Small, dumpy, shike-like passerines, generally combinations of black, white and rufous. These arboreal birds are insectivorous. They forage sallying from leaves, twigs and branches within the canopy of trees. They move erraticly when foraging, flicking the tail and jerking the head, this may be done to attempt to flush prey from hiding.
They may join in mixed foraging flocks, especially when not breeding. They have short dorso-ventrally flattened bills. They can produce noise by bill-snapping and rapid flurries of wing-beats.
They are monogamous and they are territorial. The nest is a small neat cup low in a tree or bush. Incubation starts with the last egg, resulting in synchronous hatching.

batis = unidentified bird mentioned by Aristotle

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