Sri Lanka Shama (Copsychus leggei) | Photos and ID

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Sri Lanka Shama (Copsychus leggei), photo 1 — Photo: (c) William Stephens, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY

Sri Lanka Shama (Copsychus leggei), photo 2 — Photo: no rights reserved · CC0

Sri Lanka Shama (Copsychus leggei), photo 3 — Photo: (c) Griha Hasanov, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY

Sri Lanka Shama (Copsychus leggei), photo 4 — Photo: no rights reserved · CC0

Sri Lanka Shama (Copsychus leggei), photo 5 — Photo: (c) Mark Clarke, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY

ID tip

The Sri Lanka shama has glossy blue-black upperparts, bright chestnut underparts, a white rump and white outer tail feathers. The sexes are similar. Compared to the nominate subspecies of white-rumped shama that is present in India, the Sri Lanka shama has a shorter tail, paler belly and less sexual dimorphism.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

About the Sri Lanka Shama

The Sri Lanka shama is a medium-sized passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae that is endemic to Sri Lanka. It was formerly considered to be conspecific with the white-rumped shama.

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

Easily confused with

Maratua ShamaCopsychus barbouriThe male Maratua shama has a white crown, black upperparts, bright chestnut underparts, a white rump and a completely black tail. Kangean ShamaCopsychus nigricaudaThe Kangean shama has glossy blue-black upperparts, bright chestnut underparts apart from a white vent, a white rump and an almost entirely black tail with white tips to the outer feathers. Larwo ShamaCopsychus omissusThe Larwo shama is a medium sized passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae.

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