The Palawan flycatcher is a species of bird in the family Muscicapidae. It is endemic to the Philippines found only in the region of Palawan. Its natural habitat is tropical moist lowland forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Region
Southeast Asia
Typical Environment
Endemic to the Palawan archipelago of the Philippines, where it inhabits primary and mature secondary lowland evergreen forest. It favors dense understory near streams, vine tangles, rattan and bamboo thickets, and forest gullies. It generally avoids open areas and heavily logged stands, persisting only where cover remains thick. Most records are from the lowlands, with local occurrences on nearby satellite islands where suitable forest persists.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1000 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
This small, understory flycatcher is found only on the Palawan archipelago in the Philippines. It keeps to dense, shaded thickets and is more often heard than seen, giving very thin, high-pitched calls. Highly sensitive to logging and forest degradation, it persists best in intact lowland forest. It occasionally joins mixed-species flocks near the forest floor.
Temperament
shy and skulking
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats with brief sallies from low perches
Social Behavior
Usually solitary or in pairs, keeping to the dense understory. Nests are placed low in thick vegetation, with both sexes likely involved in parental care. It may occasionally accompany mixed-species flocks near the forest floor but generally forages quietly on its own.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
A very thin, high-pitched series of seet and tsee notes, often delivered in short, spaced phrases. Calls are soft and easily overlooked, carrying poorly through dense vegetation.
Plumage
Warm rufous-brown upperparts with paler buff underparts and a whitish throat; two faint pale wingbars on dusky wings; tail often flicked while perched.
Diet
Feeds on small insects and other arthropods, gleaned from leaves and twigs or snatched during short sallies. It uses hover-gleaning in dense foliage and occasionally hawks tiny prey in small light gaps. Foraging is almost always at low levels, close to the ground or along shaded stream edges.
Preferred Environment
Dense understory of primary and mature secondary lowland forest, especially in vine tangles and bamboo or rattan thickets. Often near shaded stream gullies and damp forest interiors where insect activity is high.
