Social Structure
Common drongos are solitary nesters. They do not tend to form flocks.
Communication
The common drongo’s call is a harsh, metallic strink-strink. The drongo also produces sounds that mimic the alarm calls of other animals, triggering flight that leaves nests or foraged food exposed for looting.
Behavior
Common drongos are aggressive, protecting their nests with attacks on birds of prey, snakes, and human intruders. They also steal eggs and chicks from the nests of other species.
Diet
While perched, common drongos, snap up bees, beetles, and wasps. Leaving their perches, they hunt small lizards and fish and steal the eggs and chicks from the nests of other species.
Breeding
Common drongos are monogamous. During the long breeding season, a pair builds a thin-walled, strongly woven, cup-shaped nest in a high tree fork. The female lays two to five eggs, which are incubated by both sexes for about 15 to 18 days. The chicks, fed by both parents, leave the nest after 16 to 22 days.
Population in Kenya
Common drongos are found throughout southern Kenya’s acacia and broad-leafed woodlands. They also live in savannas and in urban gardens.
Range & Habitat
Common drongos, also called fork-tailed drongos, are found throughout sub-Saharan Africa, except in deserts and other treeless regions. These drongos prefer open bush and woodlands. They also live in farmyards, town parks, and gardens.