Alternative names: Ogle's Laughingthrush
- Pterorhinus nuchalis
Dryonastes nuchalis
Garrulax nuchalis
Identification
23 - 26cm. A medium-sized laughingthrush:
- Grey crown
- Broad whitish ear-coverts
- Black face and throat stripe
- Rufous to rufous-chestnut nape and upper mantle
- Small white mark behind short bristly black forehead feathers
Sexes similar, juveniles undescribed.
Distribution
Found in northeast India (southeast Arunachal Pradesh, east Assam and Nagaland) and north Burma.
Uncommon and rarely seen by birdwatchers as the area is seldom visited.
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species[1].
May form a superspecies with similar Black-throated Laughingthrush and has been considered conspecific.
This species is sometimes placed in the genus Ianthocincla or in Dryonastes.
Habitat
Thickets, second growth, scrub-jungle, tall grass, bamboo, abandoned cultivation, edge of broadleaf evergreen forest. Found from the lowlands up to 915m.
Behaviour
Resident species.
Diet
Feeds on insects.
Usually seen in small groups, sometimes together with other laughingthrushes. Skulking behaviour, forages mostly on the ground in dense vegetation.
Breeding
Breeding season March to July. A reported nest was a compact cup made of bracken, dead leaves and broad grass blades. It was placed in a dense bush, around 1m above the ground. Lays 2 - 3 eggs.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2019. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World: v2019. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Del Hoyo, J, A Elliott, and D Christie, eds. 2007. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 12: Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8496553422
- Rasmussen, PC and JC Anderton. 2005. Birds of South Asia: The Ripley Guide. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8487334672
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2021) Chestnut-backed Laughingthrush. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 2 June 2021 from https://www.birdforum.net/wiki/Chestnut-backed_Laughingthrush


