lesser racket-tailed drongo

{{Short description|Species of bird}}

{{Speciesbox

| image = Lesser racket-tailed drongo (Dicrurus remifer tectirostris).jpg

| image_caption = D. r. tectirostris
Pokhara, Nepal

| status = LC

| status_system = IUCN3.1

| status_ref = {{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2016 |title=Dicrurus remifer |volume=2016 |page=e.T22706976A94100858 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22706976A94100858.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}

| genus = Dicrurus

| species = remifer

| authority = (Temminck, 1823)

| synonyms =

}}

The lesser racket-tailed drongo (Dicrurus remifer) is a species of bird in the family Dicruridae.{{cite book |last= Jeyarajasingam |first= Allen |date= 2012 |title= A Field Guide to the Birds of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore |edition= 2nd |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UIh8RwJpYYkC&dq=Dicrurus+remifer&pg=PR132 |location= New York, United States |publisher= Oxford University Press, Incorporated |page= 280, 282 |isbn=978-0-19-963942-7}}{{rp|280}}{{cite web| editor1-last=Gill | editor1-first=Frank | editor1-link=Frank Gill (ornithologist) | editor2-last=Donsker | editor2-first=David | editor3-last=Rasmussen | editor3-first=Pamela | editor3-link=Pamela Rasmussen | date=January 2023 | title=Orioles, drongos, fantails | work=IOC World Bird List Version 13.1 | url=https://www.worldbirdnames.org/new/bow/orioles/ | publisher=International Ornithologists' Union | access-date=11 March 2023 }} It is found in the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia.

It is found in the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia, ranging across Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, and Vietnam. Its natural habitat is near the edge or inside of subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.{{rp|282}}

Description

File:Lesser Racket-tailed Drongo at nest - Kang Kra Chan - Thailand S4E4944 (14278976543) (2).jpg in Thailand]]

The drongo is about 25–27·5 cm long, excluding outermost tail feathers (c. 30–40 cm to end of tail); average weight of males is between 39–49 grams while females are between 35·5–44 grams.{{citation needed|date=June 2020}} Its feathers are black with a bluish metallic gloss. The end of its tail has long shafts more than {{convert|50|cm|in}}.{{rp|282}}

It can be confused with the greater racket-tailed drongo, but the latter doesn't have a crest on head and its tail is square cut.{{rp|282}}

Taxonomy

There are 4 recognised subspecies of lesser racket-tailed drongo:{{cite journal |title=Lesser Racquet-tailed Drongo (Dicrurus remifer) |url=https://www.hbw.com/species/lesser-racquet-tailed-drongo-dicrurus-remifer |website=www.hbw.com |date=2020 |publisher=Handbook of The Bird of the World |doi=10.2173/bow.lrtdro1.01 |access-date=19 March 2019 |last1=Rocamora |first1=Gérard |last2=Yeatman-Berthelot |first2=Dosithée |editor-first1=Josep |editor-first2=Andrew |editor-first3=Jordi |editor-first4=David |editor-first5=Eduardo |editor-last1=Del Hoyo |editor-last2=Elliott |editor-last3=Sargatal |editor-last4=Christie |editor-last5=De Juana |url-access=subscription }}

  • D. r. tectirostris (Hodgson, 1836) – lower Himalayas from N India (Uttarakhand) E to Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram, NE Bangladesh, S China (SE Xizang, W & S Yunnan and SW Guangxi), Myanmar (except extreme S), N Thailand, N Laos and N Vietnam (S to Huê).
  • D. r. peracensis (E. C. S. Baker, 1918) – S Myanmar (Tenasserim) and SW & S Thailand S to N Peninsular Malaysia (S Selangor and S Pahang), S Laos and S Vietnam (S to S Annam).
  • D. r. lefoli (Delacour & Jabouille, 1928) – mountains of S Cambodia (Cardamom and Elephant Ranges).
  • D. r. remifer (Temminck, 1823) – Sumatra (Barisan Range and Batak Highlands) and W Java.

References

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