Southern Tchagra
Tchagra tchagra
Coastal bush and thickets. Brown crown and mantle. Rufous wings; heavy bill.
Tchagras
LC
Endemic
Description
Common to fairly common endemic resident. Larger than [Brown-crowned Tchagra], differing from it and [Black-crowned Tchagra] in reddish-brown crown grading into olive-brown mantle, back and central tail-feathers with no black on the upper feathers and wings. Black line separating brown crown from pale eyebrow inconspicuous or absent. Also greyer below than other tchagras. Immature is duller, with buffy wing coverts and fulvous-grey underparts. The call is a loud rattling sound followed by a rapid ‘chchchch…’, ending with ‘tew-a-tew’. Also has a loud whistle. Occurs singly or in pairs in dense thickets in coastal bush, thorny tangles and valley bush; less common in the north. A reluctant flier but performs an aerial display like Brown-crowned Tchagra.
Quick Facts
Size
21 cm - M
Names
A: Grysborstjagra
Z: ushowe
G: Kaptschagra
Bird Family
Heavy-billed, similarly coloured bushshrikes that feed on or near the ground, creeping about in the lower stratum of their preferred habitat and moving from bush to bush in low, rather heavy flight. They often reveal their presence by distinctive calls.
Distribution
Gallery
Behaviour
Breeding
Habitat
Occurs singly or in pairs in dense thickets in coastal bush, thorny tangles and valley bush; less common in the north.
