Black-crowned Tchagra

Overview

The black-crowned tchagra (Tchagra senegalus) is a colourful and unmistakable bushshrike found across the Arabian Peninsula and most of Africa. It belongs to a family of passerine birds that is closely related to true shrikes.

Identification

• Length of 19–22 cm with a black crown and eye stripes separated by a broad white supercilium.
• Pale grey underparts and pale brown upperparts, featuring chestnut folded wings and a black tail tipped white.
• Black bill in adults, contrasting with the pale yellow bill and brown cap of young birds.
• Descending whistling song described as 'chee-chee chee cheroo cheroo', often used to lure birds into view.

Habitat

This species inhabits scrub, open woodland, semi-desert, and cultivation areas. Its range covers the Arabian Peninsula and the majority of the African continent.

Diet

Similar in habits to shrikes, the black-crowned tchagra hunts insects and other small prey from a perch in a bush. It sits less conspicuously than true shrikes.

Did you know?

The bird can be readily tempted into sight by imitating its descending whistling song, presumably because it interprets the sound as an intruder in its territory.