THE WORLD BIRDS - An Online Bird Book
Order Passeriformes Family Platysteiridae
Wattle-eyes, Batises and Shrike-flycatchers
Order Passeriformes Family Platysteiridae
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 forests or bush. They hunt by flycatching, or by taking prey from the ground like a shrike. The nest is a small neat cup low in a tree or bush.
Genus Batis
Batis are strikingly patterned, typically with a gray crown, black eye mask, dark back, and paler underparts, often with a colored or black breast band and white on the throat which contrasts strongly with the black eye stripe. Male and female plumages usually differ.
Batis,_Angolan Batis minulla Found: Angola, Republic of the Congo, DR Congo, Gabon
Image by: 1) Andrew_Self - Angola 2) Nik_Borrow - Gabon
1) Female 2) Male
Batis,_Bioko Batis poensis Found: Equatorial Guinea.
Image by: 1) Nik_Borrow
Batis, Black-headed Batis minor Found: Africa
The Western Black-headed Batis was previously considered conspecific with the Black-headed Batis.
Image by: 1) Peter Steward - Kenya 2) Nigel_Voaden - Central African Republic.jpg){kind=link}
Batis,_Boulton's also Margaret's Batis Batis margaritae Found: Angola, DR Congo, Zambia
Image by: 1, 2) Nik_Borrow- Zambia Nigel_Voaden - DR Congo
Batis,_Cape Batis capensis Found: South Africa, Zimbabwe
The male has Cape Batis a brown back; gray crown; black mask; white throat; white underparts with black breast-band; rufous wings, flanks. Female similar with narrower rufous breastpband; rufous patch on throat.
Image by: 1) Paul_Bernard 2) Blake_Matheson - South Africa 3, 4) Nik Borrows - Zimbabwe1) Female 2, 3) Male
Batis, Chinspot Batis molitor Found: Africa
The male Chinspot Batis has black back with white on wing; gray crown; white throat; black breast-band; rest underparts white. Female simialr to male with chestnut throat spot, breast-band.
Image by: 1) Arno Meintjes 2, 3) Dick Daniels - Keekorok Lodge in the Masia Mara, Kenya 4) Joseph Mochoge - Kenya 5) Johann_duPreez - South Africa
1, 2, 3) Female 4, 5) Male
Batis,_Dark Batis crypta Found: east Afica
The male Dark Batis has gray upperparts with some black feather tips; dark gray crown; black face; red eyes; white underparts with black breast band. Female has brown upperparts; gray crown; black face mask; thin white superciliim; rufous chin spot; rufous breast with white tips to some feathers.
Image by: 1, 2, 3, 4) Louis_Andre_Hansen - Tanzania
Batis,_Gray-headed Batis orientalis Found: Africa
The male Gray-headed Batis has dark gray upperparts; black tail with white edge; white rump; bluish-black head with white throat; white underparts with black breast-band. Female similar to male but rufous breast-band.
Image by:
1) Nik_Borrow - Ethiopia 2) Kris Maes - Ethiopia 3) Bassel_Abi_Jummaa - Ethiopia
1) Female 2, 3) Male
Batis,_Ituri Batis ituriensis Found: DR Congo, Uganda
The male has Ituri Batis black upperparts; black wings with white stripe; black tail with white other edge; black head with white loral spot; white underparts with black breast-band. Female similar to mail but with thin white superciliu..
Image by:
1) Nik_Borrow - Uganda1) Male
Batis,_Pale Batis soror Found: Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zimbabwe.
Image by: 1) Steve_Garvie - Kenya 2) Maans_Booysen - Mozambique
Batis,_Pririt Batis pririt Found: Angola, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa
The male Pririt has dark gray back, crown; black eye-mask, breast-band; white rest of underparts, throat. Female similar but no breast-band; instead has buff breast, throat.
Image by: 1, 2) Alan_Manson - South Africa 3) Ron_Knight 4) Nik_Borrow.- Nambia
Batis,_Pygmy Batis perkeo Found: Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda
The Pygmy Batis has black and white plumage; orange eye; thin white supercilium, Female has reddish-brown breast-band.
Image by: 1, 3, 4) Peter_Steward - Kenya 2, 5) Nik_Borrow - Tanzania, Ethiopia
Batis, Ruwenzori Batis diops Found: Africa
The Ruwenzori Batis has bluish-black upperparts; white wing stripe; white underparts with black breast-band.
Image by: 1) Dick Daniels - specimen in Nairobi National Museum, Kenya 2) Oleg Chernyshov - Uganda
Batis,_Senegal Batis senegalensis Found: Africa
The male Senegal Batis has slate-gray upper-back, mantle; mottled gray, white, and black lower-back; browinish-black wings with white stripe; white underparts with black breast-band; glossy bluish-black mask. Female simalar but duller; rufous breast-band.
Image by: 1) Nik_Borrow - Ghana 2, 3) Steve_Garvie1) Female 2, 3) Male
Batis,_Short-tailed also Forest Batis Batis mixta Found: eastern Africa
The male Short-tailed Batis has blusih-gray upperparts; black mask; white underparts with black breast band. Female has similar pattern with olive upperparts.
Image by:
1) Nik_Borrow - Tanzania 2, 3) Steve_Garvie - Kenya .
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1, 2) Female 3) Male
Batis,_Verreaux's Batis minima Found: Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon
The male Verreaux's Batis has velvety-black upperparts with mottled rump; black wings with white stripe; black head with white loral spot; white underparts with black breast-band. Female similar to male with smaller loral spot; narrow dark gray breast-band.
Image by:
1) hbw.com
Batis,_West_African Batis occulta Found: Africa
Image by: 1) Laval Roy - Ghana
Batis,_Western_Black-headed Batis erlangeri Found: central Africa
The Western Black-headed Batis was previously considered conspecific with the Black-headed Batis.
Image by: 1) Nik_Borrow - thiopia
Batis,_Woodward's Batis fratrum Found: Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Zimbabwe
The male Woodward's Batis has blue-gray upperparts; mainly black head; white throat; orange-red eyes; black tail with white edges; pale rufous breast, upper-belly, Female has browner upperparts; pale reddish-brown wing stripes.
Image by:
1) Alan_Manson - South Africa 2, 3) Francesco_Veronesi - South Africa
1) Female 2) Male
Genus Lanioturdus - 1 species
Shrike,_White-tailed Lanioturdus torquatus Found: Angola, Namibia
The White-tailed Shrike forages from ground level, where it hops about in large bounds and upright posture scanning for insects. It is a clumsy flier with shallow and rapid wingbeats like other batises.
Image by: 1) Jerry_Oldenettel - Namibia 2) Charles_Davies - Angola
Genus Platysteira
Wattle-eye,_Banded Platysteira laticincta Found: Cameroon
Image by: 1) Nik_Borrow
Wattle-eye,_Black-necked Platysteira chalybea Found: Angola, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon
Image by: 1) Jacob_Cooper
Wattle-eye, Black-throated Platysteira peltata Found: Africa
Image by: 1, 2, 3) Dick Daniels - Keekorok Lodge in the Masai Mara 4, 5) Alan Manson - South Africa 6) Francesco Veronesi - Malawi 7) Joseph Mochoge - Gilgil, Kenya
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1 - 4) Female 5, 6, 7) Male
Wattle-eye_Brown-throated Platysteira cyanea Found: central Africa
The breeding male Brown-throated Wattle-eye has glossy black upperparts; white underparts with neat black breast-band. Female has gray-black upperparts; maroon throat and breast; white belly.
Image by:
1) Tom_Tarrant - Uganda 2) Heather_and_Mike - Uganda 3) Allan_Hopkins - Gambia 4) Steve_Garvie - Gambia 5, 6) Nik_Borrow - Uganda, Ethiopia
1, 2) Female 3 - 6) Male
Wattle-eye,_Chestnut Platysteira castanea Found: Africa
Image by: 1) Dick Daniels - specimen in Nairobi National Museum, Kenya 2) Michael and Helen Cox 3) Brendan_Ryan - Uganda 4) Marcel_Holyoak - Cameroon
1) Male, left; female, right 2, 3) Female 4) Male
Wattle-eye,_Jameson's Platysteira jamesoni Found: DR Congo, Kenya, South Sudan, Tanzania
Image by: 1) Steve_Garvie
Wattle-eye,_Red-cheeked Platysteira blissetti Found: Africa
Image by: 1) Nik_Borrow
Wattle-eye,_West_African Platysteira hormophora Found: Africa
Image by: 1) barty63 - Ghana 2, 3, 4) Nik_Borrow - Ghana
Wattle-eye,_White-fronted Platysteira albifrons Found: Angola
The White-fronted Wattle-eye is similar to the Brown-throated Wattle-eye except the White-fronted Wattle-eye has some white on its forehead.
Image by:
1) Pedro_Vaz_Pinto - Angola
Wattle-eye,_Yellow-bellied Platysteira concreta Found: Africa
Image by: 1) Nik_Borrow - Cameroon
1) Female
