Black-naped Monarch
Encyclopedia
The Black-naped Monarch or Black-naped Blue Flycatcher (Hypothymis azurea) is a slim and agile passerine
bird
belonging to the family of monarch flycatchers. They are sexually dimorphic
with males having a distinctive black patch on the back of the head and a narrow black half collar ("necklace") while the female is duller and lacks the black markings. They have a call that is similar to that of the Asian Paradise Flycatcher
and in tropical forest habitats pairs may join mixed-species foraging flocks. Populations differ slightly in plumage colour and sizes.
) has subspecies styani which has the black markings very distinct. Males of the Sri Lankan race H. a. ceylonensis lack the black nape and gorget and the shade is more purplish. The subspecies of the Andaman Islands
, tytleri, has the underparts blue grey. The form on Car Nicobar Island idiochroa has a greyish white belly while nicobarica from the southern Nicobars has a smaller and finer bill. The colour of the gape
is yellowish to green.
The nominate form is described from the Philippines. A number of other subspecies have been described from Southeast Asia. These include:
Some subspecies from the island chains of Southeast Asia, blasii (Banggai Island), catarmanensis (off Mindanao) and puella (Sulawesi), are sometimes treated as the Pale-blue Monarch
, Hypothymis puella.
and Sri Lanka
east to Indonesia
and the Philippines
. This species is usually found in thick forests and other well-wooded habitats.
The calls are a sharp and abrupt skrip.
The main breeding season in India is in summer from May to July. Two to three egg
s are laid in a cup nest placed in the fork of a tree. The nest is decorated with spider egg-cases.
. It is insectivorous, often hunting by flycatching. When alarmed or alert, the nape feathers are raised into a pointed crest. They will join mixed-species foraging flocks and are active in the understory of the canopy.
Although they are largely residents, local seasonal movements are known. The breeding season in India is March to August and the nest is neat cup placed in a fork. The nest is built by the female while the male guards. The typical clutch is of three eggs with both parents incubate and feed the young which hatch after about 12 days.
The webs of large spiders such as Nephila maculata have been know to trap the bird.
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
belonging to the family of monarch flycatchers. They are sexually dimorphic
Sexual dimorphism
Sexual dimorphism is a phenotypic difference between males and females of the same species. Examples of such differences include differences in morphology, ornamentation, and behavior.-Examples:-Ornamentation / coloration:...
with males having a distinctive black patch on the back of the head and a narrow black half collar ("necklace") while the female is duller and lacks the black markings. They have a call that is similar to that of the Asian Paradise Flycatcher
Asian Paradise Flycatcher
The Asian Paradise-flycatcher is a medium-sized passerine bird native to Asia. Males have elongated central tail feathers, and in some populations a black and rufous plumage while others have white plumage. Females are short-tailed with rufous wings and a black head...
and in tropical forest habitats pairs may join mixed-species foraging flocks. Populations differ slightly in plumage colour and sizes.
Description
The adult male Black-naped Monarch is about 16 cm long, and is mainly pale azure blue apart from a whitish lower belly. It has a black nape and a narrow black gorget. The female is duller and lacks the black markings. Her wings and back are grey-brown. There are however several geographically separated breeding populations that differ in the extent and shade of markings. The Indian peninsula (includes sykesi of Stuart BakerE. C. Stuart Baker
Edward Charles Stuart Baker CIE OBE FZS FLS was a British ornithologist and police officer.-Life and career:Baker was educated at Trinity College, Stratford-upon-Avon and in 1883 followed his father into the Indian Police Service. He spent most of his career in India in the Assam Police, rising to...
) has subspecies styani which has the black markings very distinct. Males of the Sri Lankan race H. a. ceylonensis lack the black nape and gorget and the shade is more purplish. The subspecies of the Andaman Islands
Andaman Islands
The Andaman Islands are a group of Indian Ocean archipelagic islands in the Bay of Bengal between India to the west, and Burma , to the north and east...
, tytleri, has the underparts blue grey. The form on Car Nicobar Island idiochroa has a greyish white belly while nicobarica from the southern Nicobars has a smaller and finer bill. The colour of the gape
Gape
In bird anatomy, the gape is the interior of the open mouth of a bird and the gape flange is the region where the two mandibles join together, at the base of the beak...
is yellowish to green.
The nominate form is described from the Philippines. A number of other subspecies have been described from Southeast Asia. These include:
- oberholseri Stresemann, 1913 from Taiwan.
- montana Riley, 1929 & galerita (Deignan, 1956) from Thailand
- forrestia Oberholser, 1911 from the Mergui Archipelago
- prophata Oberholser, 1911 from Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo.
- consobrina Richmond, 1902 from Simeulue Island
- abbotti Richmond, 1902 from Reusam and Babi islands
- leucophila Oberholser, 1911 from Siberut Island
- richmondi Oberholser, 1911 from Enggano Island
- opisthocyanea Oberholser, 1911 from Anamba Island
- gigantoptera Oberholser, 1911 from Bunguran
- karimatensis Chasen & Kloss, 1932 from Karimata Island
- javana Chasen & Kloss, 1929 from Java and Bali.
- penidae Meise, 1941 from Penida Island
- symmixta Stresemann, 1913 from the Lesser Sundas.
- aeria Bangs & J. L. Peters, 1927 from Maratua Island
Some subspecies from the island chains of Southeast Asia, blasii (Banggai Island), catarmanensis (off Mindanao) and puella (Sulawesi), are sometimes treated as the Pale-blue Monarch
Pale-blue Monarch
The Pale-blue Monarch, Hypothymis puella, is a small passerine bird.The Pale-blue Monarch is endemic to eastern Indonesia. It has two subspecies. The nominate race, H. p. puella, is found on Sulawesi and adjacent islands, and H. p. blasii is found in the Banggai archipelago...
, Hypothymis puella.
Distribution and habitat
The Black-naped Monarch breeds across tropical southern Asia from IndiaIndia
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
east to Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. This species is usually found in thick forests and other well-wooded habitats.
The calls are a sharp and abrupt skrip.
The main breeding season in India is in summer from May to July. Two to three egg
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
s are laid in a cup nest placed in the fork of a tree. The nest is decorated with spider egg-cases.
Behaviour and ecology
The Black-naped Monarch has short legs and sits very upright whilst perched prominently, like a shrikeShrike
Shrikes are passerine birds of the family Laniidae. The family is composed of thirty-one species in three genera. The family name, and that of the largest genus, Lanius, is derived from the Latin word for "butcher", and some shrikes were also known as "butcher birds" because of their feeding habits...
. It is insectivorous, often hunting by flycatching. When alarmed or alert, the nape feathers are raised into a pointed crest. They will join mixed-species foraging flocks and are active in the understory of the canopy.
Although they are largely residents, local seasonal movements are known. The breeding season in India is March to August and the nest is neat cup placed in a fork. The nest is built by the female while the male guards. The typical clutch is of three eggs with both parents incubate and feed the young which hatch after about 12 days.
The webs of large spiders such as Nephila maculata have been know to trap the bird.
External links
- Photos and videos
- Hua-Hsiang Chen (2009) A Preliminary Study on Nest Site Selection and Nest Success of the Black-naped Blue Monarch (Hypothymis azurea) in Linnei Township and Douliu hilly area, Yunlin County Thesis Taiwan. (In Chinese)