Willard's Sooty Boubou
Laniarius willardi
Mid-sized bushshrike that is completely black with pale blue-gray eyes. Found in the undergrowth of humid forest at moderate elevations. A skilled skulker that is most often detected by voice. The most distinctive vocalization is a series of four bell-like whistles; also gives low scolding notes. Very similar to Albertine Boubou, but prefers lower-elevation forest and has a pale eye.
Identification
The species was first described in 2010, based on five specimens, all collected by the Field Museum of Natural History and originally identified as the Mountain sooty boubou (L. poensis). Four were collected in 1997 on a private banana plantation in southern Uganda, and the fifth was collected in Burundi in 1991. <p>The species' main distinct trait is its gray-to-blue-gray eye color, in comparison to the reddish-black to black eye color typically found in the Mountain sooty boubou. However, specimens collected as far back as 1910 were identified as having gray irises, but categorized as L. poensis. The species was also identified as being genetically diagnosable, differing 11.5% in uncorrected sequence divergence from the co-located Albertine sooty boubou. The species is named in honor of Field Museum of Natural History collections manager David Willard, with its common name also reflecting its plumage.<p>The species is also considered to be potentially threatened, due to occurring in a narrow elevational band between 1,200 and 2,000 meters that is heavily deforested for tea plantations.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Laniarius willardi
- Authority
- Voelker & Gnoske, 2010
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Malaconotidae
- Genus
- Laniarius
Photos
Bird Calls
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