Greater Racket-tailed Drongo
Dicrurus paradiseus
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassAves (Aus)
- OrderPasseriformes
- FamilyDicruridae (Drongos)
- GenusDicrurus (Drongos)
- SpeciesDicrurus paradiseus (Greater Racket-tailed Drongo)
The greater racket-tailed drongo (Dicrurus paradiseus) is a medium-sized Asian bird which is distinctive in having elongated outer tail feathers with webbing restricted to the tips. They are placed along with other drongos in the family Dicruridae. They are conspicuous in the forest habitats often perching in the open and by attracting attention with a wide range of loud calls that include perfect imitations of many other birds. One hypothesis suggested is that these vocal imitations may help in the formation of mixed-species foraging flocks, a feature seen in forest bird communities where many insect feeders forage together. These drongos will sometimes steal insect prey caught or disturbed by other foragers in the flock and another idea is that vocal mimicry helps them in diverting the attention of smaller birds to aid their piracy. They are diurnal but are active well before dawn and late at dusk. Wikipedia →
10–20% of wildlife watchers report a Greater Racket-tailed Drongo sighting in Mudumalai National Park, based on 91 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
Closest Relatives at Mudumalai National Park
White-bellied Drongo
Dicrurus caerulescens
Bronzed Drongo
Dicrurus aeneus
Ashy Drongo
Dicrurus leucophaeus
Black Drongo
Dicrurus macrocercus
Oriental Magpie-Robin
Copsychus saularis
Brahminy Starling
Sturnia pagodarum
Red-whiskered Bulbul
Pycnonotus jocosus
Long-tailed Shrike
Lanius schach
Jungle Myna
Acridotheres fuscus
Tickell's Blue Flycatcher
Cyornis tickelliae
Eastern Red-rumped Swallow
Cecropis daurica
Small Minivet
Pericrocotus cinnamomeus
📅 Monthly Probability
🌅 When They're Spotted
Most active at dawn and dusk · across all parks (global)
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Greater Racket-tailed Drongo in Mudumalai National Park?
About 14% of wildlife watchers report a Greater Racket-tailed Drongo sighting in Mudumalai National Park, based on 91 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Greater Racket-tailed Drongo in Mudumalai National Park?
April has the highest sighting rate for Greater Racket-tailed Drongo in Mudumalai National Park in our monthly data.