The grey bush chat is a species of passerine bird in the family Muscicapidae. It is found in the Himalayas, southern China, Taiwan, Nepal and mainland Southeast Asia.
Region
Himalayas and Southeast Asia
Typical Environment
Occurs from the Himalayan foothills through northeastern India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Bangladesh into Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, southern China, and Taiwan. It favors open scrub, forest edges, riverine thickets, secondary growth, and agricultural margins, including tea estates and terraced fields. The species adapts well to mosaic landscapes with scattered bushes and low trees. In winter it may descend to lower elevations and enter more open country. It is absent from dense closed-canopy forests.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 3000 m
Climate Zone
Subtropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
The grey bush chat is a small Old World flycatcher often seen perched on open shrubs, stone walls, and fence posts from the Himalayas across southern China to Taiwan and mainland Southeast Asia. Males are bold slate-grey with a striking white wing patch, while females are warm brown and more subdued. It commonly frequents village edges, tea plantations, and scrubby hillsides, making it a familiar sight in human-modified landscapes. Most populations are resident with local altitudinal movements in cooler months.
Temperament
solitary and territorial
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Usually seen singly or in pairs, holding small territories with prominent song perches. The cup-shaped nest is built low in dense shrubs, grassy banks, or cavities in walls and embankments. Clutches typically contain 3–5 eggs, and both parents attend the young.
Migratory Pattern
Partial migrant
Song Description
The song is a lively series of whistles, clicks, and scratchy phrases delivered from exposed perches. Calls include a sharp 'chak' or 'tak' given while flicking the tail.
Plumage
Male is slate-grey above with clean whitish underparts and a conspicuous white wing patch; tail dark with white outer feathers. Female is warm brown above with buffy underparts and faint streaking, lacking the bold white wing patch. Both sexes show a fairly plain, compact appearance with a slightly rounded head.
Diet
Feeds primarily on insects such as beetles, ants, caterpillars, and grasshoppers, and also takes spiders and other small arthropods. It occasionally consumes small berries and seeds, especially in the non-breeding season. Prey is captured by short sallies from a perch or gleaned from low foliage and the ground.
Preferred Environment
Forages in open scrub, hedgerows, field margins, tea gardens, and along forest edges. Often hunts from low posts, rocks, or the tops of bushes, dropping to the ground to seize prey before returning to the perch.
