A common resident found from Durban North, eastwards to Mozambique and Central Africa.
The bird’s voice is a jumbled song of raspy notes and mammal-like squeaks. They have a persistent ‘chrrr’ before roosting in the evening.
The flycatcher’s habitat is savanna with well developed understorey and broadleaved woodlands. It is usually found in pairs when breeding, otherwise in small groups. They perch on a low outer branch at the edge of a clearing, dropping to the ground to catch their prey.
Pallid flycatchers feed on insects, especially beetles, caterpillars and termites as well as fruit. Breeding season is mainly October and November, when they build a nest which comprises a thin bowl of roots, grass and twigs.
Between two and five greenish-white eggs are laid and incubation lasts 14 days. Nestlings remain for 17 days. The young stay with their parents for several months after leaving the nest.
