The fairy flycatcher or fairy warbler (''Stenostira scita'') is a small
passerine
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...
. Formerly placed in the
Old World flycatcher
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 Northe ...
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
, Muscicapidae, it is now separated with some other "odd flycatchers" as the new family
Stenostiridae (Beresford ''et al.'' 2005, Fuchs ''et al.'' 2006). It is the only member of the genus ''Stenostira''.
It is an endemic resident breeder in southern
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
in
Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalaha ...
,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
,
Lesotho and
Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
, and a vagrant to
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...
and
Eswatini.
''Stenostira scita'' is a common seasonal
migrant, breeding in
karoo scrub and
fynbos in the southern highlands, and migrating north in to spend the southern winter in thorn scrub at lower altitudes.
Description
The fairy flycatcher is 11–12 cm in length. The adult is pale grey above with a black mask through the eye and a white
supercilium. The wings are black with a long white stripe, and the long black tail has white sides. The throat is white, the breast is pale grey, and the belly is white with a pinkish-grey wash to its centre. The sexes are alike, but the juvenile is browner than the adult. The eye is brown and the bill and legs are black.
Behaviour
The fairy flycatcher is monogamous unless its mate dies, when it will seek a new partner. It builds an open cup nest from thin stems and other plant material and lined with plant down. It is placed in the branches of a tree or shrub but well concealed. The female lays two or three green eggs.
This bird is usually seen alone, in pairs, or small flocks. It feeds on small
insect
Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three ...
s and other
invertebrate
Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate ...
s, foraging in the foliage like a
warbler
Various Passeriformes (perching birds) are commonly referred to as warblers. They are not necessarily closely related to one another, but share some characteristics, such as being fairly small, vocal, and insectivorous.
Sylvioid warblers
Th ...
.
References
Supporting information* del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A. & Christie D. (editors). (2006).
Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 12: Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Lynx Edicions.
*
*Sinclair, Ian; Hockey, Phil & Tarboton, Warwick R. (2002): ''SASOL Birds of Southern Africa''. Struik, Cape Town
External links
Species account, Kruger National Park website* Fairy flycatcher
Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2270816
Stenostiridae
Birds of Southern Africa
Birds described in 1818
Taxa named by Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot