Listen to the Nilgiri blue robin
Tip: press play to see the sound's live frequency spectrum in blue over the waveform.
About the Nilgiri blue robin
The Nilgiri blue robin is a bird in the family Muscicapidae (order Passeriformes). Its conservation status on the IUCN Red List is “near threatened”.
What does the Nilgiri blue robin sound like?
Bird vocalisations are usually divided into songs – longer, often complex phrases used to defend territory and attract mates, sung mostly by males in the breeding season – and calls: short, simple sounds for contact, alarm, begging or flight.
The recordings here are labelled as alarm call, call and song. Listen for differences in rhythm, pitch and repetition – the spectrum display makes it easy to see whether a sound is a pure whistle (a thin line), a harsh call (a broad band) or a trill (rapid repeated marks).
From Wikipedia
The Nilgiri blue robin (Sholicola major), also known as Nilgiri shortwing, white-bellied shortwing, Nilgiri sholakili or rufous-bellied shortwing is a species of passerine bird in the family Muscicapidae endemic to the Shola forests of the higher hills of southern India, mainly north of the Palghat Gap. This small bird is found on the forest floor and undergrowth of dense forest patches sheltered in the valleys of montane grassland, a restricted and threatened habitat.
The white-bellied blue robin was formerly considered conspecific with this species but in 2005 the two taxa were split by Pamela C. Rasmussen, a treatment that is followed by some authorities. Their genus remained uncertain until a 2017 molecular phylogenetic study found that these two south Indian species formed a sister group to a clade containing the genera Eumyias, Niltava and Cyornis. A new genus Sholicola was therefore erected for these two species.
More from the family Muscicapidae
European robin
Erithacus rubecula
Common nightingale
Luscinia megarhynchos
Bluethroat
Luscinia svecica
Common redstart
Phoenicurus phoenicurus
Northern wheatear
Oenanthe oenanthe
Black redstart
Phoenicurus ochruros
Spotted flycatcher
Muscicapa striata
Blue rock thrush
Monticola solitarius
Red-breasted flycatcher
Ficedula parva
Thrush nightingale
Luscinia luscinia
Whinchat
Saxicola rubetra
European pied flycatcher
Ficedula hypoleuca
Frequently asked questions
What does a Nilgiri blue robin sound like?
You can hear 2 recordings of the Nilgiri blue robin on this page, including its alarm call, call and song. Bird vocalisations are usually divided into songs – longer, often complex phrases used to defend territory and attract mates, sung mostly by males in the breeding season – and calls: short, simple sounds for contact, alarm, begging or flight.
Is the Nilgiri blue robin endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Nilgiri blue robin as “near threatened”.
What family does the Nilgiri blue robin belong to?
The Nilgiri blue robin (Sholicola major) belongs to the family Muscicapidae in the order Passeriformes.
Sources & credits
- Alarm call · Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India by Mike Prince – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Alarm call, call, song · Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India by Mike Prince – CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Wikidata Q61995431 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Nilgiri blue robin – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo by AJIT HOTA – CC BY-SA 4.0