Common Wattle-eye
Encyclopedia
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-eye
s were previously classed as a subfamily of the Old World flycatcher
family Muscicapidae, but are now usually separated from that group.
This species breeds in west, central and northeast tropical Africa
. This common species is found in secondary forest and other woodland areas, including gardens. The egg
s are laid in a small neat lichen
and cobweb
cup low in a tree or bush.
The adult Brown-throated Wattle-eye is a stout bird about 14 cm long. The breeding male has glossy black upperparts, and white underparts with a neat black breast band. There is a strong white wingbar, and fleshy red wattles above the eye.
The females are grey-black above, and also have the white wing bar and red wattles. There is a small patch of white below the bill, and the throat and breast are maroon, separated from the white belly by the black breast band. Young males are washed-out, greyer versions of the female.
These active insect-eating birds are found in pairs or small groups. The ringing call of the Brown-throated Wattle-eye is a very characteristic six note doo-dd-dum-di-do-do.
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...
. The wattle-eye
Wattle-eye
Platysteiridae is a family of small stout passerine birds of the African tropics. The family contains the wattle-eyes, batises and shrike-flycatchers. They were previously classed as a subfamily of the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae.These insect-eating birds are found in usually open...
s were previously classed as a subfamily of the Old World flycatcher
Old World flycatcher
The Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae is a large family of small passerine birds mostly restricted to the Old World. These are mainly small arboreal insectivores, many of which, as the name implies, take their prey on the wing.-Characteristics:...
family Muscicapidae, but are now usually separated from that group.
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. This common species is found in secondary forest and other woodland areas, including gardens. The 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 small neat lichen
Lichen
Lichens are composite organisms consisting of a symbiotic organism composed of a fungus with a photosynthetic partner , usually either a green alga or cyanobacterium...
and cobweb
Spider web
A spider web, spiderweb, spider's web or cobweb is a device built by a spider out of proteinaceous spider silk extruded from its spinnerets....
cup low in a tree or bush.
The adult Brown-throated Wattle-eye is a stout bird about 14 cm long. The breeding male has glossy black upperparts, and white underparts with a neat black breast band. There is a strong white wingbar, and fleshy red wattles above the eye.
The females are grey-black above, and also have the white wing bar and red wattles. There is a small patch of white below the bill, and the throat and breast are maroon, separated from the white belly by the black breast band. Young males are washed-out, greyer versions of the female.
These active insect-eating birds are found in pairs or small groups. The ringing call of the Brown-throated Wattle-eye is a very characteristic six note doo-dd-dum-di-do-do.