NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Dark Batis
Batis crypta Fjeldså, Bowie & Kiure, 2006
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Batis crypta, Rubeho_1900m, Gairo, Tanzania, 2024-09-21 (iNaturalist).
desertnaturalist · CC BY 4.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 320 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The dark batis (Batis crypta) is a small passerine bird belonging to the genus Batis in the wattle-eye family, Platysteiridae. It is found in highland forest in south-west Tanzania, northern Malawi, and northern Mozambique. These birds were formerly thought to be forest batises (B. mixta) but in 2006 were described as a new species based on differences in morphology and mitochondrial DNA from those birds in northern Tanzania and Kenya.
Wikipedia contributors, Dark batis; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T01:55:42.498553+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Batis crypta Fjeldså, Bowie & Kiure, 2006
- Name authority
- Fjeldså, Bowie & Kiure, 2006
- Common name
- Dark Batis
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Platysteiridae
- Genus
- Batis
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familyPlatysteiridae Mathews, 1922
- genusBatis F. Boie, 1833
- speciesBatis crypta Fjeldså, Bowie & Kiure, 2006
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Batis. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Eastern Black-headed BatisBatis minor Erlanger, 1901 | PlatysteiridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Ituri BatisBatis ituriensis Chapin, 1921 | PlatysteiridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Angola BatisBatis minulla (Barboza du Bocage, 1874) | PlatysteiridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Margaret's BatisBatis margaritae Boulton, 1934 | PlatysteiridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Pygmy BatisBatis perkeo Neumann, 1907 | PlatysteiridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Malawi BatisBatis dimorpha (Shelley, 1893) | PlatysteiridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Rwenzori BatisBatis diops F. J. Jackson, 1905 | PlatysteiridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Western Black-headed BatisBatis erlangeri Neumann, 1907 | PlatysteiridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Woodwards' BatisBatis fratrum (Shelley in Woodward & Woodward, 1900) | PlatysteiridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Chinspot BatisBatis molitor (Küster, 1836) | PlatysteiridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Gabon BatisBatis minima (J. Verreaux & É. Verreaux, 1855) | PlatysteiridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Pale BatisBatis soror Reichenow, 1903 | PlatysteiridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Fjeldså, Jon, Rauri Bowie, & and Jacob Kiure. (2006). The forest batis, Batis mixta, is two species: description of a new, narrowly distributed Batis species in the Eastern Arc biodiversity hotspot. Journal Für Ornithologie, Vol. 147, No. 4. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:68G5D. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.