Rufous-chinned laughingthrush

Rufous-chinned laughingthrush
From Naina Devi Himalayan Bird Conservation Reserve, Uttarakhand, India
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Leiothrichidae
Genus:	Garrulax
Species:	G. rufogularis
Binomial name
Garrulax rufogularis (Gould, 1835)
Synonyms
Ianthocincla rufogularis

The rufous-chinned laughingthrush (Garrulax rufogularis) is a bird species in the family Leiothrichidae. The species is sometimes placed in the genus Ianthocincla, the placement used originally by John Gould. It ranges across the northern parts of the Indian subcontinent and some parts of Southeast Asia.

Garrulax rufogularis at Dehradun, India.

Description

This mid-sized laughingthrush is found along the Himalayas and can be identified by the combination of the black cap and band on the brown tail. The underparts are greyish while the upperparts have scale like feather patterning. A distinctive pale loreal patch of buff colour and a broad dark moustachial stripe which borders the rufous chin and ear coverts are identifying features. There is however considerable geographic variation in plumage. The western population (occidentalis of western and central Himalayas) being greyer and paler making the dark patterns stand out in greater contrast. The eastern populations assamensis have a paler throat and the markings on the throat are much less marked. The populations in Meghalaya (rufitincta) has an orange wash on the underside from the throat to the belly.

It is found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Tibet and Vietnam. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.