Forest Scimitarbill Rhinopomastus castaneiceps Scientific name definitions

26–28 cm; 22–25·5 g. Small, slender, dark woodhoopoe with long tail. Nominate male with rich chestnut head; back iridescent blue-green or green-blue; tail violet; wings dark blue with greenish gloss; no white in wings or tail; lower breast and belly dull greenish-black; bill relatively short and straight, grey, shading to black at base, with yellow along cutting edges; eye dark brown; tarsi and feet black. Female smaller than male, and with less iridescence. Immature like female in race brunneiceps, but duller and smaller than female in nominate race (1 Borrow, N., and R. Demey (2001). Birds of Western Africa. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Male of race <em>brunneiceps</em> polymorphic, with head light chestnut-brown , pale brown, white , or black with green gloss.

Editor's Note: This article requires further editing work to merge existing content into the appropriate Subspecies sections. Please bear with us while this update takes place.

Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Midstorey and canopy of tall open-canopy, primary forest, especially in areas with creepers, ferns and moss-covered branches (4 Carswell, M., D. Pomeroy, J. Reynolds, and H. Tushabe (2005). The Bird Atlas of Uganda. British Ornithologists’ Club and British Ornithologists' Union, Oxford, UK. Close ), as well as secondary growth, old plantations (5 Halleux, D. (1994). Annotated bird list of Macenta Prefecture, Guinea. Malimbus 16(1):10–29. Close ) and forest edge, also edges of clearings and park-like country with well spaced large trees (6 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (1998). Further additions to and deletions from the avifauna of Congo-Brazzaville. Malimbus 20(1):15–32. Close ). Recorded from near sea-level to 1500 m. May have some subtle preferences within the forest habitat: no specimens obtained by collectors in low-elevation forest in W Uganda, but series of birds taken at a site not far away at somewhat higher elevation.

Resident; probably sedentary within forest.

Mostly arthropods, including adult beetles, cockroaches, spiders, ants and termites, including alates, also caterpillars, various larvae and pupae; also small fruits, berries, seeds. Apparently almost always forages high in trees , above 25 m, occasionally descending lower, to c. 15 m. Agile, often creeping or hopping along narrow branches (up to 10 cm in diameter) (7 Gatter, W. (1997). Birds of Liberia. Pica Press, Aula-Verlag and Yale University Press, Robertsbridge, UK; Wiesbaden, Germany; and New Haven, CT, USA. Close ), twigs, epiphytes and creepers; clings head downwards and hangs beneath branches; probes crevices for prey, also probes fruits and flowers for insects; opens rolled-up leaves. Termites captured in flight. Forages alone or in pairs, often as small groups of up to 5–6. Joins mixed-species foraging flocks.

Song comprises series of 7–9 or up to 20 (1 Borrow, N., and R. Demey (2001). Birds of Western Africa. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ) loud, plaintive whistles , "kweep-wheep-wheep-wheep...-wheew" (1 Borrow, N., and R. Demey (2001). Birds of Western Africa. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), remarkably similar to that of some scimitarbills (Rhinopomastus spp.) (6 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (1998). Further additions to and deletions from the avifauna of Congo-Brazzaville. Malimbus 20(1):15–32. Close ) especially R. aterrimus (1 Borrow, N., and R. Demey (2001). Birds of Western Africa. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); also a fast, twittering chatter that recalls P. bollei, which can be given by several birds in chorus (1 Borrow, N., and R. Demey (2001). Birds of Western Africa. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Nest with young in Liberia in early Apr; birds in Uganda and DRCongo with enlarged gonads in Nov–Dec; copulation observed in Congo-Brazzaville in mid-Jan (6 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (1998). Further additions to and deletions from the avifauna of Congo-Brazzaville. Malimbus 20(1):15–32. Close ). Only known nest was sited in tree hole 35 m above ground; young fed by both parents at ten-minute intervals. Breeding biology otherwise entirely unknown.

Not globally threatened. Numbers of this inconspicuous and little-known species entirely unknown; apparently locally common in uncut forest; not uncommon in Liberia. Only recently discovered in SE Guinea (5 Halleux, D. (1994). Annotated bird list of Macenta Prefecture, Guinea. Malimbus 16(1):10–29. Close ), Central African Republic (8 Dowsett, R. J., P. Christy, and M. Germain (1999). Additions and corrections to the avifauna of Central African Republic. Malimbus 21(1):1–15. Close ) and Congo-Brazzaville (6 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (1998). Further additions to and deletions from the avifauna of Congo-Brazzaville. Malimbus 20(1):15–32. Close ). Threats to its continued existence consist of destruction of forest habitat: e.g., probably no longer occurs in W Kenya, as a result of deforestation in that region; several tracts of forest in W Uganda have also been largely or completely destroyed, almost certainly leading to this species’ disappearance from those areas, although formerly considered fairly common there, at least locally (4 Carswell, M., D. Pomeroy, J. Reynolds, and H. Tushabe (2005). The Bird Atlas of Uganda. British Ornithologists’ Club and British Ornithologists' Union, Oxford, UK. Close ). Present in several national parks, e.g. Taï Forest (Ivory Coast), Korup (Cameroon) and, at least formerly, Mount Elgon (W Kenya) (4 Carswell, M., D. Pomeroy, J. Reynolds, and H. Tushabe (2005). The Bird Atlas of Uganda. British Ornithologists’ Club and British Ornithologists' Union, Oxford, UK. Close ).