Bird Watch: Tiny grey-headed canary flycatcher that is known for its swift movements

The bird can be spotted in the wooded areas and semi-forest areas of Chandigarh till March. It has a squarish grey head, canary yellow belly, and a flat bill that looks like an equilateral triangle.

A grey-headed canary flycatcher. Its identification marks are a squarish grey head and breast, canary yellow belly, and yellowish-green upper parts. (Express Photo)

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Grey-headed canary flycatcher is a common winter visitor that migrates to the Inter-State Chandigarh Region (ISCR) every year along with other species to escape the harsh winter of the upper Himalayas during the non-breeding season from September to March.

The male and female of the attractive bird which is just about 12-13cm in length are alike. The wooded areas and semi-forest area is its ideal habitat. Its identification marks are a squarish grey head and breast, canary yellow belly, and yellowish-green upper parts. A flat bill, which looks like an equilateral triangle, is fringed with long rictal bristles.

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The restless canary flycatcher makes random movements from one branch to another and gets easily mixed up with other bird species. The bird preys on aerial insects while taking quick flights from the low perch under the canopy of trees.

Due to the topography of Chandigarh, Panchkula, and Mohali, which are full with plenty of wooded areas, the Grey-headed Canary Flycatcher is easy to spot in public parks, including Leisure Valley, Sector 10, Rose Garden, Sector 16, Nagar Van, etc conditioning the patience of the beholder. It moves so swiftly that one who wants to capture it in the lens needs to be alert and have a lot of concentration.

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This bird breeds in summer from April to June. The female prepares the nest. A clutch is mostly three to four eggs. As it stays in the plains till March, there is plenty of time to enjoy this bird in any of the wooded parks in your city.

Saurabh Parashar

Saurabh Parashar is a journalist with The Indian Express, where he primarily covers developments in Himachal Pradesh. He has been associated with The Indian Express since 2017 and has earlier worked with The Times of India. He has 17 year + experience in the field of print journalism. An alumnus of Government College for Men, Sector 11, (Panjab University), Chandigarh, Saurabh holds a Diploma in Journalism from Bhartiya Vidya Bhawan, Chandigarh. He pursued his Master’s in Mass Communication from Guru Jambheshwar University of Science & Technology, Hisar. In addition, he completed his law degree from Himachal Pradesh University (HPU), Shimla. ... Read More

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