Blue-capped Ifrita Ifrita kowaldi Scientific name definitions

16–17 cm; 34–36 g. Male nominate race has crown feathers black with broad shiny blue tips (crown appears blue with black central patch and border), centre of nape with small ochre patch; lores whitish, side of head ochre, short white supraorbital line, white or buffy postorbital line, ear-coverts mottled dusky and buffy ochre; upperparts , including upperwing and tail, dark olive-brown, upper­wing-coverts with small buffy spot at tips; ochre below, throat paler, lower belly and flanks washed olive; iris dark brown; bill brown; legs greyish-olive. Female is like male, but postorbital line pale ochraceous. Juvenile resembles female, but forehead ochraceous brown, wing-coverts tipped ochraceous. Race brunnea differs from nominate in having upperparts brownish-olive, remiges and tail more rufous-brown.

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Highlands of New Guinea from Weyland Mts and Nassau Range E, including Huon Peninsula, to Owen Stanley Range.

Montane forest, particularly mossy forest ; c. 1460–3680 m, mainly 2000–2900 m.

Probably sedentary.

Insects, including beetles (Coleoptera); occasionally soft fruit. Forages from low down, on fallen logs, to upper branches. Creeps up trunks and on branches in manner of a nuthatch (Sitta); probes into moss and on underside of branch while hanging on to upper surface, using tail as brace. Joins mixed-species foraging flocks.

Song 5 or 6 rapid, rather buzzing notes, slightly rising and then falling, “zig-zig-zig-zig-zig-zig”; also, a series of louder, squeaky, musical rising and falling notes with quality of a baby’s squeeze toy . Three-note “jitji-jit” when foraging; also a buzzy scold.

Nest with egg in Sept, nests with chick in Oct and late Nov, and fledgling in late Aug, indicating breeding during middle and late dry season, start of wet season and late wet season, at least. Nest a deep, bulky, thick-walled bowl of green moss and some leaf-fern, lined with fine tendrils or rootlets, placed c. 3·6 m above ground in sapling. Clutch 1 egg, white with very sparse clear black and purple-black spots and blotches, larger and more dense at larger end, average 25·8 × 20·7 mm. No further information.

Not globally threatened. Generally fairly common, although occurs at low density in many places.