Turdus litsitsirupa

Life-forms

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Cladus: Sarcopterygii
Cladus: Rhipidistia
Cladus: Tetrapodomorpha
Cladus: Eotetrapodiformes
Cladus: Elpistostegalia
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Classis: Reptilia
Cladus: Eureptilia
Cladus: Romeriida
Subclassis: Diapsida
Cladus: Sauria
Infraclassis: Archosauromorpha
Cladus: Crurotarsi
Divisio: Archosauria
Cladus: Avemetatarsalia
Cladus: Ornithodira
Subtaxon: Dinosauromorpha
Cladus: Dinosauriformes
Cladus: Dracohors
Cladus: Dinosauria
Cladus: Saurischia
Cladus: Eusaurischia
Subordo: Theropoda
Cladus: Neotheropoda
Cladus: Averostra
Cladus: Tetanurae
Cladus: Avetheropoda
Cladus: Coelurosauria
Cladus: Tyrannoraptora
Cladus: Maniraptoromorpha
Cladus: Maniraptoriformes
Cladus: Maniraptora
Cladus: Pennaraptora
Cladus: Paraves
Cladus: Eumaniraptora
Cladus: Avialae
Infraclassis: Aves
Cladus: Avebrevicauda
Cladus: Pygostylia
Cladus: Ornithothoraces
Cladus: Ornithuromorpha
Cladus: Carinatae
Parvclassis: Neornithes
Cohors: Neognathae
Cladus: Neoaves
Cladus: Telluraves
Cladus: Australaves
Ordo: Passeriformes
Subordo: Passeri
Infraordo: Passerida
Superfamilia: Muscicapoidea

Familia: Turdidae
Genus: Turdus
Species: Turdus litsitsirupa
Subspecies: T. l. litsitsirupa – T. l. pauciguttatus – T. l. simensis – T. l. stierlingi
Name

Turdus litsitsirupa (A. Smith, 1836)
Synonyms

Merula litsitsirupa (protonym)
Psophocichla litsitsirupa

References

Report of the expedition for exploring central Africa: 45.

Vernacular names
Afrikaans: Gevlekte Lyster
čeština: Drozd pruholící
dansk: Opret Jorddrossel
Deutsch: Akaziendrossel
English: Groundscraper Thrush
Esperanto: Licicirupo
español: Zorzal Litsitsirupa
suomi: Pöyhijärastas
français: Merle litsitsirupa
magyar: Akácia rigó
italiano: Tordo grattaterra
日本語: ウタツグミモドキ
Nederlands: Acacialijster
polski: Drozd kroplisty
português: Tordo-de-peito-malhado

The groundscraper thrush (Turdus litsitsirupa)[3] is a passerine bird of southern and eastern Africa belonging to the thrush family, Turdidae. It was previously considered the only member of the genus Psophocichla, but phylogenetic analysis supports it belonging in the genus Turdus, of which it is the most basal species.[4]

It is 22–24 centimetres (8.7–9.4 in) long with an erect posture, short tail, heavy bill and fairly long legs. The upperparts are plain grey-brown with a chestnut wing-panel. The underparts are white with black spots and the face is white with bold black markings. The underwing has a black and white pattern which is visible during the undulating flight. The bird has a slow whistled song and a clicking call.

There are three subspecies: T. l. litsitsirupa is the most southerly form, occurring from Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique south to northern and eastern parts of South Africa. T. l. pauciguttata is found in southern Angola, northern Namibia and north-west Botswana while T. l. stierlingae occurs in a band from northern Angola across to western Tanzania, Malawi and north-west Mozambique. It can be tame and will forage in parks, gardens and around picnic sites. The Ethiopian thrush (Turdus simensis) has sometimes been treated as a subspecies.[5][6]

The cup-shaped nest is built using vegetation and spider-webs and is lined with feathers or leaves. Three or four eggs are laid and are incubated for 14 to 15 days. They are bluish with lilac and red-brown spots and blotches.
References

BirdLife International (2017) [amended version of 2017 assessment]. "Psophocichla litsitsirupa". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T103887337A118621409.
The specific name is often spelt litsipsirupa, however litsitsirupa is the correct spelling (Zoonomen, 2003). The name is of Tswana origin and is imitative of the bird's call.
taxonomy. "Taxonomy browser (Psophocichla litsitsirupa)".
"Thrushes – IOC World Bird List". Retrieved 29 July 2021.
Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (January 2023). "Thrushes". IOC World Bird List Version 13.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 11 February 2023.

Kirwan, R.B.; Collar, N.; del Hoyo, J.; Boesman, P.F.D. (2022). Keeney, B.K. (ed.). "Ethiopian Thrush (Turdus simensis), version 1.0". Birds of the World. Ithaca, NY, USA: Cornell Lab of Ornithology. doi:10.2173/bow.grothr2.01.

Sinclair, Ian & Ryan, Peter (2003) Birds of Africa south of the Sahara, Struik, Cape Town.