Alternative names: Dark-billed Scaly Babbler; Squamulated Babbler
- Turdoides squamulata
Identification
With 22 - 23cm a smallish Turdoides-babbler with a reptilian look:
- Grey-scaled blackish head
- White-scaled whitish breast
- Orange eye
- Black bill
Distribution
Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Somalia.
Locally common in suitable habitat.
Taxonomy
Two populations (one in south Ethiopia around the river Webbe Gestro and one around Lak Bor) may represent two undescribed subspecies.
The scientific name of this species has been spelled Turdoides squamalatus in the past.
Subspecies
Three subspecies described[2]:
- T. s. carolinae
Webi Shabeele River, southern Somalia and southeastern Ethiopia - T. s. jubaensis
Jubba River, southern Somalia and southeastern Ethiopia - T. s. squamulata
Kenya coast and Tana River and extreme southern Somalia
Habitat
Dense coastal bush, woodland undergrowth, thickets along rivers and scrub. Up to 500m in Kenya.
Behaviour
Diet
Feeds probably on invertebrates, berries and seeds, but no information available on diet.
Moves around in noisy family groups of up to five birds but always sticks to dense cover.
Breeding
Breeds in April in Kenya, nest-building recorded in October in Somalia and July to August in Ethiopia. The eggs are pale blue. No other information about breeding.
Movements
Resident species.
Gallery
Click on photo for larger image
References
- Lepage D. (2021) [Avibase - https://avibase.ca/0E9C6F45 ]. Retrieved 6 June 2021
- 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
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Scaly Babbler. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 4 June 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Scaly_Babbler
