Variegated Laughingthrush

Trochalopteron variegatum

Soft brown laughingthrush with a yellowish-white cheek patch and a diffuse black mask. Also note small white “teardrop” behind the eye. A species of middle to high elevations, ranging up above the treeline. Favors open forest and forest edge; often closely associated with rhododendrons. Short ringing song has a somewhat slurred, twangy quality.

Identification

The variegated laughingthrush is a medium-sized laughingthrush typically 24-26 centimeters in length and weighs 57-79 grams. Both subspecies have a black stripe down the center of the throat and are overall olive and buffy in appearance. The large tail has a gray subterminal band with a white tip. The color of the outer rectrices vary based on the subspecies. T. v. variegatum has distinctive yellow primary and secondary feathers with cinnamon-tipped greater coverts and black primary coverts. T. v. variegatum has yellow outer rectrices. The area around the beak is black up until the eye, which is broken with a white eye-ring. Buff area at the base of the mandible fades to whitish. The T. v. variegatum subspecies has buff forehead with a brownish gray crown.<p>T. v. simile is similar to T. v. variegatum except it has gray primary and secondary feathers along with gray outer rectrices. The area around the lower mandible is whiter in this subspecies and the buff on the forehead is more dull.

Taxonomy

Scientific name
Trochalopteron variegatum
Authority
(Vigors, 1831)
Order
Passeriformes
Family
Leiothrichidae
Genus
Trochalopteron

Range and habitat

Migration
Resident species

Conservation

Population trend
declining

Photos

Distribution

Bird Calls

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Variegated Laughingthrush | BirdLens