Common woodshrike

Appearance

The common woodshrike is dully ashy brown and like other woodshrikes has a large head with a strong hooked beak. They have a broad creamy brow above a dark cheek patch and white outer tail feathers contrasting with their dark tail. The Sri Lankan species is similar darker on the underside, with the dark cheek bordered below by a buffy sub-moustachial stripe and a white rump.

Behavior

Usually found in pairs, they have a loud whistling song made of several notes. The usual call is a plaintive ''weet-weet'' followed by a series of quick ''whi-whi-whi-whee?''. They feed on insects and berries in mainly in vegetation but sometimes descending to the ground. They have a habit of adjusting their wings, raising them over the tail shortly after alighting on a perch. They nest in summer before the rainy season, building a cup nest on a bare fork. The nest is made of fibres and bark held by cobwebs and covered with bits of bark and lichen. It is lined with silky plant fibres. Three eggs are the usual clutch. Both parents incubate. Only the female may feed the young with insects and berries. Two broods may be raised in some years.

Habitat

Usually found in pairs, they have a loud whistling song made of several notes. The usual call is a plaintive ''weet-weet'' followed by a series of quick ''whi-whi-whi-whee?''. They feed on insects and berries in mainly in vegetation but sometimes descending to the ground. They have a habit of adjusting their wings, raising them over the tail shortly after alighting on a perch. They nest in summer before the rainy season, building a cup nest on a bare fork. The nest is made of fibres and bark held by cobwebs and covered with bits of bark and lichen. It is lined with silky plant fibres. Three eggs are the usual clutch. Both parents incubate. Only the female may feed the young with insects and berries. Two broods may be raised in some years.