue Monarch, is a small passerine bird. It was previously classified with the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae, but the paradise flycatchers, monarch flycatchers and Australasian fantails are now normally grouped with the drongos in the family Dicruridae, which has most of its members in Australasia and tropical southern Asia.
The Black-naped Monarch breeds across tropical southern Asia from India and Sri Lanka east to Indonesia and the Philippines. This species is usually found in thick forests and other well-wooded habitats. Three eggs are laid in a small cup nest in a tree.
The adult male Black-naped Monarch is about 16 cm long, and is mainly pale blue apart from a whitish lower belly. It has a black nape and a neat black gorget. The female is duller and lacks the black markings. Her wings and back are grey-brown. Males of the Sri Lankan race H. a. ceylonensis lack the black nape and gorget.
The Black-naped Monarch has short legs and sits very upright whilst perched prominently, like a shrike. It is insectivorous, often hunting by flycatching.
Reference
- Birds of India by Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp, ISBN 0-691-04910-6