Collared Palm Thrush
Cichladusa arquata W. Peters, 1863
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.
Two Collared Palm-thrushs near Jongomero, Ruaha National Park, Tanzania.
Jenny Varley · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The collared palm thrush (Cichladusa arquata) is a species of bird in the family Muscicapidae. It is found in Botswana, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitats are dry savannah and subtropical or tropical moist shrubland.
The Collared palm thrush is an odd and distinctive bird, easily recognized by its unique features. With a gray head, pale eye, and striking rufous back, it stands out among its feathered counterparts. One of its most defining characteristics is the black mark outlining its throat. This bird prefers to inhabit thickets within palm savannas, where its beautiful song fills the air. Its distinctive song consists of a series of airy, wailing notes, accompanied by chattering and rasping calls. While it may bear some resemblance to the Spotted Morning-Thrush, the Collared thrush stands apart with its pale eye, bright rufous back, and absence of spotting below. Although it shares similarities with nightingales and scrub-robins, the black throat markings serve as a clear distinguishing feature.
Wikipedia contributors, Collared palm thrush; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:46:54.800358+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Cichladusa arquata W. Peters, 1863
- Name authority
- W. Peters, 1863
- Common name
- Collared Palm Thrush
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Muscicapidae
- Genus
- Cichladusa
- 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
- genusCichladusa W. Peters, 1863
- speciesCichladusa arquata W. Peters, 1863
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Cichladusa. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Spotted Palm ThrushCichladusa guttata (Heuglin, 1862) | MuscicapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Rufous-tailed Palm ThrushCichladusa ruficauda (Hartlaub, 1857) | 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=559251 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:V7R8. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.