From Opus

Male
Photo by mehdhalaouate
Timor Island, Indonesia, April 2008

Alternative names: Blue-backed Flycatcher; Hyacinthine Flycatcher

Cyornis hyacinthinus

[edit] Identification

16cm. A medium-sized flycatcher.

[edit] Male

• Pale blue on forehead extending as supercilium over eye
• Deep blue to royal-blue crown, upperparts, upperwing and tail
• Deep blackish-blue lower forehead, lores, face, chin, throat and upper breast
• Bright rufous-orange belly to flanks and undertail-coverts
• kuehni is paler blue on head and more extensively blue on throat and breast

[edit] Female

• Olive-brown head, face and upperparts (kuehni with more grey-brown head)
• Dark blue rump and tail
• Bright orange-rufous underside

[edit] Similar species

Male Snowy-browed Flycatcher is smaller, has a shorter tail, paler blue on breast and upperparts and some white in front of eye.
The female differs from other similar species by the blue rump and the blue tail.

[edit] Distribution

Found on some islands in te eastern Lesser Sundas, Indonesia and Timor-Leste.
A restricted range species. Widespread but uncommon on Timor, uncommon on Roti, status on Wetar unknown.

[edit] Taxonomy

Two subspecies recognized:

• C. h. kuehni on Wetar in the eastern Lesser Sundas
• C. h. hyacinthinus on Timor, Roti and Semau in the eastern Lesser Sundas

Forms a superspecies with Blue-fronted Blue Flycatcher and Matinan Blue Flycatcher.

[edit] Habitat

Moist lowland forests and montanes. Up to 2000m on Timor.

[edit] Behaviour

Diet not well known. Feeds on small invertebrates.
In breeding season seen in pairs, outside breeding season solitary. A unobtrusive and inconspicuous species.
Perches often on slender horizontal branches and often close to trunk. Sallies after insects from perch and usually returns to same perch.
Little information about breeding. A female was recorded collecting nest material and nest-building in a hollow of a tree in September. Juveniles were seen in February.
A resident species.

[edit] References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2012. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to October 2012. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/downloadable-clements-checklist
2. Del Hoyo, J, A Elliot, and D Christie, eds. 2006. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 11: Old World Flycatchers to Old World Warblers. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8496553064

• List of references

[edit] External Links