The coastal cisticola (''Cisticola haematocephalus''), also known as the umbabird, is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

in the family Cisticolidae. It is found on the coastal plain of

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical ...

. Alternate

common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...

s are Mombasa black-backed cisticola.

Taxonomy

The coastal cisticola is monotypic. This taxon was split from the winding cisticola by the

IOC The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

and HBW, as were the rufous-winged cisticola, Luapula cisticola and

Ethiopian cisticola The Ethiopian cisticola (''Cisticola lugubris'') is a species of bird in the family Cisticolidae. It is found in south-central Africa. Alternate common names are Abyssinian black-backed cisticola, and winding cisticola (Ethiopian) (eBird). Tax ...

. The

Clements Clement may refer to: People * Clements (surname) Places * Clements, California, U.S. * Clements, Kansas, U.S. * Clements, Maryland, U.S. * Clements, Minnesota, U.S. * Clements, West Virginia, U.S. * Port Clements, British Columbia, Canada Zoo ...

(2017) and Howard and Moore (2014) world lists consider these taxa as a single species, the winding cisticola ''C. galactotes'' (sensu lato).

Distribution and habitat

This species is found on the coastal plain of East Africa between 5°N to 10°S (southern Somalia to north-eastern Tanzania). Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s are tropical seasonally wet or flooded lowland

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...

and

swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

References

External links

* * coastal cisticola Birds of East Africa coastal cisticola {{Cisticolidae-stub