Familiar Chat Cercomela familiaris - some photos and notes

Familiar Chat Oenanthe familiaris
Cercomela familiaris

Mole, Ghana
June 2011

The Familiar Chat is distributed in the drier areas of Africa south of the Sahara. See the distribution map at Birdlife International. It is particularly fond of rocky outcrops, dry stream beds, quarries and buildings.

It is a fairly plain brown chat apart from its rufous rump and outer tail. I think that the scaly appearance on the head of this bird might indicate a bird just moving into adult plumage.

The song is a series of soft whistles and chattering notes while calls include a "chuck-chuck". There are recordings at Avocet.

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