Rufous Vanga Schetba rufa Scientific name definitions

20 cm; 30·5–44 g. A medium-sized vanga with strong, broad bill. Male has head down to chest, nape and neck black with blue sheen; upperparts  , including upper­wing-coverts , rufous; primaries dark brown, edged lighter brown on outer side, secondaries and tertials brown-tinged rufous; tail  rufous; side of breast, flanks, belly and rest of lower underparts white , white underwing-coverts; iris  dark maroon-red; bill blue-tinged grey; legs blue-grey. Female has glossy black front and top of head and nape, rufous upperparts, except for grey nape-collar; rufous upperwing and tail, grey-brown inner half of primaries; whitish cheek , chin and upper throat , fading to light grey chest and flanks, white belly and undertail-coverts, white underwing-coverts; bare parts as for male. Juvenile resembles female, but black of head mixed with dull brown, upperparts and wing dull brown, tail dull rufous, chest tinged brown, iris dark brown, bill black with white tip; one-year-old immature male has black spots extending from neck to throat. Race <em>occidentalis</em> differs from nominate only in slightly longer, heavier bill.

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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.

Lowland evergreen humid forest in E and deciduous forest in W, in areas with open understorey and large trees; requires primary forest. Sea-level to c. 800 m.

Sedentary within territory; location of territories remains the same in successive years.

Invertebrates , including beetles (Coleoptera), cockroaches (Blattodea), other insects, worms (Oligochaeta); also small vertebrates, e.g. lizards, chameleons (Chamaeleonidae) and geckos (Gekkonidae). A sit-and-wait predator, spends long periods perched on low branch, on lookout for potential prey; watches immediate surroundings and seizes prey on branches, trunks, sometimes among dead leaves on forest floor. Feeds on ground more than do other vangas; rarely forages on wing. Flies rarely, and then only for short distances. Main techniques are snatching, gleaning, sally-gleaning, hover-gleaning, less often hawking. Occurs in pairs or, more often, in family groups or in mixed-species flocks with Madagascar Cuckooshrike (Ceblepyris cinereus), Common Jery (Neomixis tenella), Madagascar Paradise-flycatcher (Terpsiphone mutata), Common Newtonia (Newtonia brunneicauda), Common Tetraka (Bernieria madagascariensis), Madagascar Bulbul (Hypsipetes madagascariensis), and others.

Wide variety of beautiful calls. Possible song a smooth, whistled, rippling trill on descending scale; loud and ringing "ti-ti-tong" (the "tong" much lower in pitch) may also be a song, the female responding with "twit-twit-twit". Call a nasal "ees" , used as alarm; also as alarm gives a "whip whip whip whip whip" or "kerekerekerekeh", accompanied by bill-snapping. Several calls resemble those of Euryceros prevostii, but are finer and more modulated.

Season Oct–Jan in NW (Ampijoroa). Co-operative breeder; pair accompanied by helpers (yearling males and males aged two years and over). Territorial, pair or group maintains territory within which foraging and breeding take place; helpers participate in territorial defence. Nest built by both pair-members, infrequently assisted by helpers, cup-shaped, made from mosses  and woven plant fibres and twigs  , bound with spider webs, placed 4 m above ground and usually in fork of tree. Clutch 4 eggs, laid one per day, white with small, widely scattered chestnut and reddish spots, increasing in density at larger end; incubation by both pair-members, from first egg, period 14–19 days, generally c. 16 days; chicks brooded and fed by both partners, also by helpers, nestling period 12–17 days, usually c. 15 days. In the first half of the nestling stage helpers contribute less than breeders, but its contribution increases during the second half, when that of the breeding females decreases (1 Eguchi, K., Asai, S. and Yamagishi, S. (2009). Individual differences in the helping behaviors of cooperatively breeding Rufous Vangas. Ornithological Science. 8(1): 5–13. Close ).

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Locally common. Often very numerous in primary deciduous forest in W; less common and generally more patchy in distribution in evergreen humid forest in E. Reliant on undisturbed forest.