White Monjita

The white monjita is 17 to 18 cm (6.7 to 7.1 in) long and weighs 21 to 29.5 g (0.74 to 1.0 oz). Adult males of the nominate subspecies are almost entirely white. They have black primaries, primary coverts, and tail tip. Females are almost identical but have a gray tinge on their back. Subspecies X. i. niveus is slightly smaller than the nominate and has a wider black band on the tail. Both sexes of both subspecies have a dark brown iris, a black bill, and black legs and feet.

The white monjita has a disjunct distribution. The nominate subspecies has by far the larger range of the two. It is found from central Bolivia south through southeastern Bolivia, Paraguay, and western Mato Grosso do Sul in Brazil and through Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul, Uruguay, and Argentina as far as Río Negro Province. Subspecies X. i. niveus is found in northeastern Brazil from Ceará and Rio Grande do Norte south to Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo. The species inhabits open and semi-open landscapes such as savanna, grasslands, and pastures with some bushes and trees, and is usually found near marshes or water. It often occurs around isolated human dwellings and along roads. In most areas it reaches an elevation of about 1,000 m (3,300 ft) but in Bolivia reaches 1,300 m (4,300 ft).

The white monjita feeds on insects. It usually perches very visibly in the open on treetops, wires, and bushes but moves into dense vegetation if threatened. It drops from the perch to the ground to capture prey and also sometimes hovers before dropping.