- Cisticola bodessa
Identification
13 - 14cm (5-5½ in). A medium-sized, streak-backed cisticola with a fairly long and graduated tail.
- Whitish lores , extending slightly as a short supercilium
- Grey-brown cheeks
- Brown crown, washed rufous and streaked dark brown
- Grey-brown upperparts, streaked blackish-brown on mantle and back
- Only lightly streaked rump
- Dark brown flight-feathers with buff margins, dark brown upperwing-coverts, broadly margined rufous-buff
- Brown tail with dark subterminal band and buffy-grey tips
- Buffy underparts with whitish on throat and on central belly, olive-grey on flanks
- kaffensis generally duller and darker, no rufous on crown, darker flanks on richer buff underparts
Sexes similar, juveniles have a pale yellow wash on face and on underparts.
Similar Species
Similar to Rattling Cisticola but in the regions where both occur the song is the best way to distinguish them. Boran Cisticola has also a browner crown and less heavily streaked uppperparts.
Distribution
Eastern Africa: found in South Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Kenya.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
There are 2 subspecies[1]:
- C. b. bodessa:
- Northern Eritrea, southeastern South Sudan, southern Ethiopia, and northern Kenya
- C. b. kaffensis:
- Western Ethiopia (Kaffa Province)
Habitat
Bushy, rocky hillsides, dry forests, savanna and shrubland.
Behaviour
Diet
Feeds mainly on insects. Forages up to 3m in the vegetation.
Breeding
Breeding season April to June, possibly also September to November. Presumably a monogamous species. The nest is ball-shaped with a side entrance and made of coarse grass and lichens. Lays 4 eggs.
Movements
Few data, probably mostly resident.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Del Hoyo, J, A Elliot, and D Christie, eds. 2006. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 11: Old World Flycatchers to Old World Warblers. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8496553064
- BF Member observations
- Avibase
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Boran Cisticola. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 3 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Boran_Cisticola
