Scientific Name: Microhierax fringillarius
Malay Name: Rajawali-Belalang Melayu
Chinese Name: 黑腿小隼
Range:
Found from the Thai-Malay Peninsula to the Greater Sundas
Taxonomy:
Monotypic.
Size: 15-17 cm
Identification:
Adult has blackish crown, ear-covert patch, nape and upperparts, whitish forehead, narrow down-curving supercilium, throat and upper-breast and chestnut rest of underparts. Juvenile resembles adult but has pale chestnut supercilium
Habitat: Forest, forest edge and suitable wooded areas.
Behaviour/Ecology: Frequently darts out rapidly from a perch to capture flying insects. Will also attack small birds.
Local Status: Very rare non-breeding visitor
Conservation Status: Least Concern (BirdLife International 2016)
Featured articles:
- My Accidental Sprint Year (Blog)
- Local extinctions of Singapore birds (Science)
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Featured reports: Jun 2022
Past accepted records in our database:
Conservation Status: IUCN Red List Page
Sound Recordings: xeno-canto Link
Wikipedia Entry: Wikipedia Link
eBird Species page: eBird (Black-thighed Falconet)
BirdLife International. (2016). Microhierax fringillarius. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22696327A93555387.en. Accessed on 1 January 2023
Jeyarajasingam, A., & Pearson, A. (2012). A Field Guide to the Birds of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore. Oxford University Press.
Lim, K. S. (2009). The Avifauna of Singapore. Nature Society (Singapore).
Robson, C. (2014). Field guide to the birds of South-East Asia (Second Edition). Bloomsbury Publishing, London.