| Myiagra | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Broad-billed flycatcher Myiagra ruficollis | |
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Monarchidae |
| Genus: | Myiagra Vigors &Horsfield, 1827 |
| Type species | |
| Myiagra rubeculoides[1] =Todus rubecula Vigors & Horsfield, 1827 | |
| Species | |
see text | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Myiagra is agenus of passerine birds in the familyMonarchidae, the monarch flycatchers, native to Australasia, sometimes referred to as thebroad-billed flycatchers or simplybroadbills.
The genusMyiagra was introduced in 1827 by the naturalistsNicholas Vigors andThomas Horsfield.[2] The name combines theAncient Greekmuia meaning "a fly" andagreō meaning "to seize".Myiagros was also the name of a Greek god.[3] Thetype species was designated byGeorge Robert Gray in 1840 as theleaden flycatcher.[4][5]
The genus contains 21 species, including one that is now extinct:[6]
Formerly, some authorities also considered the following species (or subspecies) as species within the genusMyiagra:
Members of this genus are separated from other members of the family, particularly theMonarcha monarchs they resemble, by their consistentsexual dimorphism, egg patterning, and the crested heads that often lack facial patterns (a fewMonarcha monarchs also lack facial patterns). Flycatchers in the genusMyiagra are small birds ranging in length from 13–20 cm in length. They have broad flattenedbills adapted to catching insects. The bill is usually black, the exception being theblue-crested flycatcher of Fiji, whose bill is bright orange. The insides of their mouths are bright orange, noticeable when singing. When perched they have an upright stance. The satinyplumage of all species issexually dichromatic, to a greater or lesser degree. Overall males tend to have dark blue or black heads, backs, wings and tails and pale bellies and rumps. Some males have red underparts, others have the dark upper plumage all over, and the slightly aberrant shining flycatchers have chestnut wings, backs and tails. The females follow a similar pattern to males but have lighter, more washed out colours. When perched the species in this genus constantly moves their closed tail, in therestless flycatcher the tail is shacked from side to side. The orange lining to their mouths is visible when they sing.
Members of this genus differ from the closely related genusMonarcha in having their crested heads often unpatterned, and the sexes being different in appearance. They have satiny plumage and perch upright, their long tails tending to move frequently. Males typically have dark blue heads and upper parts and paler underparts, and females are mostly similar in appearance to the males but their colour is more washed out and less intense. Their broad beaks are adapted to feed on insects, which they mostly catch on the wing.
Thecalls are generally unmusical and are described as guttural, harsh and rasping.
The genus is adapted to feeding on insects in a manner similar to the Old World flycatchers in the familyMuscicapidae. Prey is obtained bysallying from a perch to obtain flying insects or by hover-gleaning, snatching insects from the undersides of leaves while in flight.
The genus is spread acrossAustralasia, with some representatives inWallacea,New Guinea,Australia, theSolomon Islands,New Caledonia,Vanuatu,Fiji,Samoa andMicronesia. Members of this genus occur as occasionalvagrants inNew Zealand and formerly occurred inTonga andGuam.
