Striated Laughingthrush
Grammatoptila striata
With its short bill and loose, bushy crest, this laughingthrush resembles a dark, rather unmarked barwing. Brown overall with pencil-thin white lines all over the body. Crest is dark brown, and wings are dull rufous. Inhabits forests and adjoining areas with dense undergrowth in the Himalayan foothills. Like many other laughingthrushes, highly social and often found in flocks, which keep in contact with calls ranging from harsh screeches to hooting. Often gives a series of repeated loud, upslurred notes.
Identification
The striated laughingthrush (Grammatoptila striata) is a passerine bird in the family Leiothrichidae. It was at one time placed in the genus Garrulax but following the publication of a comprehensive molecular phylogenetic study in 2018, it was moved to be the only species in the resurrected genus Grammatoptila. It is found in the northern temperate regions of the Indian subcontinent and ranges across Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Tibet and Nepal. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.
Taxonomy
Genus: Grammatoptila; Family: Leiothrichidae; Order: Passeriformes.
- Scientific name
- Grammatoptila striata
- Authority
- (Vigors, 1831)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Leiothrichidae
- Genus
- Grammatoptila
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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Gray with a slender black mask and warm underparts. Male has white extending from the throat onto the cheeks, and averages darker below than the female, which also lacks the male’s white cheek patch. Very similar to Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch, but overlap is minimal. Inhabits dry broadlaef and pine forests in lowland and foothill areas. Creeps about on tree trunks, often in small bands or with other species. Calls include upslurred trills, harsh rattles, and a ringing, repeated “jweeyeh.”
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