Region

Central Philippines (Western Visayas)

Typical Environment

Occurs in remaining primary and mature secondary forests on Negros and Panay, favoring dense understory and forest edges. It uses bamboo thickets, riparian corridors, and clearings near forest, but is most common where canopy cover remains intact. Roosts by day close to trunks or in vine tangles, relying on cryptic plumage. Where habitat persists, it may be locally fairly common, but is absent from heavily degraded lowlands.

Altitude Range

Sea level to 1700 m

Climate Zone

Tropical

Temperament

solitary and territorial

Flight Pattern

short rapid wingbeats with silent glides between perches

Social Behavior

Typically encountered alone or in pairs, especially during the breeding season. Likely monogamous, nesting in natural cavities, old woodpecker holes, or tree hollows lined with vegetation. Clutch size is small, and both adults defend the nest area with distraction displays and soft calls.

Migratory Pattern

Resident

Song Description

Gives a series of soft, whistled hoots, often a repeated single or double note spaced at regular intervals. Duetting between pair members occurs at dusk and night, with notes carrying through forest edges but remaining mellow and ventriloquial.

Diet

Primarily takes large insects such as beetles, crickets, katydids, and moths, seized from foliage or the ground. It will also snatch spiders and other arthropods and occasionally small vertebrates like geckos or frogs. Prey is typically swallowed whole or torn into manageable pieces using the hooked bill.

Preferred Environment

Hunts from low to mid-level perches within forest, at edges, along trails, and over small clearings. Often forages along ecotones where insect activity is concentrated, making short sallies to glean or pounce.