African Paradise Flycatcher

Description:

African Paradise Flycatcher or Monarch is a boldly colored african flycatcher from the family Monarchidae. Male reaches some 35 cm in length, half of which is its long tail streamers. Black to dark-grey underparts and head, with a rusty brown wings and back; there is also a prominent white wing bar.

Habitat:

The African paradise flycatcher is found in most parts of sub-Saharan Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. Its typical habitat is savannah woodland, open grassland with isolated trees, plantations and open woodland. Here observed in wooded areas around Awassa town, on shores of lake Awassa, in Ethiopia.

Notes:

Lake Awassa (or Hawassa) is a part of main Ethiopian Rift Valley series of lakes, situated at some 1700 m of altitude. Like most of Rift lakes in Ethiopian highlands, this is an endorreic lake (landlocked mass of water having no outlet and not connected to the sea), and as such surrounded by marshes that regulate its levels through evaporation. Because of marshes and its forested shores, the lake is known as birdwatcher's paradise - very rich with various waders. Unfortunately, many of these marshes, or at least those of an easy access to visitors are very polluted by plastic garbage - mainly plastic bottles and bags...