I recently caught and banded a flycatcher at Washpool National Park,
northern NSW and faced the same dilemma that you did. The bill was very
broad and looked more like a Broad-billed than a Leaden when compared with
an illustration in a field guide. Due to the location being a very long way
south of the known range of the Broad-billed I presumed that it must have
been a Leaden but wanted to be sure. I sent a few photos to the 'brains
trust' and the answer was unanimously 'Leaden'. The exercise was not a time
waster as now I know what to look for. The tail of the Broad-billed tapers
gradually towards the tip while the tail feathers of the Leaden are all
approximately the same length. Your photos show a (worn) tail with all of
the feathers approximately the same length, which makes it a Leaden. I
don't know if the upperparts colouration is a factor of the camera, light
etc. but it is very brown for a Leaden. Could it be a Satin? Satins are
virtually unknown from the lowlands of the north coast of NSW so I would
suspect that the same would occur in lowland south-east Queensland. Any
comments brains trust?????
Greg Clancy
Ecologist
Coutts Crossing
NSW
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