White-crowned Forktail
Enicurus leschenaulti (Vieillot, 1818)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The white-crowned forktail (Enicurus leschenaulti) is a species of forktail in the family Muscicapidae. Formally described in 1818, it has five subspecies, each occupying a different geographic range. The largest of the forktails, Enicurus leschenaulti, is between 25 and 28 centimetres (9.8 and 11.0 in) long. It has a black throat and breast, black mantle, and largely black wings. The rump and lower back are white, and the bird has a prominent white crown, from which it gets its name. As with other forktails, the tail is long, deeply forked, and banded in black and white. A variety of whistling and clicking calls have been described. Slight morphological differences have been observed between subspecies. A shy bird, the white-crowned forktail stays near water, and forages on the edges of rivers and streams for invertebrates. Its breeding season is between March and September, and possibly extends till October. Its nests are also built near the water, and are constructed of plant material. The eggs are between two and five in number, though there is latitudinal variation.
Wikipedia contributors, White-crowned forktail; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:55:25.288843+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Enicurus leschenaulti (Vieillot, 1818)
- Name authority
- (Vieillot, 1818)
- Common name
- White-crowned Forktail
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Muscicapidae
- Genus
- Enicurus
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familyMuscicapidae Fleming, 1822
- genusEnicurus Temminck, 1822
- speciesEnicurus leschenaulti (Vieillot, 1818)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Enicurus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Chestnut-naped ForktailEnicurus ruficapillus Temminck, 1832 | MuscicapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Slaty-backed ForktailEnicurus schistaceus (Hodgson, 1836) | MuscicapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-backed ForktailEnicurus immaculatus (Hodgson, 1836) | MuscicapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Spotted ForktailEnicurus maculatus Vigors, 1831 | MuscicapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Little ForktailEnicurus scouleri Vigors, 1832 | MuscicapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Sunda ForktailEnicurus velatus Temminck, 1822 | MuscicapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=559911 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:39V4V. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.