Crested drongo
The crested drongo ("Dicrurus forficatus") is a passerine bird in the family Dicruridae. It is black with a bluish-green sheen, a distinctive crest on the forehead and a forked tail. There are two subspecies; "D. f. forficatus" is endemic to Madagascar and "D. f. potior", which is larger, is found on the Comoro Islands. Its habitat is lowland forests, both dry and humid, and open savannah country. It is a common bird and the IUCN has listed it as "least concern". Taxonomy. In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the crested drongo  in his "Ornithologie" based on a specimen collected in Madagascar. He used the French name "Le grand gobe-mouche noir hupé de Madagascar" and the Latin "Muscicapa Madagascariensis nigra major cristata". Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his "Systema Naturae" for the twelfth edition, he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. One of these was the crested drongo. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name "Lanius forficatus  and cited Brisson's work. The specific name forficatus" is New Latin for "scissor-shaped". This species is now placed in the genus "Dicrurus " that was introduced by French ornithologist Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot in 1816. Two subspecies are recognised: The common name of "drongo", now applied to all members of the family Dicruridae, was originally a Malagasy word from the Betsimisaraka dialect; more commonly it is called "railovy" in Malagasy. Description. The adult male and female are almost entirely black, with a blue-green sheen. The distinctive crest consists of elongated feathers on the forehead. The forked tail is  also distinctive of the adult birds. "D. f. potior" is larger and has broader tail feathers. Distribution and habitat. The nominated race is endemic to Madagascar, and found throughout the island, and some of the larger inshore islands including Nosy-Bé. The "Dicrurus forficatus potior" subspecies on only found on the Comoro Islands. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, and dry savanna, typically below 1,000 meters.