Birda Logo
Features
Birda+
About
Species Guide
Challenges
Shop
loading...

Laughingthrushes & Allies

The Laughingthrush family (Leiothrichidae), previously part of the Timaliidae group, represents a variety of small to medium-sized, generally brown passerine birds found mostly in tropical areas of Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. Despite being weak fliers with short, rounded wings, these birds are not highly migratory and typically dwell in light woodlands and scrublands. They are often seen on the ground due to their strong legs and display minimal sexual dimorphism. Most laughingthrushes feed on insects; however, they are also known to consume berries, and larger species might eat small lizards and other vertebrates. The family was officially introduced by William Swainson in 1832, having undergone significant reclassification following a robust molecular phylogenetic study in 2018 that revealed substantial genetic divergence among various genera. Notably, the Garrulax genus was split into three separate clades based on this divergence, creating the distinct genera Garrulax, Pterorhinus, and Ianthocincla. Additionally, the genus Turdoides was divided, and species were redistributed into the revived genus Argya. Another taxonomic shift involved the relocation of crocias into the genus Laniellus. The family Leiothrichidae includes 133 species spread across 16 genera, which feature various laughingthrushes, babblers, barwings, minlas, sibias, and liocichlas, among others. These birds maintain complex relationships with other babbler families, as illustrated in a 2019 study by Tianlong Cai and colleagues.

Regions

Arabian Babbler

Argya squamiceps

Fulvous Babbler

Argya fulva
App logo
Birda is a birdwatching app and community aimed at curious people who want to deepen their connection with nature.
1
Birda Logo

Your birdwatching journey like never before

Connect with nature in minutes
Take a walk, look out of the window and log the birds that you see. Feel good about those little connections to nature.
Discover the joy of birding
Find new birding spots, see more birds, share and celebrate with a like-minded community of nature lovers.
Play your part in saving nature
Logging your birding sightings and sessions turns into positive action for our planet. Every sighting counts.

Species Categories

Birda Blog

What Our Birders Say
778
Great bird recording
For a while I’ve been trying to find an app to easily record bird lists and day out and struggled to find one that I like. Birda is great for this, straightforward and a great community!
Tralisalandhoop
Fantastic app - Love it!
Love this app and have used it almost daily. Lots of species information and easy to use. Love seeing birds spotted by other users in the UK and worldwide.
Bryan C
Clean and easy to use
Really enjoying this app, it's clean and easy to use. I love the ease of being able to add those one-off birds without starting a whole checklist. I also like the social aspect, like the parts of my Facebook I like, without the ads and junk, just birds. Can't wait to see it become more populated.
Ellesse_W
Learning Birding with Birda
I’m relatively new to birding as a hobby, and Birda is a great way to keep track off all the species I see. I’m still working on my ID skills, but the app is great for figuring out potential species, and the online community is so friendly and helpful. Definitely recommend Birda to both early and serious birders! 🐦
Emma L
App got me interested in birding!
Super friendly community <3 This app got me interested in birding! It teaches me cool stuff and its super friendly, and fun :) The species guide is really developing my knowledge, and i love seeing cool new birds from round the world!
JCBirding
Just what birding needs
We need more fun in birding, for years it has had a reputation for being up tight and stuffy and only perused by retirees and anoraks. Birda helps change that perception and firmly brings birding into the 21st century! Fun, interactive while still contributing to science and conservation. If you aren’t on it, why not??
Foxgirl100
Great app for beginner twitchers
I’ve had a passion of photographing birds for a long time now but have only just gotten into proper birdwatching, and this app is brilliant for those just getting started. There is a great sense of community among users and the app is very easy to use and professional. Awesome app altogether
Robred 2
Fun way to add to your birdwatching experience
I enjoy watching birds in my backyard, but this app helped me really pay attention while on vacation this summer. It was fun to add new birds to my bird watching app.
Birdafan
Ideal Birdwatch Companion
Simply adds to the enjoyment of my birdwatching and helps me record what I’ve seen.
Stewart W
Fantastic to be involved
Fantastic to be involved, great for mental health and gets you responding with the Challenges that are to takd part in.
As featured in
Birda Logo
AboutPressAmbassadorsAffiliatesInfluencersCareersPrivacyTerms & Conditions
An app for birdwatchers
Connect with us
Copyright © 2024 Chirp Birding. All rights reserved.