Biota

Exploring Nature

Section 9D – Core Corvoids & Allies

Order Passeriformes (Perching Birds)

Crow lineage songbirds: Crows, Shrikes, Orioles & Allies

This subsection covers the core corvoid groups and their close relatives — a large and diverse set of songbirds found across Africa, Asia, Australasia, and the Pacific. It begins with cuckooshrikes, whiteheads, boatbills and woodswallows, then moves through the African bushshrikes and vangas, the ioras and whistlers, and the drongos and monarch flycatchers, before concluding with the classic corvids and birds-of-paradise. Several distinctive New Zealand families also appear in this section, reflecting the deep Australasian origins of many crow-lineage songbirds.

These birds occupy a wide range of habitats, from tropical forests to open woodlands, and include some of the most behaviourally diverse songbirds.

Families included in this subsection

  1. Campephagidae – Cuckooshrikes
  2. Mohouidae – Whiteheads
  3. Machaerirhynchidae – Boatbills
  4. Artamidae – Woodswallows, Bellmagpies, and Allies
  5. Rhagologidae – Berryhunter
  6. Pityriasidae – Bristlehead
  7. Aegithinidae – Ioras
  8. Malaconotidae – Bushshrikes and Allies
  9. Platysteiridae – Wattle‑eyes and Batises
  10. Vangidae – Vangas, Helmetshrikes, and Allies
  11. Neosittidae – Sittellas
  12. Psophodidae – Whipbirds and Wedgebills
  13. Eulacestomatidae – Ploughbill
  14. Oreoicidae – Australasian Bellbirds
  15. Falcunculidae – Shriketits
  16. Paramythiidae – Tit Berrypecker and Crested Berrypeckers
  17. Vireonidae – Shrike‑babblers, Erpornis, and Vireos
  18. Oriolidae – Old World Orioles
  19. Pachycephalidae – Whistlers and Allies
  20. Rhipiduridae – Fantails and Silktails
  21. Dicruridae – Drongos
  22. Monarchidae – Monarch Flycatchers, Paradise Flycatchers, and Shrikebills
  23. Corcoracidae – White‑winged Chough and Apostlebird
  24. Ifritidae – Ifrit
  25. Paradisaeidae – Birds‑of‑paradise
  26. Melampittidae – Melampittas
  27. Platylophidae – Jayshrike
  28. Laniidae – Shrikes
  29. Corvidae – Crows, Jays, and Magpies
  30. Cnemophilidae – Satinbirds
  31. Melanocharitidae – Longbills and Berrypeckers
  32. Notiomystidae – Stitchbird
  33. Callaeidae – New Zealand Wattlebirds
  34. Eupetidae – Rail‑babbler
  35. Chaetopidae – Rockjumpers
  36. Picathartidae – Rockfowl
  37. Petroicidae – Australasian Robins

Species I’ve Seen in This Section

Below are the species I have recorded from these families:

1 Family: Campephagidae (Cuckooshrikes) – 5
  1. Black‑winged Cuckooshrike (Coracina melaschistos) — Bhutan 2020
  2. Short‑billed Minivet (Pericrocotus brevirostris) — Bhutan 2020
  3. Long‑tailed Minivet (Pericrocotus ethologus) — Bhutan 2020
  4. Grey‑chinned Minivet (Pericrocotus solaris) — Bhutan 2020
  5. Scarlet Minivet (Pericrocotus speciosus) — Bhutan 2020
2 Family: Mohouidae (Whiteheads) – 3
  1. Whitehead (Mohua albicilla) — New Zealand 2023
  2. Pipipi / Brown Creeper (Mohua novaeseelandiae) — New Zealand 2023
  3. Yellowhead (Mohua ochrocephala) — New Zealand 2023
4 Family: Artamidae (Woodswallows, Bellmagpies, and Allies) – 1
  1. Australian Magpie (Gymnorhina tibicen) — New Zealand 2023
7 Family: Aegithinidae (Ioras) – 1
  1. Common Iora (Aegithina tiphia) — Bhutan 2020
10 Family: Vangidae (Vangas, Helmetshrikes, and Allies) – 1
  1. Bar‑winged Flycatcher‑shrike (Hemipus picatus) — Bhutan 2020
17 Family: Vireonidae (Shrike‑babblers, Erpornis, and Vireos) – 21

Shrike‑babblers (Pteruthius)

  1. Black‑eared Shrike‑babbler (Pteruthius melanotis) — Bhutan 2020
  2. Green Shrike‑babbler (Pteruthius xanthochlorus) — Bhutan 2020
  3. White‑browed Shrike‑babbler (Vireo nelsoni) — Bhutan 2020

Peppershrikes & Greenlets (Cyclarhis, Hylophilus, Pachysylvia)

  1. Rufous‑browed Peppershrike (Cyclarhis gujanensis) — Amazon 2024
  2. Brown‑headed Greenlet (Hylophilus brunneiceps) — Amazon 2024
  3. Scrub Greenlet (Hylophilus flavipes) — Trinidad & Tobago 2019
  4. Gray‑chested Greenlet (Hylophilus thoracicus) — Amazon 2024
  5. Golden‑fronted Greenlet (Pachysylvia aurantiifrons) — Trinidad & Tobago 2019
  6. Lesser Greenlet (Pachysylvia decurtata) — Costa Rica 2015

Vireos (Vireo)

  1. Black‑capped Vireo (Vireo atricapilla) — Texas 2024
  2. Bell’s Vireo (Vireo bellii) — Texas 2024
  3. Yellow‑winged Vireo (Vireo carmioli) — Costa Rica 2015
  4. Red‑eyed Vireo (Chivi) (Vireo chivi) — Trinidad & Tobago 2019; Buenos Aires 2021; Amazon 2024
  5. Yellow‑throated Vireo (Vireo flavifrons) — Costa Rica 2015
  6. Warbling Vireo (Vireo gilvus) — Texas 2024
  7. White‑eyed Vireo (Vireo griseus) — Texas 2024
  8. Brown‑capped Vireo (Vireo leucophrys) — Costa Rica 2015
  9. Red‑eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus) — Yellowstone 2017
  10. Plumbeous Vireo (Vireo plumbeus) — Yellowstone 2017
  11. Blue‑headed Vireo (Vireo solitarius) — Texas 2024
  12. Western Warbling‑Vireo (Vireo swainsoni) — Yellowstone 2017
18 Family: Oriolidae (Old World Orioles) – 2
  1. Maroon Oriole (Oriolus traillii) — Bhutan 2020
  2. Golden Oriole (Oriolus oriolus) — Europe
20 Family: Rhipiduridae (Fantails and Silktails) – 3
  1. Yellow‑bellied Fantail (Chelidorhynx hypoxanthus) — Bhutan 2020
  2. White‑throated Fantail (Rhipidura albicollis) — Bhutan 2020
  3. New Zealand Fantail (Rhipidura fuliginosa) — New Zealand 2023
21 Family: Dicruridae (Drongos) – 6
  1. Black Drongo (Dicrurus adsimilis) — Bhutan 2020
  2. Bronzed Drongo (Dicrurus aeneus) — Bhutan 2020
  3. Hair‑crested Drongo (Dicrurus hottentottus) — Bhutan 2020
  4. Ashy Drongo (Dicrurus leucophaeus) — Bhutan 2020
  5. Greater Racket‑tailed Drongo (Dicrurus paradiseus) — Bhutan 2020
  6. Lesser Racket‑tailed Drongo (Dicrurus remifer) — Bhutan 2020
28 Family: Laniidae (Shrikes) – 7
  1. Red‑backed Shrike (Lanius collurio) — Slovenia 2024
  2. Great Grey Shrike (Lanius excubitor) — Norway & Finland 2018
  3. Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus) — Texas 2024
  4. Iberian Grey Shrike (Southern Grey Shrike) (Lanius meridionalis) — Spain 2016
  5. Long‑tailed Shrike (Lanius schach) — Bhutan 2020
  6. Woodchat Shrike (Lanius senator) — Spain 2016
  7. Grey‑backed Shrike (Lanius tephronotus) — Bhutan 2020
29 Family: Corvidae (Crows, Jays, and Magpies) – 28
  1. Woodhouse’s Scrub Jay (Aphelocoma woodhouseii) — Texas 2024
  2. White‑throated Magpie‑Jay (Calocitta formosa) — Costa Rica 2015
  3. Western Jackdaw (Coloeus monedula) — Various — common UK bird;
  4. American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) — Yellowstone 2017; Texas 2024
  5. Northern Raven (Corvus corax) — Various — common UK bird;
  6. Hooded Crow (Corvus cornix) — Norway & Finland 2018; Slovenia 2024
  7. Carrion Crow (Corvus corone) — Various — common UK bird
  8. Rook (Corvus frugilegus) — Various — common UK bird;
  9. Eastern Jungle Crow (Corvus levaillantii) — Bhutan and India 2020
  10. Large‑billed Crow (Corvus macrorhynchos) — Bhutan and India 2020
  11. Fish Crow (Corvus ossifragus) — Texas 2024
  12. House Crow (Corvus splendens) — Bhutan and India 2020
  13. Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) — Texas 2024
  14. Steller’s Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri) — Yellowstone 2017
  15. Green Jay (Cyanocorax yncas) — Texas 2024
  16. Iberian Magpie (Cyanopica cooki) — Spain 2016
  17. Grey Treepie (Dendrocitta formosae) — Bhutan and India 2020
  18. Rufous Treepie (Dendrocitta vagabunda) — Bhutan and India 2020
  19. Eurasian Jay (Garrulus glandarius) — Various — common UK bird;
  20. Spotted Nutcracker (Nucifraga caryocatactes) — Bhutan and India 2020
  21. Clark’s Nutcracker (Nucifraga columbiana) — Yellowstone 2017
  22. Canada Jay (Perisoreus canadensis) — Yellowstone 2017
  23. Siberian Jay (Perisoreus infaustus) — Norway & Finland 2018
  24. Black‑billed Magpie (Pica hudsonia) — Yellowstone 2017
  25. Eurasian Magpie (Pica pica) — Various — common UK bird;
  26. Brown Jay (Psilorhinus morio) — Costa Rica 2015
  27. Red‑billed Chough (Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax) — Bhutan and India 2020
  28. Yellow‑billed Blue Magpie (Urocissa flavirostris) — Bhutan and India 2020
32 Family: Notiomystidae (Stitchbird) – 1
  1. Stitchbird (Hihi) (Notiomystis cincta) — New Zealand 2023
33 Family: Callaeidae (New Zealand Wattlebirds) – 2
  1. South Island Saddleback (Philesturnus carunculatus) — New Zealand 2023
  2. North Island Saddleback (Philesturnus rufusater) — New Zealand 2023
37 Family: Petroicidae (Australasian Robins) – 3
  1. South Island Robin (Petroica australis) — New Zealand 2023
  2. North Island Robin (Petroica longipes) — New Zealand 2023
  3. Tomtit (Petroica macrocephala) — New Zealand 2023

End