Sri Lanka Shama

The Sri Lanka shama is a medium-sized Old World flycatcher endemic to Sri Lanka. It has glossy blue-black upperparts, bright chestnut underparts, a white rump and white outer tail feathers, and the sexes are similar. Compared with the white-rumped shama of India it has a shorter tail, a paler belly and less difference between the sexes (Wikipedia, species account).

It was described in 1941 as a subspecies of the white-rumped shama, and became a full species after a 2022 study of morphology and museum-specimen genetics; it honours William Vincent Legge. It has no subspecies. Nationally Least Concern (Sri Lanka National Red List 2012, listed as the White-rumped Shama, Copsychus malabaricus, before the split).