Fantails

The family Rhipiduridae consists of small, insect-eating birds found across Australasia, Southeast Asia, and the Indian subcontinent, and is known for species such as the fantails and silktails. This family is divided into four genera within two subfamilies: Rhipidurinae, which includes Rhipidura or the typical fantails boasting 51 species; and Lamproliinae, which features the genera Chaetorhynchus with the drongo fantail, Eutrichomyias known as the cerulean flycatcher, and Lamprolia which comprises two species of silktails.

Species Categories

Albatrosses Anhingas, Darters Asian Barbets Austral Storm Petrels Australasian Babblers Australasian Robins Australasian Treecreepers Australasian Warblers Australasian Wrens Australian Mudnesters Australo-Papuan Bellbirds Barn Owls Bee-eaters Berrypeckers, Longbills Birds-of-paradise Boatbills Bowerbirds Bristlebirds Bulbuls Buntings Bustards Buttonquail Caracaras, Falcons Cassowaries, Emu Cettia Bush Warblers & Allies Chats, Old World Flycatchers Cisticolas & Allies Cockatoos Cormorants, Shags Coursers, Pratincoles Cranes Crows, Jays Cuckoos Cuckooshrikes Drongos Ducks, Geese, Swans Fairy Flycatchers Fairy-bluebirds Fantails Figbirds, Orioles, Turnagra Finches, Euphonias Flamingos Flowerpeckers Flufftails Frigatebirds Frogmouths Gannets, Boobies Grassbirds & Allies Grebes Guineafowl Gulls, Terns, Skimmers Herons, Bitterns Honeyeaters Hoopoes Hornbills Ibises, Spoonbills Ifrit Jacanas Jewel-babblers, Quail-thrushes Kingfishers Kites, Hawks, Eagles Larks Leaf Warblers & Allies Logrunners Lyrebirds Magpie Goose Megapodes Melampittas Monarchs Mottled Berryhunter New World Quail Nightjars Northern Storm Petrels Old World Parrots Old World Sparrows, Snowfinches Ospreys Ostriches Owlet-nightjars Owls Oystercatchers Painted Berrypeckers Painted-snipes Pardalotes Pelicans Penguins Petrels, Shearwaters, Diving Petrels Pheasants & Allies Pigeons, Doves Pittas Plains-wanderer Ploughbill Plovers Rails, Crakes & Coots Reed Warblers & Allies Rollers Sandpipers, Snipes Satinbirds Scrubbirds Shrikes Shriketit Sittellas Skuas Starlings, Rhabdornis Stilts, Avocets Stone-curlews, Thick-knees Storks Sunbirds Swallows, Martins Swifts Thrushes Tits, Chickadees Treeswifts Tropicbirds Typical Broadbills Vangas & Allies Vireos, Greenlets, Shrike-babblers Wagtails, Pipits Waxbills, Munias & Allies Whipbirds Whistlers & Allies White-eyes Woodpeckers Woodswallows, Butcherbirds & Allies

Birda Blog

A passionate photographer is outdoors, equipped with a top-notch camera for bird photography.

14 best cameras for bird photography

August 9, 2022

John White

A woman in a jacket birdwatching out in nature, looking at her phone and considering the best birding app.

11 of the best birdwatching apps in the UK

August 8, 2022

John White

A large flock of Red-necked Stints, a great bird to look for when learning how to start birdwatching.

How to start birdwatching – a helpful guide for beginners

January 18, 2022

John White

People looking at a sunset in a Top 10 Birdwatching Park in the US

The top 10 birdwatching parks in the USA

December 7, 2022

Sarah Cunningham

The Best US States For Birdwatching - map of USA with state names

The best US states for bird watching, a helpful illustrated guide

January 17, 2022

John White

Three people walking in nature in a highland, birdwatching and using one of the best free birdwatching apps

What are the best free birdwatching apps?

March 28, 2023

Will Hall

Children are outdoors, enthusiastically observing and admiring birds in their natural habitat.

12 of the best birdwatching apps in the USA

February 9, 2023

Sarah Cunningham

8x vs 10 x binoculars - person holding their pair in hand

Binoculars for birdwatching 8x vs 10x magnification

What Our Birders Say

Stewart W

Fantastic to be involved

Fantastic to be involved, great for mental health and gets you responding with the Challenges that are to takd part in.

Nicole

Gets me outdoors more

I'm still loving this app. I use it most days & gets me outdoors more. Enjoying watching others progress and photo's, it's improved my wellbeing.... I love this app! I can keep a record of sightings and see what others have seen too.

SuperOliviaGirl

Really great app

It’s easy to use and it’s fun to log the birds you notice on a walk or just in your garden. There’s a option to record the birds you see in a session which is really nice. Good excuse to stop for a while and just watch birds. I am also enjoying the information part where you can find out fact about birds from all over the world.

Madstherangers

A mordern game changer

Birda is an awesome app, its updated the world of birding to the modern day with a fun and easy to use app. It’s engaging and allows positive interaction with fellow bird lovers!

Robred 2

Fun way to add to your birdwatching experience

I enjoy watching birds in my backyard, but this app helped me really pay attention while on vacation this summer. It was fun to add new birds to my bird watching app.

BCHphotography_

Such a great app!

I didn’t think I could enjoy birding more but this app makes it so much better. Some great features and a really great way to share your sightings with your friends or fellow birders nearby or around the world! ❤️

Tralisalandhoop

Fantastic app - Love it!

Love this app and have used it almost daily. Lots of species information and easy to use. Love seeing birds spotted by other users in the UK and worldwide.

Nick S

Work together with community

Been loving using this app to log my bird sightings and work together with community members to identify different birds. I've already learned a lot since I started about a month ago!

JCBirding

Just what birding needs

We need more fun in birding, for years it has had a reputation for being up tight and stuffy and only perused by retirees and anoraks. Birda helps change that perception and firmly brings birding into the 21st century! Fun, interactive while still contributing to science and conservation. If you aren’t on it, why not??

Nedz53