White-throated robin-chat facts for kids
Quick facts for kids White-throated robin-chat |
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| Conservation status | |
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Dessonornis
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| Species: |
humeralis
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| resident range strongholds lower density |
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The white-throated robin-chat, also called the white-throated robin, is a small bird. Its scientific name is Dessonornis humeralis. It belongs to the Muscicapidae family, which includes many types of flycatchers and chats. This bird lives only in certain parts of southern Africa. You can find it in Botswana, Eswatini, Mozambique, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. It likes to live in dry savannah areas and places with dry shrubland.
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Where the White-throated Robin-chat Lives
The white-throated robin-chat makes its home in dry savannah woodlands. It also lives in areas with lots of shrubs. These are places where the weather is often warm and dry.
What the White-throated Robin-chat Eats
The white-throated robin-chat mainly eats insects. But it also enjoys small animals with backbones and some plant parts. Its diet includes many different bugs. For example, it eats beetles, termites, ants, crickets, and caterpillars. It also hunts for bugs, spiders, and millipedes.
Besides insects, these birds eat fruits from certain plants. They like the fruits of the woolly caper-bush. They also eat berries from the tassel-berry. Other favorite fruits come from the sand raisin, the magic guarrie, and the dune guarrie.
Reproduction and Life Cycle
White-throated robin-chats usually breed in the spring. This happens mostly in October and November. Their nests are often on the ground or very close to it. They might build a nest in a hollow tree stump. Sometimes, they choose a spot near the roots of a climbing plant. They might even use an old, discarded item.
The nest is shaped like a cup. It is made from small twigs, dry grasses, and leaves. The inside is soft, lined with tiny roots, plant tendrils, and pieces of leaves. A female bird usually lays two or three eggs. She sits on the eggs by herself. This incubation period lasts about 14 to 15 days.
Both parent birds help feed the baby chicks. The young birds leave the nest after about two weeks. However, they still need their parents to feed them for another six or seven weeks. Sometimes, another bird called the red-chested cuckoo lays its eggs in the robin-chat's nest. This is called brood parasitism.
How Many White-throated Robin-chats Are There?
The white-throated robin-chat lives in southern Africa. Its home range covers a very large area, about 645,000 square kilometers. This includes parts of Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Eswatini, and South Africa.
We don't have an exact number for how many of these birds exist. But they are common in most of the places they live. The number of birds seems to be staying steady. Because of this, the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) says the white-throated robin-chat is of "Least Concern". This means they are not currently in danger of disappearing.
