Batis (bird)

Batis
	Woodwards's batis, Batis fratrum
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Platysteiridae
Genus:	; F. Boie, 1833
Type species
	Muscicapa capensis; Linnaeus, 1766
Species
	See text

Batis (pronounced BAT-iss) is a genus of passerine birds in the wattle-eye family. Its species are resident in Africa south of the Sahara. They were previously classed as a subfamily of the Old World flycatcher family, Muscicapidae.

They are small stout insect-eating birds, usually found in open forests or bush. The nest is a small neat cup low in a tree or bush. They hunt by flycatching, or by taking prey from the ground like a shrike.

Batis species are strikingly patterned, typically with a grey crown, black eye mask, dark back, and paler underparts, often with a coloured or black breast band and white on the throat which contrasts strongly with the black eye stripe. Male and female plumages usually differ.

The song is typically a descending triple whistle.

Taxonomy

The genus Batis was introduced by the German zoologist Friedrich Boie in 1833.^[2] The type species was subsequently designated as the Cape batis.^[3] The name of the genus is from the Ancient Greek batis, batidos, an unidentified worm-eating bird mentioned by Aristotle.^[4]

The genus contains 20 species.^[5]

Rwenzori batis, Batis diops
Margaret's batis, Batis margaritae
Forest batis, Batis mixta
Dark batis, Batis crypta
Cape batis, Batis capensis
Malawi batis, Batis dimorpha
Woodwards' batis, Batis fratrum
Chinspot batis, Batis molitor
Senegal batis, Batis senegalensis
Grey-headed batis, Batis orientalis
Pale batis, Batis soror
Pririt batis, Batis pririt
Eastern black-headed batis, Batis minor
Western black-headed batis, Batis erlangeri
Pygmy batis, Batis perkeo
Angola batis, Batis minulla
Gabon batis, Batis minima
Ituri batis, Batis ituriensis
West African batis, Batis occulta
Fernando Po batis, Batis poensis

References

^ "Platysteiridae". aviansystematics.org. The Trust for Avian Systematics. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
^ Boie, Friedrich (1833). "Fernere Vemertungen über Classification der Vögel". Isis von Oken (in German). 26. Col 876-884 [880].
^ Mayr, Ernst; Cottrell, G. William, eds. (1986). Check-list of Birds of the World. Vol. 11. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 378.
^ Jobling, J.A. (2018). del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A.; Sargatal, J.; Christie, D.A.; de Juana, E. (eds.). "Key to Scientific Names in Ornithology". Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
^ Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (February 2025). "Batises, bushshrikes, boatbills, vangas (sensu lato)". IOC World Bird List Version 15.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 30 March 2025.