Cryptic crossword clue
Indian songbird — medicine man removes tail 5

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 letter word SHAMA

I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
S
H
A
M
A

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The straight part
We know that "Indian songbird" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case indian songbird = shama.
The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.
This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.

What does SHAMA mean?

SHAMA noun
  1. Copsychus malabaricus (white-rumped shama), a saxicoline songbird of India, glossy black with a white rump and brown underparts, and six other species in genus Copsychus.

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