Rüppell's robin-chat (Cossypha semirufa) is a species of bird in the family Muscicapidae, that is native to the Afrotropics. It is named for the German naturalist Eduard Rüppell.[2]

Rüppell's robin-chat
C. s. intercedens in Kenya
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Muscicapidae
Genus: Cossypha
Species:
C. semirufa
Binomial name
Cossypha semirufa
(Rüppell, 1837)

Description edit

It is a smaller version of the White-browed robin-chat, measuring 18 cm rather than 20  cm, with darker, blackish central tail feathers, and in some races a more constricted supercilium behind the eye.[3]

Range edit

It is native to Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Sudan and Tanzania.

Habitat edit

It is found in subtropical or tropical moist montane forests,[4] including Juniper and Podocarpus forest,[3] and in subtropical or tropical moist shrubland and gardens.

Races edit

There are three races:[5]

 
The nominate race in Ethiopia
  • Cossypha semirufa semirufa
Range: Eritrea, Ethiopia, south-eastern South Sudan and northern Kenya
  • Cossypha semirufa donaldsoni Sharpe, 1895
Description: Rufous collar almost complete, upperparts darker than nominate[3]
Range: south-eastern Ethiopia and adjacent Somalia
  • Cossypha semirufa intercedens (Cabanis, 1878)
Range: central to south-eastern Kenya and northern Tanzania

References edit

  1. ^ BirdLife International (2016). "Cossypha semirufa". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T22709815A94223970. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22709815A94223970.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. ^ Boelens, Bo; Watkins, Michael (2003). Whose Bird?: Common Bird Names and the People They Commemorate. Yale University Press. p. 294. ISBN 0-300-10359-X.
  3. ^ a b c Redman, Nigel; Stevenson, Terry; Fanshawe, John (2009). Birds of the Horn of Africa Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, Socotra. London: Christopher Helm. p. 304. ISBN 9781408135761.
  4. ^ Aerts, R.; Lerouge, F.; November, E. (2019). Birds of forests and open woodlands in the highlands of Dogu'a Tembien. In: Nyssen J., Jacob, M., Frankl, A. (Eds.). Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District. SpringerNature. ISBN 978-3-030-04954-6.
  5. ^ "Rüppell's Robin-chat (Cossypha semirufa) - HBW 10, p. 738". The Internet Bird Collection. Retrieved 28 April 2016.