Sri Lanka Woodshrike

Small gray songbird with heavy bill, dark mask, and white eyebrow. Underparts pale whitish; in flight note white rump. Inhabits wooded areas and scrub in lowland and lower hills, mostly in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka; avoids dense, wet forests. Arboreal species usually encountered in pairs or small groups. Pale eyebrow and plain underparts aid identification from similarly heavy-billed (but larger) Large Woodshrike. Vocalizations include soft “chup” notes; song a resonant series, “wee-wee-weet-weet”, accelerating then decelerating. Varies in rapidity of notes and number of notes in series.

The Sri Lanka woodshrike lives in open wooded areas, scrub, and clearings in the lowlands and lower hills of Sri Lanka. It's most common in the Dry Zone, but can also be found in the mid-elevations of hills.

The Ceylon woodshrike (Tephrodorni pondicerianus) in Sri Lanka eats insects, spiders, and some fruit.