Shining Flycatchers like shady places - you'll rarely see them out in the sun except very early or late in the day. Mangroves, riverside thickets and monsoon forest are all favoured habitats. They are fairly well restricted to the tropics in Australia, except on the east coast where they do extend as far south as the Tweed River estuary at the NSW/Queensland border. Despite the maps in the field guides showing the southern limit in W.A. as near Broome, there is a small resident population in coastal mangroves near Cossack and Point Samson in the Pilbara region.

In northern Australia they are quite common birds in suitable habitat but they've always been regarded as being quite rare in S.E. Queensland. During January 2002 I was able to explore by boat much of the mangrove habitat of the Pumicestone Passage just north of Brisbane. With Shining Flycatcher in mind I took a replay tape and played it in all the likely-looking places (darker, Rhizophora mangrove forest) and in most cases I got a response. They are now known to be well distributed in that area and also further north on both the Maroochy and Noosa Rivers in suitable patches of mangroves.

There have been some observations made in the winter months which suggest that they are permanent residents - certainly the same territories are occupied year after year.

Shining Flycatchers live as simple pairs and share in all the nesting activities - nest building, incubating, and feeding the nestlings. Males are quite noisy birds (listen on sound page) and females do sing also.

One of the easiest places to see them in S.E. Qld is at Coochin Creek on the Sunshine Coast. As the creek nears Pumicestone Passage there is a boat ramp. For some years there has been a permanent territory there on a little island just upstream of the boat launching area.