The blue-capped rock thrush (''Monticola cinclorhyncha'') is a species of bird in the family

Muscicapidae The Old World flycatchers are a large family, the Muscicapidae, of small passerine birds restricted to the Old World (Europe, Africa and Asia), with the exception of several vagrants and two species, Bluethroat (''Luscinia svecica)'' and Norther ...

Description

The male has a blue head, chin and throat. The upper parts are blue and black. The rump and underparts are chestnut brown. There is a white patch on the wing that is visible during flight. The female bird is brown with a brown and white underside.

Distribution and breeding

The blue-capped rock thrush breeds in the foothills of the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...

and winters in the hill forests of southern

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. During winter it is found throughout

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

(passage migrant), parts of

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

and

, especially in the Western Ghats region.

Habits

Like thrushes, they fly up into trees and sit motionless when they are disturbed. It is a summer visitor in parts of Afghanistan and along the Himalayas from Pakistan to Arunachal Pradesh. In summer it is found in pine forests and hill slopes. In winter it is found in dense canopied forests.Rasmussen, P and Anderton, J. C. (2005) Birds of South Asia. The Ripley Guide. Vols 1 and 2. Smithsonian Institution and Lynx Edicions

References

{{muscicapidae-stub blue-capped rock thrush Birds of the Himalayas blue-capped rock thrush Articles containing video clips