Platysteiridae is a family of small, stout
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 t ...
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 lightweigh ...
s of the
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 ...
n tropics. The family contains the wattle-eyes,
batises and shrike-flycatchers. They were previously classed as a subfamily of 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 Norther ...
s, Muscicapidae. These insect-eating birds are usually found in open forests or bush. They hunt by flycatching, or by taking prey from the ground like a
shrike
Shrikes () are passerine birds of the family Laniidae. The family is composed of 34 species in four genera.
The family name, and that of the largest genus, ''Lanius'', is derived from the Latin word for "butcher", and some shrikes are also know ...
. The nest is a small, neat cup, placed low in a tree or bush.
Distribution and habitat
The Platysteiridae are arboreal birds, primarily of the woodlands and forests of
sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa is, geographically, the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lies south of the Sahara. These include West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, and Southern Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the List of sov ...
. The family is restricted to mainland Africa and its offshore islands. The shrike-flycatchers and genus ''Dyaphorophyia'' are inhabitants of dense forest, while the rest of the wattle-eyes are found in woodland, and the batises range across all wooded habitats except the densest forests of the
Congo Basin
The Congo Basin (french: Bassin du Congo) is the sedimentary basin of the Congo River. The Congo Basin is located in Central Africa, in a region known as west equatorial Africa. The Congo Basin region is sometimes known simply as the Congo. It con ...
. The
pririt and
pygmy batis
The pygmy batis (''Batis perkeo'') is a very small insectivorous bird which finds its food foraging among leaves, it is a member of the wattle-eyes family, the Platysteiridae. It occurs in the dry savannahs of north-eastern Africa.
Description
...
survive in very arid environments with some cover, and the
white-fronted wattle-eye
The white-fronted wattle-eye (''Platysteira albifrons'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae.
It is endemic to Angola.
Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical mangrove forests, and subt ...
favours
mangrove forest
Mangrove forests, also called mangrove swamps, mangrove thickets or mangals, are productive wetlands that occur in coastal intertidal zones. Mangrove forests grow mainly at tropical and subtropical latitudes because mangroves cannot withstand fr ...
s in Angola. Many species in the family have adapted to human-altered habitats. The family has its highest diversity at equatorial latitudes, with half the known species native to
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
and almost half also ranging into the
DRC
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
and
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
.
The family is overwhelmingly
sedentary
Sedentary lifestyle is a lifestyle type, in which one is physically inactive and does little or no physical movement and or exercise. A person living a sedentary lifestyle is often sitting or lying down while engaged in an activity like soci ...
. However, there are a few exceptions; the
African shrike-flycatcher
The African shrike-flycatcher or red-eyed shrike-flycatcher (''Megabyas flammulatus'') is a species of bird in the family Vangidae. It is monotypic within the genus ''Megabyas''.
It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, ...
is probably an intra-African
migrant, as it is seasonally absent from parts of its range. In addition, some batis species undertake seasonal migrations, besides some local movements in response to changing local conditions.
Morphology
The Platysteiridae are small to medium-sized passerines. They have short legs and an upright stance while perched. The tail length is variable, with the ''Dyaphorophyia'' wattle-eyes and batises having short tails and the ''Platysteria'' wattle-eyes and shrike-flycatchers possessing longish tails. The
bill
Bill(s) may refer to:
Common meanings
* Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States)
* Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature
* Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer
* Bill, a bird or animal's beak
Plac ...
is flat and hooked at the tip, and generally wide with well-developed
rictal bristles. With the exception of a few batises, the
plumage
Plumage ( "feather") is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, ...
of the family is
sexually dimorphic
Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most ani ...
. Overall the family has white undersides and dark, speckled upperparts, with many species sporting a band across the chest. A few wattle-eyes depart from this pattern and possess brightly coloured plumage. The plumage on the back of some genera are erectile, giving the family the alternative name of puffback flycatchers. The irides of batises and the
black-and-white shrike-flycatcher
The black-and-white shrike-flycatcher (''Bias musicus''), also known as the black-and-white flycatcher or vanga flycatcher, is a species of passerine bird found in Africa. It was placed with the wattle-eyes and batises in the family Platysteiri ...
are brightly coloured and used in communication, becoming more brightly coloured when the adults are excited. In the wattle-eyes the supra-orbital wattles above the eyes, for which they are named, are used in communication. In addition the family is highly
vocal
The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound production i ...
, with a repertoire that includes a range of whistles, harsh calls and duets.
Diet
The most important component in the diet of all species is
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 pairs ...
s, although spiders, millipedes and scorpions are also taken, and there are even records of small lizards being consumed. Amongst the insect prey, a number of different types are eaten: beetles, grasshoppers and other
Orthoptera
Orthoptera () is an order of insects that comprises the grasshoppers, locusts, and crickets, including closely related insects, such as the bush crickets or katydids and wētā. The order is subdivided into two suborders: Caelifera – grassho ...
, flies, mosquitoes, wasps, termites, mantises and others. Members of this family forage either individually or in family groups. Some species will also join
mixed species feeding flock
A mixed-species feeding flock, also termed a mixed-species foraging flock, mixed hunting party or informally bird wave, is a flock of usually insectivorous birds of different species that join each other and move together while foraging. These ar ...
s, which confers some foraging advantages. The different species and genera use a variety of methods to obtain prey, ranging from foliage-gleaning to flycatching.
Conservation and threats
One species, the
banded wattle-eye
The banded wattle-eye (''Platysteira laticincta'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae. It is endemic to the Bamenda Highlands in western Cameroon. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threaten ...
, is considered
threatened
Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensat ...
by human activities. The species has a restricted range in
Cameroon
Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...
which is vulnerable to forest clearance, and it is listed as
endangered
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inva ...
by the
IUCN
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...
. Two other species are considered near-threatened, the
Gabon batis
The Gabon batis (''Batis minima'') or Verreaux's batis, is a species of small bird in the family Platysteiridae. It occurs in the humid forests of western Central Africa.
Description
The adult male has a velvety black head with a white loral spo ...
and the
white-fronted wattle-eye
The white-fronted wattle-eye (''Platysteira albifrons'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae.
It is endemic to Angola.
Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical mangrove forests, and subt ...
; both species are threatened by
habitat loss
Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...
. Some species are also very poorly known, and one species, the
dark batis
The dark batis (''Batis crypta'') is a small passerine bird belonging to the genus '' Batis'' in the wattle-eye family, Platysteiridae. It is found in highland forest in south-west Tanzania, northern Malawi, and northern Mozambique. These birds w ...
, was only identified as a species in 2006.
[Fjeldsa J, Bowie RCK, Kiure J (2006) "The forest batis, ''Batis mixta'', is two species: description of a new, narrowly distributed Batis species in the Eastern Arc biodiversity hotspot" ''Journal of Ornithology'' 147(4): 578-590]
Platysteiridae in taxonomic order
* Genus ''
Batis''
**
Cape batis
The Cape batis (''Batis capensis'') is a small, stout insect-eating passerine bird in the wattle-eye family. It is endemic to the Afromontane forests of southern Africa.
Taxonomy
In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a ...
, ''Batis capensis''
**
Forest batis
The forest batis or short-tailed batis (''Batis mixta'') is a species of bird in the wattle-eye family, Platysteiridae occurring in eastern Africa.
Taxonomy
The forest batis was described by the English ornithologist George Ernest Shelley in 188 ...
, ''Batis mixta''
**
Dark batis
The dark batis (''Batis crypta'') is a small passerine bird belonging to the genus '' Batis'' in the wattle-eye family, Platysteiridae. It is found in highland forest in south-west Tanzania, northern Malawi, and northern Mozambique. These birds w ...
, ''Batis crypta''
**
Woodwards's batis
Woodwards's batis or the Zululand batis (''Batis fratrum'') is a species of small bird in the wattle-eyes family, Platysteiridae. It occurs in southeastern Africa where it is found in woodlands and forests.
Taxonomy
A description of Woodwards's ...
, ''Batis fratrum''
**
Margaret's batis
Margaret's batis (''Batis margaritae'') or Boulton's batis, is a species of small passerine bird in the wattle-eyes family, Platysteiridae. It is found in south western central Africa.
Taxonomy
Margaret's batis was described by the American zool ...
, ''Batis margaritae''
**
Rwenzori batis
The Rwenzori batis (''Batis diops'') is an endemic bird native to the Albertine Rift montane forests, where it inhabits altitudes of .
Description
The Rwenzori batis is a small, active black and white Old World flycatcher. The upperparts are d ...
, ''Batis diops''
**
Fernando Po batis
The Fernando Pó batis, also known as the Bioko batis, (''Batis poensis'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae. It is endemic to the island of Bioko in Equatorial Guinea.
Description
The Fernando Pó batis is small, restless flyca ...
, ''Batis poensis''
**
West African batis
The West African batis (''Batis occulta'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae.
It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leo ...
, ''Batis occulta''
**
Angola batis
The Angola batis (''Batis minulla'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae. It is found in western central Africa.
Description
The Angola batis is a small pied songbird with a rather dumpy appearance and a restless nature. The adult ...
, ''Batis minulla''
**
Gabon batis
The Gabon batis (''Batis minima'') or Verreaux's batis, is a species of small bird in the family Platysteiridae. It occurs in the humid forests of western Central Africa.
Description
The adult male has a velvety black head with a white loral spo ...
, ''Batis minima''
**
Ituri batis
The Ituri batis or Chapin's batis (''Batis ituriensis'') is a species of bird in the wattle-eye family, Platysteiridae which is found in the humid forests of eastern central Africa.
Description
The Ituri batis is a very small black and white bir ...
, ''Batis ituriensis''
**
Senegal batis
The Senegal batis (''Batis senegalensis'') is a species of small passerine bird in the wattle-eyes family, Platysteiridae. It occurs in western Africa where it is found in dry savanna and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland. It was originally ...
, ''Batis senegalensis''
**
Grey-headed batis, ''Batis orientalis''
**
Chinspot batis
The chinspot batis (''Batis molitor'') is a small songbird of the genus '' Batis'' in the family Platysteiridae which is a common and widespread species in the woodlands of southern Africa from the Eastern Cape north to 3°N in southern Kenya a ...
, ''Batis molitor''
**
Pale batis
The pale batis (''Batis soror''), also known as the Mozambique batis or East coast batis is a species of small bird in the wattle-eyes family, Platysteiridae. It occurs in eastern Africa, mostly in lowland miombo woodland.
Description
The pale ...
, ''Batis soror''
**
Pririt batis
The pririt batis (''Batis pririt'') also known as the pririt puff-back flycatcher or pririt puffback, is a small passerine bird in the wattle-eye family. It is resident in Southern Africa and southwestern Angola.
It is a small stout insect-eat ...
, ''Batis pririt''
**
Eastern black-headed batis
The eastern black-headed batis (''Batis minor'') is a passerine bird in the family Platysteiridae from eastern Africa. It was formerly treated as conspecific with the western black-headed batis.
Taxonomy
The eastern black-headed batis was desc ...
, ''Batis minor''
**
Western black-headed batis
The western black-headed batis (''Batis erlangeri'') or Von Erlanger's batis, is a species of passerine bird in the wattle-eye family Platysteiridae.Louette, M. (2019)"Western Black-headed Batis (''Batis erlangeri'')" In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A ...
, ''Batis erlangeri''
**
Pygmy batis
The pygmy batis (''Batis perkeo'') is a very small insectivorous bird which finds its food foraging among leaves, it is a member of the wattle-eyes family, the Platysteiridae. It occurs in the dry savannahs of north-eastern Africa.
Description
...
, ''Batis perkeo''
* Genus ''
Platysteira
''Platysteira'' is a genus of bird in the family Platysteiridae.
It contains the following species:
* Black-throated wattle-eye, ''Platysteira peltata''
* Black-necked wattle-eye, ''Platysteira chalybea''
* Banded wattle-eye, ''Platysteira lat ...
''
**
Black-throated wattle-eye
The black-throated wattle-eye (''Platysteira peltata'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae.
It is found in Angola, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, ...
, ''Platysteira peltata''
**
Black-necked wattle-eye
The black-necked wattle-eye (''Platysteira chalybea'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae. It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtr ...
, ''Platysteira chalybea''
**
Banded wattle-eye
The banded wattle-eye (''Platysteira laticincta'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae. It is endemic to the Bamenda Highlands in western Cameroon. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threaten ...
, ''Platysteira laticincta''
**
Chestnut wattle-eye
The chestnut wattle-eye (''Platysteira castanea'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae. It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ke ...
, ''Platysteira castanea''
**
West African wattle-eye
The West African wattle-eye (''Platysteira hormophora'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae.
It is found in Benin, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist l ...
, ''Platysteira hormophora''
**
Brown-throated wattle-eye
The brown-throated wattle-eye (''Platysteira cyanea''), also known as the common wattle-eye or scarlet-spectacled wattle-eye, is a small, insectivorous passerine bird. The wattle-eyes were previously classed as a subfamily of the Old World flyca ...
, ''Platysteira cyanea''
**
Jameson's wattle-eye
Jameson's wattle-eye (''Platysteira jamesoni'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae.
It is found in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.
Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lo ...
, ''Platysteira jamesoni''
**
Red-cheeked wattle-eye
The red-cheeked wattle-eye (''Platysteira blissetti'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae.
It is found in Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
Its natural habitat is subtropical or trop ...
, ''latysteira blissetti''
**
White-fronted wattle-eye
The white-fronted wattle-eye (''Platysteira albifrons'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae.
It is endemic to Angola.
Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical mangrove forests, and subt ...
, ''Platysteira albifrons''
**
White-spotted wattle-eye
The white-spotted wattle-eye (''Platysteira tonsa'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae. It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ga ...
, ''Platysteira tonsa''
**
Yellow-bellied wattle-eye
The yellow-bellied wattle-eye (''Platysteira concreta'') is a species of bird in the family Platysteiridae.
It is found in Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, ...
, ''Platysteira concreta''
* Genus ''
Lanioturdus''
**
White-tailed shrike
The white-tailed shrike (''Lanioturdus torquatus'') is a small passerine bird from the family wattle-eye, Platysteiridae. It is also known as the chatshrike or ground batis. It occurs only in western Angola and Namibia in thorn scrub. It forages ...
, ''Lanioturdus torquatus'', is usually considered to be part of the family, sometimes considered belonging with
bushshrike
The bushshrikes are smallish passerine birds. They were formerly classed with the true shrikes in the family Laniidae, but are now considered sufficiently distinctive to be separated from that group as the family Malaconotidae, a name that allud ...
s (
Malaconotidae).
References
*Del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A. & Christie D. (editors). (2006). ''
Handbook of the Birds of the World
The ''Handbook of the Birds of the World'' (HBW) is a multi-volume series produced by the Spanish publishing house Lynx Edicions in partnership with BirdLife International. It is the first handbook to cover every known living species of bird. T ...
''. Volume 11: Old World Flycatchers to Old World Warblers. Lynx Edicions. .
External links
Internet Bird Collection.com: Wattle-eye videos
{{Taxonbar, from=Q916830
*