Black-backed Forktail

About the Black-backed Forktail

The black-backed forktail, occasionally referred to as the black-throated forktail, is a forktail species in the family Muscicapidae. The species was described in 1836, from a specimen collected in Nepal. It is a medium-sized forktail, weighing between 25 and 29 grams, with a length of 20.5 to 23 centimetres. The species has a broad white stripe across its forehead. The crown, face, and mantle are black, while the bird's underparts are white, sharply divided from the black above. The wings are largely black with a broad white stripe across the greater coverts. The tail of the species, similar to that of other forktails, is long, graduated, and deeply forked. The tail is black with a white…

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

ID tip

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Where it lives

When to see it

Peak activity in December · a winter visitor species across most of its range

Easily confused with

Chestnut-naped ForktailEnicurus ruficapillusThe chestnut-naped forktail is 18 to 20 cm (7.1–7.9 in) long and weighs 27 g (0.95 oz). Bornean ForktailEnicurus borneensisThe Bornean forktail is a small, black and white bird, with a long and deeply forked tail, in the Old World flycatcher family. White-crowned ForktailEnicurus leschenaultiThe white-crowned forktail is the largest of the forktails.