28-11-2016 JURONG, SINGAPORE - WHITE CROWNED ROBIN CHAT (Cossypha albicapillus)

The white-crowned robin-chat (Cossypha albicapilla ) is a species of bird in the family Muscicapidae.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, and Togo.Its natural habitats are dry savanna and subtropical or tropical moist shrubland.

The white-crowned robin-chat (Cossypha albicapillus) is a species of bird in the family Muscicapidae. It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, and Togo. Its natural habitats are dry savanna and subtropical or tropical moist shrubland.

It has typically been assumed to be monogamous. However, at least one instance of cooperative breeding and possible multiple paternity has been observed.

A large and colorful robin-chat with a black face mask that continues onto the chin. The color of the crown is pure white in the far western part of the range, and white with black markings elsewhere. A shy bird of dense thickets, gardens, and forest, often along rivers and streams. Similar to Snowy-crowned Robin-Chat, but larger, usually with black markings in the white crown, and with a black rather than orange chin. Usually detected by song, a fast and complex mix of musical whistles.

White-crowned Robin-chat primarily feeds on a diet of insects, with a particular preference for termites and ants. It forages on the ground, flipping over leaves and debris to locate its prey. Its unique adaptation lies in its skilled hunting technique.

White-crowned Robin-chat typically inhabits a variety of wooded environments, ranging from thickets and gallery forests in regions receiving annual rainfall between 300–500 mm, to dry savanna-woodlands. Its preferred habitats also include dense riverine scrubs, overgrown plantations, and gardens with rich, shady undergrowth. White-crowned Robin-chat is adaptable and can be found from sea level up to an altitude of around 950 meters, with the race omoensis occupying woodland thickets in rocky hills, at approximately 1500 meters.