The white-bellied thicket fantail is a species of bird in the family Rhipiduridae. This species is one of 47 in the genus Rhipidura. It is found in New Guinea. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical mangrove forests.
Region
New Guinea
Typical Environment
Occurs throughout the lowland rainforests of New Guinea, including both Papua New Guinea and Indonesian Papua. It inhabits dense understory of primary and secondary moist lowland forest, swamp forest, and mangrove edges. The species keeps to thick vegetation, vine tangles, and sago groves, typically near watercourses. It avoids open areas and higher montane zones, remaining in shaded, humid microhabitats.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 900 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
A secretive understory specialist, the white-bellied thicket fantail spends most of its time in dense tangles where it fans and flicks its tail to flush insects. It often forages close to the ground and is more often heard than seen. Pairs maintain territories year-round and build delicate cup nests low in shrubs or saplings.
Temperament
secretive and territorial
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats, low and fluttering through understory
Social Behavior
Usually found singly or in pairs that hold small territories in dense thickets. Both parents participate in nesting and care of young, constructing a neat cup nest low in a fork. It seldom joins large mixed-species flocks, preferring to skulk and forage quietly in cover.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Soft whistles and thin, high-pitched phrases interspersed with dry ticks and scolding chatters. Vocalizations carry at close range in dense vegetation and are used for contact and territory defense.
