# Black-naped Monarch

*Hypothymis azurea*

Only the male boasts the vibrant azure plumage and the stark black 'nape' patch; the female is a subtle olive-brown, perfect camouflage for incubating eggs.

- **Taxonomy:** Animalia › Chordata › Aves › Passeriformes › Monarchidae › Hypothymis
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** stable
- **Biome:** forest
- **Habitat:** Tropical and subtropical broadleaf forests, bamboo groves, and wooded gardens.
- **Diet:** Insectivorous, feeding primarily on flies, moths, beetles, and cicadas caught mid-air.
- **Range:** South Asia, Southeast Asia, India, Indonesia, Philippines
- **Size:** 16 cm in length, weighing approximately 8-12 grams.
- **Lifespan:** 3 to 5 years
- **Active:** diurnal
- **Threats:** Habitat loss due to deforestation, agricultural expansion, and urban development.
- **Safe to approach?:** Harmless and highly active. Observe quietly from a distance of 10-15 meters using binoculars to avoid disrupting its foraging. If you locate a nest, keep your distance to prevent parent abandonment. In the extremely rare event of physical contact, it poses no danger, but wash hands afterward to maintain hygiene.

## About

The black-naped monarch or black-naped blue flycatcher ( Hypothymis azurea ) is a slim and agile passerine bird belonging to the family of monarch flycatchers found in southern and south-eastern Asia. They are sexually dimorphic, with the male having a distinctive black patch on the back of the head and a narrow black half collar ("necklace"), while the female is duller with olive brown wings and lacking the black markings on the head. They have a call that...

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/1bd34f71-9014-4e7d-98c8-24d7155ad0fb
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/204523
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypothymis azurea
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/542661695/medium.jpg (Rejoice Gassah, CC-BY, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.