''Myiagra'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of passerine birds in the family

Monarchidae The monarchs or monarch flycatchers (family Monarchidae) comprise a family of over 100 passerine birds which includes shrikebills, paradise flycatchers, and Grallina, magpie-larks. Monarchids are small insectivore, insectivorous songbirds with l ...

, the monarch flycatchers, native to Australasia, sometimes referred to as the broad-billed flycatchers or simply broadbills.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Myiagra'' was introduced in 1827 by the naturalists Nicholas Vigors and

Thomas Horsfield Thomas Horsfield (May 12, 1773 – July 24, 1859) was an American physician and natural history, naturalist who worked extensively in Indonesia, describing numerous species of plants and animals from the region. He was later a curator of the Eas ...

. The name combines the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

''muia'' meaning "a fly" and ''agreō'' meaning "to seize".

Myiagros In ancient Greek religion, Myiagros ("He Who Chases the Flies") or Myacoris was a cult title for a divine figure who warded off flies. It could be used as an epithet for either a divinity or a hero. Pausanias characterizes Myiagros as a divinize ...

was also the name of a Greek god. The

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

was designated by

George Robert Gray George Robert Gray (8 July 1808 – 6 May 1872) was an English zoology, zoologist and author, and head of the Ornithology, ornithological section of the British Museum, now the Natural History Museum, London, Natural History Museum, London f ...

in 1840 as the

leaden flycatcher The leaden flycatcher (''Myiagra rubecula'') is a species of passerine bird in the family Monarchidae. Around 15 cm (6 in) in length, the male is lustrous azure with white underparts, while the female possesses leaden head, mantle and ...

Species

The genus contains 21 species, including one that is now extinct: Broad Billed Flycatcher

Chuuk flycatcher The Chuuk flycatcher (''Myiagra oceanica''), formerly sometimes known as the oceanic flycatcher, is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It is endemic to Micronesia and can be found on the Caroline Islands. The diversity of traits in the ...

(''Myiagra oceanica'') *

Palau flycatcher The Palau flycatcher (''Myiagra erythrops'') is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It is endemic to Palau Palau, officially the Republic of Palau, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the western Paci ...

(''Myiagra erythrops'') * †

Guam flycatcher The Guam flycatcher (''Myiagra freycineti''), or Guam broadbill, is an extinct species of bird in the family Monarchidae formerly endemic to Guam. Taxonomy and systematics Some authorities consider the Guam flycatcher to have been a subspecies o ...

(''Myiagra freycineti'') (extinct) *

Pohnpei flycatcher The Pohnpei flycatcher (''Myiagra pluto''), known as Koikoi in Pohnpeian, is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It is endemic to Micronesia and can be found on the Caroline Islands The Caroline Islands (or the Carolines) ar ...

(''Myiagra pluto'') * Moluccan flycatcher (''Myiagra galeata'') *

Biak black flycatcher The Biak black flycatcher or Biak flycatcher (''Myiagra atra'') is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It is endemic to Biak, Indonesia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical ...

(''Myiagra atra'') *

Leaden flycatcher The leaden flycatcher (''Myiagra rubecula'') is a species of passerine bird in the family Monarchidae. Around 15 cm (6 in) in length, the male is lustrous azure with white underparts, while the female possesses leaden head, mantle and ...

(''Myiagra rubecula'') *

Steel-blue flycatcher The steel-blue flycatcher (''Myiagra ferrocyanea'') is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It is found in Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands. Taxonomy and systematics Alternate names for the steel-blue flycatcher include Solomons flyc ...

(''Myiagra ferrocyanea'') * Makira flycatcher (''Myiagra cervinicauda'') *

Melanesian flycatcher The Melanesian flycatcher (''Myiagra caledonica'') is a species of bird in the monarch-flycatcher family Monarchidae. The species is found on islands in Melanesia. Taxonomy and systematics It is closely related to the Vanikoro flycatcher. Alter ...

(''Myiagra caledonica'') * Vanikoro flycatcher (''Myiagra vanikorensis'') *

Samoan flycatcher The Samoan flycatcher (''Myiagra albiventris'') is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It is endemic to Samoa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, and rur ...

(''Myiagra albiventris'') * Azure-crested flycatcher (''Myiagra azureocapilla'') * Chestnut-throated flycatcher (''Myiagra castaneigularis'') * Broad-billed flycatcher (''Myiagra ruficollis'') *

Satin flycatcher The satin flycatcher (''Myiagra cyanoleuca'') is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. Males stand out with their blue-black feathers contrasting their white bellies, and the females with their bright orange throats. It breeds mostly in so ...

(''Myiagra cyanoleuca'') * Shining flycatcher (''Myiagra alecto'') * Mussau flycatcher (''Myiagra hebetior'') * Velvet flycatcher (''Myiagra eichhorni'') – includes Dyaul flycatcher *

Paperbark flycatcher The paperbark flycatcher (''Myiagra nana''), also known as the little restless flycatcher, is a passerine bird in the family Monarchidae. It occurs in tropical woodland and riverine habitats of northern Australia and southern New Guinea. Previou ...

(''Myiagra nana'') *

Restless flycatcher The restless flycatcher (''Myiagra inquieta'') or restless myiagra is a passerine bird in the family Monarchidae; it is also known as the razor grinder or scissors grinder because of its distinctive call. It is a native of eastern and southern A ...

(''Myiagra inquieta'')

Former species

Formerly, some authorities also considered the following species (or subspecies) as species within the genus ''Myiagra'': * Andamanen black-naped blue monarch (as ''Myiagra tytleri'') *

Pale-blue monarch The pale-blue monarch (''Hypothymis puella'') is a small passerine bird in the family Monarchidae endemic to eastern Indonesia. Taxonomy and systematics The pale-blue monarch was originally described in the genus ''Myiagra'' and then classified ...

(as ''Myiagra puella'') * White-collared monarch (as ''Piezorhynchus vidua'') * White-collared monarch (squamulatus) (as ''Piezorhynchus squamulatus'') * White-capped monarch (as ''Piezorhynchus Richardsii'')

Description

Members of this genus are separated from other members of the family, particularly the ''

Monarcha ''Monarcha'' is a genus of bird in the family Monarchidae. They are found in Australia and Melanesia. Taxonomy and systematics The genus ''Monarcha'' was introduced by naturalists Nicholas Aylward Vigors, Nicholas Vigors and Thomas Horsfield in ...

'' monarchs they resemble, by their consistent

sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different Morphology (biology), morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecy, di ...

, egg patterning, and the crested heads that often lack facial patterns (a few ''Monarcha'' monarchs also lack facial patterns). Flycatchers in the genus ''Myiagra'' are small birds ranging in length from 13–20 cm in length. They have broad flattened

bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Pl ...

s adapted to catching insects. The bill is usually black, the exception being the blue-crested flycatcher of Fiji, whose bill is bright orange. The insides of their mouths are bright orange, noticeable when singing. When perched they have an upright stance. The satiny

plumage Plumage () is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, there can b ...

of all species is

sexually dichromatic Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecious species, which consis ...

, to a greater or lesser degree. Overall males tend to have dark blue or black heads, backs, wings and tails and pale bellies and rumps. Some males have red underparts, others have the dark upper plumage all over, and the slightly aberrant shining flycatchers have chestnut wings, backs and tails. The females follow a similar pattern to males but have lighter, more washed out colours. When perched the species in this genus constantly moves their closed tail, in the

restless flycatcher The restless flycatcher (''Myiagra inquieta'') or restless myiagra is a passerine bird in the family Monarchidae; it is also known as the razor grinder or scissors grinder because of its distinctive call. It is a native of eastern and southern A ...

the tail is shacked from side to side. The orange lining to their mouths is visible when they sing. Members of this genus differ from the closely related genus ''

'' in having their crested heads often unpatterned, and the sexes being different in appearance. They have satiny plumage and perch upright, their long tails tending to move frequently. Males typically have dark blue heads and upper parts and paler underparts, and females are mostly similar in appearance to the males but their colour is more washed out and less intense. Their broad beaks are adapted to feed on insects, which they mostly catch on the wing.

Vocalizations

The calls are generally unmusical and are described as guttural, harsh and rasping.

Behaviour and ecology

The genus is adapted to feeding on insects in a manner similar to the Old World flycatchers in the family

Muscicapidae The Old World flycatchers are a large family, the Muscicapidae, of small passerine birds restricted to the Old World (Europe, Africa and Asia), with the exception of several vagrants and two species, bluethroat (''Luscinia svecica'') and north ...

. Prey is obtained by

sallying Hawking is a feeding strategy in birds involving catching flying insects in the air. The term usually refers to a technique of sallying out from a perch to snatch an insect and then returning to the same or a different perch, though it also app ...

from a perch to obtain flying insects or by hover-gleaning, snatching insects from the undersides of leaves while in flight.

Distribution and habitat

The genus is spread across

Australasia Australasia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising Australia, New Zealand (overlapping with Polynesia), and sometimes including New Guinea and surrounding islands (overlapping with Melanesia). The term is used in a number of different context ...

, with some representatives in

Wallacea Wallacea is a biogeography, biogeographical designation for a group of mainly list of islands of Indonesia, Indonesian islands separated by deep-water straits from the Asian and Australia (continent), Australian continental shelf, continental ...

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...

New Caledonia New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (; ), is an island country in Melanesia located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, east o ...

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...

and

Micronesia Micronesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania, consisting of approximately 2,000 small islands in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean. It has a close shared cultural history with three other island regions: Maritime Southeast Asia to the west, Poly ...

. Members of this genus occur as occasional

vagrant Vagrancy is the condition of wandering homelessness without regular employment or income. Vagrants usually live in poverty and support themselves by travelling while engaging in begging, scavenging, or petty theft. In Western countries, ...

s in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

and formerly occurred in

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

and

Guam Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...