Kalahari Scrub-Robin
Cercotrichas paena
A medium-sized sandy-brown scrub-robin with pale unstreaked underparts. It has a brownish back and an auburn-rusty rump and tail with a white-tipped black terminal band. Pairs frequent thickets and clumps of thorn trees in Kalahari woodland, where they forage on the ground with the tail often cocked and rocking sideways, or perch in trees singing a varied musical song that often reveals their presence. The similar Red-backed Scrub-Robin differs in having white on the wing and a streaked breast.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Cercotrichas paena
- Authority
- (Smith, A, 1836)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Muscicapidae
- Genus
- Cercotrichas
Range and habitat
It is found in southern Angola, Botswana, Namibia, northern South Africa, and Zimbabwe, where it occurs in sandveld with low trees and scrub, on the edges of woodland, and in savanna. It will also inhabit human-altered environments including old fields and gardens. The species is common and not considered threatened by human activities.
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Arctic Warbler
Phylloscopus borealis
Dull, relatively unmarked olive-brown warbler with a prominent yellowish-white eyestripe, faint wingbars, and pale whitish underparts. Visually inseparable from Japanese and Kamchatka Leaf Warblers; listen for song, an electric chattery trill. Also gives a metallic two-noted call and a short harsh buzz. Breeds in shrubby areas, often near water, throughout the Eurasian taiga. Breeding range extends to Alaska, where it is the only leaf warbler. Winters in lowland and foothill forest, forest edge, and gardens, primarily in Southeast Asia.
Cape Sparrow
Passer melanurus
A handsome, unstreaked, brightly colored sparrow with different-looking males and females. The male has a distinctive black head and throat with a striking white crescent extending from the eye around the ear. The female has a pale gray head with a diffuse pale crescent, similar in shape to the male’s. Pairs and small flocks are resident in a wide variety of natural and human-altered habitats. House and Great Rufous Sparrows have streaked backs and lack the distinctive facial pattern of the Cape Sparrow.
Oriental Greenfinch
Chloris sinica
A bright gregarious finch found in a wide range of woodlands, often detected by its high-pitched twittering call as it flies overhead. Adult unmistakable within range, with yellowish-olive face, vivid yellow wing patches, and brown body tinged with yellow-green. Juvenile streaky yellowish-brown overall, with yellow wing patches.
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