Common chiffchaff the male has little involvement in nesting, but defends his territory against rivals, and attacks potential predators. A small insectivorous bird, it is subject to predation by mammals, such as cats and mustelids, and birds, particularly hawks of the genus "Accipiter". Its large range and population mean that its status is secure, although one subspecies is probably extinct. The British naturalist Gilbert White was one of the first people to separate the similar-looking common chiffchaff, willow warbler and wood warbler by their songs, as detailed in 1789 in "The Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne", but the common chiffchaff was
Hawking (birds) nighthawk does not). When different kinds of birds have the same adaptations, such similarities are not necessaily indicative of any familial relationship between bird species. Rather, they are the result of convergent evolution. Consider, for example, the marked resemblance in body size, shape, and coloration between flycatchers of several families, though these species are not closely related: the Asian brown flycatcher (of the Muscicapidae or Old World flycatcher family), Acadian flycatcher (of the Tyrannidae or tyrant flycatcher family) of the New World, and slaty monarch (of the Monarchidae or monarch flycatcher family), endemic to Fiji. All three use flycatching to