Sao Tome Paradise Flycatcher
Terpsiphone atrochalybeia (Thomson, 1842)
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.

São Tomé paradise flycatcher (Terpsiphone atrochalybeia) female, São Tomé island, São Tomé and Príncipe
Charles J. Sharp · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The São Tomé paradise flycatcher (Terpsiphone atrochalybeia), also known as São Tomé flycatcher, is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. The species was described by Thomas Richard Heywood Thomson in 1842, with Tchitrea atrochalybeia the binomial and Fernando Po given as the type locality. The species is endemic to São Tomé Island.
Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.
Wikipedia contributors, São Tomé paradise flycatcher; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T12:50:12.680368+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Terpsiphone atrochalybeia (Thomson, 1842)
- Name authority
- (Thomson, 1842)
- Common name
- Sao Tome Paradise Flycatcher
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Monarchidae
- Genus
- Terpsiphone
- 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
- familyMonarchidae Bonaparte, 1854
- genusTerpsiphone Gloger, 1827
- speciesTerpsiphone atrochalybeia (Thomson, 1842)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Terpsiphone. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Bates's Paradise FlycatcherTerpsiphone batesi Chapin, 1921 | MonarchidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Mascarene Paradise FlycatcherTerpsiphone bourbonnensis (P. L. S. Müller, 1776) | MonarchidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Malagasy Paradise FlycatcherTerpsiphone mutata (Linnaeus, 1766) | MonarchidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Rufous Paradise FlycatcherTerpsiphone cinnamomea (Sharpe, 1877) | MonarchidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Indian Paradise FlycatcherTerpsiphone paradisi (Linnaeus, 1758) | MonarchidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Amur Paradise FlycatcherTerpsiphone incei (Gould, 1852) | MonarchidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Tchitrea atrochalybeia Thomson, 1842 Thomson, 1842 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
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=563362 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.
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:7C3LN. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.