Little rock thrush

Little rock thrush
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Muscicapidae
Genus:	Monticola
Species:	M. rufocinereus
Binomial name
Monticola rufocinereus (Rüppell, 1837)

The little rock thrush (Monticola rufocinereus) is a species of passerine bird in the family Muscicapidae. It is found in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Yemen. ^[1] It is found in rocky (inland cliffs and mountain peaks) areas with some trees, and sometimes near settlements. ^{[2] [3] [4]} At 15 to 16 centimetres (5.9 to 6.3 in) this is the smallest of the Muscicapidae. The male has the head, throat and upper mantle blue-grey, the underparts orange-red, except for the center blackish center tail and tips which form an inverted T shape. The female is duller and paler. ^[3] It is readily mistaken for a redstart because of its habit of trembling its tail. ^[4]

Little rock thrush in the gorge at Debre Berhan, Ethiopia

References

1. BirdLife International (2016). "Monticola rufocinereus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016 e.T22708265A94154605. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22708265A94154605.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
2. 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.
3. Stevenson & Fanshawe 2002 , p. 342
4. Sinclair & Ryan 2003 , p. 434

Works cited

• Sinclair, Ian; Ryan, Peter (2003). Birds of Africa south of the Sahara. Cape Town: Struik.
• Stevenson, Terry; Fanshawe, John (2002). A Field Guide to the Birds of East Africa.