The Black-lored Babbler (Turdoides melanops) is a species of songbird

Songbird

A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds . Another name that is sometimes seen as scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin oscen, "a songbird"...

 in the Timaliidae family

As defined here, it consists of two populations with widely separated ranges, one in northwestern Botswana

Botswana

Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...

, northern Namibia

Namibia

Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...

, and Angola

Angola

Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...

; the other in southwestern Kenya

Kenya

Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...

, Tanzania

Tanzania

The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...

, Uganda

Uganda

Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...

, Burundi

Burundi

Burundi , officially the Republic of Burundi , is a landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and south, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Its capital is Bujumbura...

, Rwanda

Rwanda

Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...

, and the part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Democratic Republic of the Congo

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...

 immediately adjacent to the three last-named countries. Like other Turdoides, it is found low or on the ground in or near dense woody vegetation, including in cultivated areas.

Description

Both populations are 21 to 25 cm (8 to 10 inches) long. Birds are largely grayish brown with geographically and individually variable white mottling, especially below. The population near Nanyuki

Nanyuki

Nanyuki is a market town in central-east Rift Valley region of Kenya lying northwest of Mount Kenya along the A2 road and at the terminus of the branch railway from Nairobi. It is situated just north of the Equator . It was founded in 1907 by British settlers, some of whose descendants still live...

, Kenya, is darker but can have a pure white chin or entire throat. The combination of pale yellow or white eyes and black lores (the areas between the eye and the bill) separates this species from similar babblers, though all juvenile babblers have brown eyes.

In southern Africa, the calls are described as "A nasal 'wha-wha-wha' and a harsh, fast 'papapapa'." In Kenya, single birds give repeated single or double harsh notes such as waaach or a muffled kurr-ack; pairs or groups give longer phrases in chorus. The tempo is frequently slow for a babbler. They are most vocal in the early morning and late afternoon.

Behavior

Southern birds forage in leaf litter and are "much more furtive than the other babblers". However, Kenyan birds forage in bushes and tall grass; they are "restless, noisy, and suspicious" and "typical gregarious babblers".

Taxonomy

The two populations are treated here as a single species following the Handbook of the Birds of the World and other authorities. Some authorities consider the northern form a separate species, Turdoides sharpei.