Anteater Chat
Myrmecocichla aethiops Cabanis, 1850
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.
Northern Anteater-Chat (Myrmecocichla aethiops) - between Nairobi and the Rift Valley, Kenya. Also known as Anteater-Chat.
DickDaniels (https://carolinabirds.org/) · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The anteater chat or northern anteater-chat (Myrmecocichla aethiops) is a species of bird in the family Muscicapidae. It range extends across the Sahel and the East African montane forests. Its natural habitats are dry savanna, subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland, and subtropical or tropical high-altitude grassland.
It has been observed to nest in abandoned wells in Nigeria
Wikipedia contributors, Anteater chat; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T03:11:51.449609+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Myrmecocichla aethiops Cabanis, 1850
- Name authority
- Cabanis, 1850
- Common name
- Anteater Chat
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Muscicapidae
- Genus
- Myrmecocichla
- 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
- familyMuscicapidae Fleming, 1822
- genusMyrmecocichla Cabanis, 1850
- speciesMyrmecocichla aethiops Cabanis, 1850
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Myrmecocichla. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Congo Moor ChatMyrmecocichla tholloni (Oustalet, 1886) | MuscicapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Rüppell's Black ChatMyrmecocichla melaena (Rüppell, 1837) | MuscicapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
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.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=561385 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:6S5BP. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.