CreatureData

Square-tailed drongo

Dicrurus ludwigii (A. Smith, 1834)

LCLeast Concernsongbirds

The square-tailed drongo (Dicrurus ludwigii) is a species in the family Dicruridae, order Passeriformes. Recorded adults weigh 29.4 g to 35.5 g. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

Square-tailed drongo (Dicrurus ludwigii)
Photo: Alan Manson · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the square-tailed drongo

Weight
29.4 g – 35.5 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
Not recorded
Diet
Invertivoresrc for Diet
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
forestsrc for Habitat
Young per litter or clutch
2.4 – 2.5src for Young per litter or clutch
Lifestyle
Perchingsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Sedentarysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the square-tailed drongo live?

Not recorded

What is the square-tailed drongo?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The square-tailed drongo (Dicrurus ludwigii), formerly the common square-tailed drongo, is a passerine bird in the family Dicruridae. It is a common resident breeder in parts of southern Africa.

These insectivorous birds are usually found in forests or dense bush. They are aggressive and fearless birds, given their small size, at 19 cm (7.5 in), and will attack much larger species if their nest or young are threatened. The male is mainly glossy black, although the wings are duller. The female is similar but less glossy. The bill is black and heavy, and the eye is red. This species is similar to the fork-tailed drongo, but is smaller, and the shorter tail lacks the deep fork which gives the latter species its name. The fork-tailed drongo is also typically found in more open habitat. The common square-tailed drongo has short legs and sits very upright whilst perched prominently, like a shrike. It flycatches or take prey from the ground. The call is a harsh cherit-cherit. Two to three eggs are laid in a cup nest in a fork high in a tree.

From the Wikipedia article “Square-tailed drongo” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Square-tailed_drongo&oldid=1367468758), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the square-tailed drongo endangered?

The square-tailed drongo is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.

How is the square-tailed drongo classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderPasseriformes
  5. familyDicruridae
  6. genusDicrurus
  7. SpeciesDicrurus ludwigii (A. Smith, 1834)

Synonyms Edolius ludwigii

Other names and names in other languages (35)
  • Common square-tailed drongoEnglish
  • Common square-tailed drongoEnglish
  • CSTDEnglish
  • KleinbyvangerAfrikaans
  • drongo lesníCzech
  • Drongo Cynffon SgwarWelsh
  • Rethalet DrongoDanish
  • GeradschwanzdrongoGerman
  • SchwalbenschwanzdrongoGerman
  • kvadratvosta drongoEsperanto
  • Drongo de Ludwig comúnSpanish
  • kantsaba-drongoEstonian
  • pikkudrongoFinnish
  • matkijapikkudrongoFinnish
  • Drongo de LudwigFrench
  • kratkorepi drongoCroatian
  • erdei drongóHungarian
  • Drongo codaquadraItalian
  • カクビオウチュウJapanese
  • tiesiauodegis drongasLithuanian
  • tverrhaledrongoNorwegian Bokmål
  • RechtstaartdrongoDutch
  • Gewone RechtstaartdrongoDutch
  • tverrstjertdrongoNorwegian
  • dziwogon prostosternyPolish
  • drongo-de-cauda-quadradaPortuguese
  • Прямохвостый дронгоRussian
  • drongo tupochvostýSlovak
  • Obični ravnorepi drongoSerbian
  • tvärstjärtad drongoSwedish
  • นกแซงแซวหางเหลี่ยมธรรมดาThai
  • Ludwig DrongosuTurkish
  • дронго прямохвостийUkrainian
  • 方尾卷尾Chinese
  • 路氏方尾卷尾Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the square-tailed drongo

Other species in the same genus Dicrurus.

LC, Least Concern
Ashy drongo (Dicrurus leucophaeus)

Ashy drongo

Dicrurus leucophaeus

Dicruridae

CompareSquare-tailed drongo vs Black drongoSquare-tailed drongo vs Greater racket-tailed drongoSquare-tailed drongo vs Ashy drongoSquare-tailed drongo vs Bronzed drongo

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the square-tailed drongo?

An adult square-tailed drongo weighs 29.4 g – 35.5 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the square-tailed drongo endangered?

The square-tailed drongo is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

What kind of animal is the square-tailed drongo?

The square-tailed drongo (Dicrurus ludwigii) belongs to the family Dicruridae in the order Passeriformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

Embed a card for this animal on your own site

Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.

Preview the card

APA

CreatureData. (2026). Square-tailed drongo (Dicrurus ludwigii). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/square-tailed-drongo

MLA

“Square-tailed drongo (Dicrurus ludwigii).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/square-tailed-drongo.

BibTeX
@misc{square_tailed_drongo_2026,
  title = {Square-tailed drongo (Dicrurus ludwigii)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/square-tailed-drongo},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}