Drongos
| Drongo | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Spangled drongo | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: |
Dicruridae Vigors, 1825 |
| Genus: |
Dicrurus Vieillot, 1816 |
The drongos, subfamily Dicrurinae, are a subfamily of small passerine birds of the Old World tropics in the family Dicruridae. Originally the family included the single genus Dicrurus (subfamily Dicrurinae), but now it has been expanded to include the subfamilies Rhipidurinae (Australasian fantails), Monarchinae (monarchs and paradise flycatchers) and Grallininae (magpie-larks). The subfamily Dicrurinae contains two genera, the monotypic Chaetorhynchus, and Dicrurus, which contains about 25 species. The placement of the pygmy drongo (Chaetorhynchus papuensis) in the subfamily is in dispute on morphological and genetic grounds.
Drongos are mostly black or dark grey, short-legged birds, with an upright stance when perched. They have forked tails and some have elaborate tail decorations. They feed on insects which they catch in flight or on the ground. Some species are accomplished mimics and have a variety of alarm calls, to which other birds and animals often respond. It has been suggested they may utter hoax alarm calls in order to benefit from the false alarms, a matter of interest to researchers.
This family originally included only the genus Dicrurus (subfamily Dicrurinae) but Christidis and Boles (2007) expand the family to include the subfamilies Rhipidurinae (Australasian fantails), Monarchinae (monarchs and paradise flycatchers) and Grallininae (magpie-larks). The name is originally from the indigenous language of Madagascar, where it refers to local species, but is now used to refer to all members of the subfamily. The family is usually treated as having two genera, Chaetorhynchus and Dicrurus. The genus Chaetorhynchus contains a single species, the New Guinea endemic pygmy drongo. The placement of this species in the family is highly dubious due to both morphological and genetic differences, and it has recently been placed, along with the closely related silktail of Fiji, with the fantails (Rhipiduridae). The remaining genus contains the remaining 25 species of drongo.
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Wikipedia