Plumbeous Water Redstart

The plumbeous water redstart is a passerine of the Old World flycatcher family, typically 14 cm long, males averaging 22 g and females 18.8 g. Males are slate blue and females grey, the common name referring to a colour resembling lead. It is found in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand and Vietnam, typically at relatively high elevations, in the Himalaya between 2,000 and 4,100 m (Wikipedia, general species account).

To catch flies over rivers, it flies vertically until at least 20 feet above the water, then glides down in a spiral to the same place. SoIB 2023 rates it a High conservation priority, a resident and local migrant of wetland with a Moderate range of about 186,000 km², a decline of about 40% over the long term and a current decline of about 3% a year (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).