A large bird with striking fiery underparts, and collar, coupled with a dark mask and crown with equally striking white eyebrows!

Meet the White-browed robin-chat

Photo Courtesy of berniedup / CC BY-SA 2.0

The white-browed robin-chat (Cossypha heuglini) is also known as Heuglin’s robin, is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family. The upper plumage of the adult bird is brownish-grey, with bright orange plumage below. The crown is black, while just above the eyes are white eyebrows that extend right back from the beak to the back of the head.

Photo Courtesy of fveronesi1 / CC BY-SA 2.0

There is also a black bar across the eyes.

Juvenile birds have duller plumage of brownish-grey, with a lighter abdomen; and soft speckling around the head.

Photo Courtesy of berniedup / CC BY-SA 2.0

An African bird, they are found from Chad and Sudan through southern to the D.R. of Congo, Tanzania, Angola, and Zambia, all the way down to South Africa.

Photo Courtesy of Lip Kee / CC BY-SA 2.0

White-browed robin chats prefer to live in riverine forests with patchy canopy and evergreen thickets along lakesides and Acacia woodlands. They will also tolerate thickets along the borders of open areas, as well as suburban parks and gardens.

Photo Courtesy of Alan Manson / CC BY-SA 2.0

They breed between August-January as monogamous pairs, building an open cup-shaped nest built from dead leaves and twigs, lined with rootlets, leaf midribs, and or very fine twigs. The nest is located in a hollow tree trunk, or amongst the branches of scrubs, roots under an overhang. The female lays 2-3 eggs, which are incubated for 14-17 days. Once the eggs are hatched the chicks are fed by both parents for 13-17 days.

Photo (cropped) Courtesy of Abspires40 / CC BY 2.0

This species has a very large breeding range and is described as very common throughout its range except at the fringes of this range.

Photo Courtesy of Lip Kee / CC BY-SA 2.0

Watch and listen to this bird right here in the video below: