Animalia Life
Elminia longicauda
TAXONOMY
Myiagra longicauda Swainson, 1838, Senegal. Two subspecies.
Sometimes considered a superspecies with the white-tailed blue
flycatcher (E. albicauda).
OTHER COMMON NAMES
English: Blue flycatcher, northern fairy flycatcher; French:
Gobemouche bleu; German: Tьrkis Elminie; Spanish: Eliminia
Azul.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Male is cobalt blue above and on the throat, paler below, with
a long tail. Females and immatures are grayer, with a narrow
band of blue on edges of wing and tail-feathers.
DISTRIBUTION
The widest
DISTRIBUTION
of the Elminia flycatchers, from the
Atlantic coast of West Africa to Lake Victoria in the east.
There are apparent gaps in its
DISTRIBUTION
, but this probably
reflects a lack of human knowledge, even of such a colorful
bird.
HABITAT
Resident in woodlands, from sea-level plains to 7,200 ft
(2,400 m), inhabits clearings and edges of open secondary forest,
swampy or riverine forests, and wooded savannas. Also
found in cleared and abandoned fruit and cocoa plantations.
Live at lower altitudes than the similar white-tailed blue flycatcher
in most places.
BEHAVIOR
Live in groups of up to 12, but usually 3–7 birds. Largest
groups comprise several pairs or trios of adults with immatures
or dependent young. A ‘leader’ defends the territory, singing
frequently, with its crest erect, wings flicking and tail fanned.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Always on the move, picking small insects from the foliage in
the top of trees and shrubs. Sometimes fly from a perch, catch
a flying insect, and return to the branch, in true flycatcher
fashion.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Appear to be monogamous, though some may be polygamous.
Female lays and incubates one or two white eggs in a compact,
cup-shaped nest. Both birds in the pair feed the young, with
assistance from nonbreeding adults or immatures in the group.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Relatively common in good quality habitat, although endemic
and breeding at a relatively low density.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
None known.