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====Similar species==== | ====Similar species==== | ||
The [[Black-crowned Tchagra]] is larger and has a black crown; the [[Southern Tchagra]] is also larger, lacks the thin black stripe above the eyebrow, and has a darker brown crown; the female [[Marsh Tchagra]] has a black crown and a shorter white eyebrow. | The [[Black-crowned Tchagra]] is larger and has a black crown; the [[Southern Tchagra]] is also larger, lacks the thin black stripe above the eyebrow, and has a darker brown crown; the female [[Marsh Tchagra]] has a black crown and a shorter white eyebrow. | ||
| − | [[Image: | + | [[Image:2009_09_23_Brown-crowned_Tchagra_AlanManson.jpg|thumb|450px|right|''T. a. australis''<br />Photo by {{user|Alan+Manson|Alan Manson}}<br />iMfolosi Game Reserve, [[KwaZulu-Natal]], South Africa, September 2009]] |
==Distribution== | ==Distribution== | ||
[[Africa]] south of the Sahara; widespread between about 8°N and about 30°S, although absent from the central Congo Basin and arid zones in the north-east and south-west. | [[Africa]] south of the Sahara; widespread between about 8°N and about 30°S, although absent from the central Congo Basin and arid zones in the north-east and south-west. | ||
Revision as of 08:01, 5 February 2011
- Tchagra australis
Identification
Length 17.5 cm, mass 29-46 g.
Similar species
The Black-crowned Tchagra is larger and has a black crown; the Southern Tchagra is also larger, lacks the thin black stripe above the eyebrow, and has a darker brown crown; the female Marsh Tchagra has a black crown and a shorter white eyebrow.
Photo by Alan Manson
iMfolosi Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, September 2009
Distribution
Africa south of the Sahara; widespread between about 8°N and about 30°S, although absent from the central Congo Basin and arid zones in the north-east and south-west.
Taxonomy
Subspecies[1]
Nine subspecies have been recognised, based on variation in the colour of the underparts and in size:
- T. a. ussheri: Sierra Leone to south-western Nigeria
- T. a. emini: South-eastern Nigeria to DRC, southern Sudan, Rwanda, western Kenya, north-western Tanzania
- T. a. minor: South-eastern Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia to northern Zimbabwe and Mozambique
- T. a. rhodesiensis: North-eastern Namibia to north-eastern Botswana, south-eastern Angola, extreme south-western Zambia
- T. a. ansorgei: Western Angola (Luanda to Moçamedes)
- T. a. bocagei: Angola (central Cuando-Cubango)
- T. a. souzae: South-eastern DRC to central Angola plateau and extreme northern Zambia
- T. a. australis: Eastern South Africa, Swaziland, south-eastern Zimbabwe and southern Mozambique
- T. a. damarensis: Namibia to extreme south-western Angola, Botswana and northern and north-central South Africa
Habitat
Thickets within woodlands; forest edges; scrubby vegetation at higher altitudes; also fallow fields and gardens.
Behaviour
Breeding
The nest is a shallow, thin-walled cup of stems, roots and fibres, bound with spider web; lined with fine rootlets; usually low down in mixed bush and tall grass, or up to 3 m above ground in fork of bush or tree. Clutch: 2-4 eggs laid September to March in southern Africa. Eggs: White or pinkish white, spotted and blotched with brown and grey concentrated at thick end. Incubation: About 14-16 days by both sexes, mostly by female. Nestling: 14-16 days; fed by both parents; young remain with parents for at least 5 months after leaving nest.
Vocalisation
In flight display rises with loud bursts of quivering wings, just above vegetation, prrr prrr prrr prrr, followed by gliding descent with spread tail and about 15 melodious double whistles dropping in tone but rising in volume, pa-reeu pa-reeu pa-reeu, etc.; sharp chirrp, chirrp alarm and anxiety calls.
References
- Clements, JF. 2009. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2009. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Brown-crowned Tchagra. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 26 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Brown-crowned_Tchagra
