Vangidae

Vangidae is a family of often shrike-like medium-sized birds of the order Passeriformes, distributed from Asia to Africa and including the vangas of Madagascar, comprising 40 species in 21 genera; besides the Malagasy vangas the family also includes Asian woodshrikes, flycatcher-shrikes and philentomas as well as African helmetshrikes and shrike-flycatchers. Members are native to sub-Saharan Africa and the Indomalayan realm, though most species are endemic to Madagascars forests and scrub, and the family is a well known example of adaptive radiation, varying in size from 12 to 32 centimeters, coloration and bill shape while sharing a similar skull and palate structure. Many vangas have strong hooked bills resembling those of shrikes, though some carry thin or notably curved bills, and most are black, brown or grey above with white underparts, though the blue vanga differs; they typically give whistling calls and feed on insects, earthworms, lizards and amphibians, often foraging in mixed-species flocks.