A tiny bird wearing a bright blue jacket, a searing orange vest, and a pure of pure white underpants.
Meet Tickell’s blue flycatcher
“Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher perched on a branch. Captured in Nagpur, India.” by Sachin Palewar is marked with CC0 1.0.
Tickell’s blue flycatcher (Cyornis tickelliae), is a small passerine bird in the flycatcher family. About 11-12 cm long Tickell’s blue flycatcher has bright blue upperparts, a red throat, and breast, tapering down to a buff-white belly.
“File:Tickell’s blue flycatcher (Cyornis tickelliae) Photograph By Shantanu Kuveskar.jpg” by Shantanu Kuveskar is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
The female is a duller shade of blue when compared to the male, she has a brighter blue brow, shoulder, rump, and tail.
The juvenile of this species is streaked and has a spotted mantle.
“File:The Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher.jpg” by Antony Grossy is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
These birds can be found in tropical Asia, all the way from the Indian Subcontinent eastwards to Bangladesh to western Myanmar.
“File:Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher at Nandi Hills.jpg” by Apoorva Prakash is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Tickell’s blue flycatchers like to breed in dry forested areas, bamboo and gardens. They love thick cover and shade, their favorite haunts being the banks of wooded streams.
“File:Tickells Blue Flycatcher2.jpg” by Sri Raman A is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
They feed mainly by capturing insects in flight but other prey includes other insects such as termites and earwigs that may be gleaned or picked from the ground. Now they are being observed inhabiting garbage dumps. During the breeding season, they may take larger prey including small vertebrates.
“Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher” by AntoGros is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Tickell’s blue-flycatcher breed from March through to August nesting in a hole in a tree or amongst rocks. The interior is lined with fine grasses and fibers. 3-5 eggs are laid within and incubated by both parents for 10-12 days. The chicks are cared for by both sexes and fledge after 10-11 days after hatching, but continue to be fed by their parents for another week.
“File:Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher.jpg” by Flickr user nidhingpoothully . Photo uploaded to commons by user ltshears is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as locally common with a relatively stable population.
“Cyornis tickelliae male 2 – Kaeng Krachan” by JJ Harrison (https://www.jjharrison.com.au/) is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Watch and listen to this bird right here in the video below:
