Ashy Drongo

Ashy Drongo
This species is defined as a Review Species . Please submit your records of this species via our record submission page .

Scientific Name: Dicrurus leucophaeus

Malay Name: Cecawi Kelabu

Chinese Name: 灰卷尾

Range: Breeding Range: (OR) widespread

Taxonomy: Polytypic. Subspecies are: longicaudatus, hopwoodi, nigrescens, mouhoti, celaenus, bondi, leucophaeus, leucogenis, salangensis, innexus, periophthalmicus, siberu, batakensis, phaedrus, stigmatops.

Size: 25.5-29 cm

Identification: Uniform ashy-grey drongo with darker lores and chin. Thin, long, linear tail lacking curl at tail tips.

Habitat: Forest, forest edge, open forest

Behaviour/Ecology: Singly, often perched on high, open perches, such as bare canopy branches, at forest edges. Sallies to take insects from canopy or close to ground.

Local Status: Rare migrant and rare visitor

Conservation Status: Least Concern (BirdLife International 2016)

Featured articles:

Featured reports: Mar 2022, Jul 2022, Mar 2023, May 2023, Aug 2023, Feb 2024, Mar 2024, Oct 2024

Past records in our database:

Showing only accepted records. Note that records currently under review are also not displayed, and the list may not be a full list of records of this species in Singapore. For more details, check the database here.

Migrant bar chart (see more bar charts):

Ashy Drongo Dicrurus leucophaeus
Average number of individuals by week based on Singapore Bird Database data, Jul 2014 to Jun 2024 (all records)
Peak weeks Mar 05-Mar 11, Mar 19-Mar 25
Early date 23 Jul 2022
Late date 23 Jun 2014
Two main flavours with several subspecies of this bird in Singapore. Pale grey forms are distinctive, while the darker nigrescens race requires more care as Black Drongo can be quite similar.
Ashy Drongo at Mount Faber. Photo credit: Francis Yap
Ashy Drongo at Changi Business Park. Photo credit: Francis Yap
Ashy Drongo (ssp. nigrescrens) at Chek Jawa. Photo credit: Francis Yap
Ashy Drongo (ssp. nigrescrens) at NTU. Photo credit: Francis Yap

External Links:

Conservation Status: IUCN Red List Page

Sound Recordings: xeno-canto Link

Wikipedia Entry: Wikipedia Link

eBird Species page: eBird (Ashy Drongo)

References:

BirdLife International. (2016). Dicrurus leucophaeus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22706964A94099735.en. Accessed on 1 January 2023

RECOMMENDED CITATION

Bird Society of Singapore. (n.d.). Ashy Drongo. Retrieved on July 15, 2025 from https://singaporebirds.com/species/ashy-drongo.

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