Northern Anteater Chat - BirdForum Opus

Photo by Ashraf Kotb
Masai Mara, Kenya

Myrmecocichla aethiops

Identification

17–19 cm (6¾-7½ in)

• Blackish-brown overall plumage
• White bases to flight feathers (visible in flight)
• Black bill and legs

Distribution

Photo by d.flack
Between Banjul and Tendaba, The Gambia, November 2016

Africa:
Western Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, The Gambia, Mali, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea
Eastern Africa: Sudan, South Sudan and Kenya,

Taxonomy

Subspecies

There are 3 subspecies^[1]:

• M. a. aethiops:

• Senegambia to Chad, northern Nigeria and northern Cameroon

• M. a. sudanensis:

• West Sudan (Darfur and Kordofan)

• M. a. cryptoleuca:

• Highlands of northern Kenya to northern Tanzania

Habitat

Grassland, scrub, woods and forests. Nearly always in areas where there are termite mounds.

Behaviour

Diet

Their diet is mainly insects, such as termites, beetles, moths, ants, grasshoppers, spiders and caterpillars.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Avibase
3. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved January 2017)
4. BF Member observations

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Northern Anteater Chat. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 28 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Northern_Anteater_Chat

External Links

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