White-rumped Babbler Turdoides leucopygia Scientific name definitions

25–27 cm; 63–93 g. Medium-sized cold grey-brown Turdoides babbler with scaly breast, white lower belly and white rump; plumage rather variable. Nominate race has crown greyish-white, well demarcated from grey-tinged cold brown upperparts, white rump, dark brown upperwing and darker brown tail; supercilium buff-tinged white, face (lores, cheek, submoustachial area and ear-coverts) dirty white; chin whitish, throat and neck side to mid-belly cold grey-brown with darker subterminal and very narrow whitish-grey terminal scaling, shading on rest of underparts to white; iris red with yellow inner ring; bill black; legs slaty grey. Sexes similar. Juvenile is duller than adult, with brownish crown rather paler than mantle, whitish face and chin. Race limbata has blackish-grey crown with silvery-grey scaling, forehead white, face and chin whiter; smithii has whole crown scaled dark grey and silvery, face dirty silvery grey, chin dusky and broader whitish scaling there and to upper belly; lacuum is like previous, but with dusky-grey lores, cheeks , submoustachial region and throat, buffier lower flanks and rump; omoensis is like last, but lores, cheeks and submoustachial area plainer blackish-grey, throat less grey, more like breast.

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Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Very noisy. Chorus song of harsh chattering calls given. Calls also harsh and scolding.