Black Drongo

Adult Black Drongo Perched on a tree

One of the most courageous birds around Shimoga, Black Drongo is instantly recognizable by its long tail split at the end. Completely black in colour, this is known as Kajana in Kananda. The reason I say these are courageous is, well, they are fearless. They are known to attack even larger birds and birds of prey. They feed on insects, mainly.

Tricky to get close, I know of a Drongo which regularly teases me to photograph it in the mornings besides Matthur lake, where it just sits atop a bare tree and keeps flying away as soon as I get close enough to shoot a picture!!  Otherwise you should be able to spot these birds around cultivation and water sources without too much difficulty, especially in the early mornings.

Scientific name for this bird is Dicrurus macrocercus.