Yellow-crowned Gonolek

Overview

The yellow-crowned gonolek, also known as the common gonolek, is a medium-sized passerine bird in the bushshrike family. It is a common resident breeder in equatorial Africa, ranging from Senegal and the Democratic Republic of Congo east to Ethiopia. Classified as Least Concern, it is a skulking species that frequents dense undergrowth in forests and other wooded habitats.

Identification

• 22 cm long with a long tail and short wings.
• Vividly coloured plumage with solidly black upper parts and a golden crown, contrasting with scarlet underparts and a buff-yellow undertail.
• Dark legs.
• Calls include whistles and rattles, often sung in duet, featuring a fluted too-lioo overlapped by a rattling ch-chacha.

Habitat

This bird inhabits thick undergrowth, dense bushes, forests, and other wooded environments across equatorial Africa. Its range extends from Senegal and the Democratic Republic of Congo in the west to Ethiopia in the east.

Diet

The yellow-crowned gonolek feeds primarily on insects found in bushes or on the ground, with a diet consisting mostly of beetles and caterpillars. It occasionally consumes bird eggs and nestlings.

Did you know?

Courtship displays involve pairs chasing each other through bushes while leaping from branch to branch and emitting metallic twanging sounds.