The forest robin or orange-breasted forest robin (''Stiphrornis erythrothorax'') is a species of bird from

Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

and

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...

. It is monotypic in the genus ''Stiphrornis''. It has been placed in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Turdidae The thrushes are a passerine bird family, Turdidae, with a worldwide distribution. The family was once much larger before biologists reclassified the former subfamily Saxicolinae, which includes the chats and European robins, as Old World flycat ...

, but is now generally placed in

Muscicapidae The Old World flycatchers are a large family, the Muscicapidae, of small passerine birds restricted to the Old World (Europe, Africa and Asia), with the exception of several vagrants and two species, Bluethroat (''Luscinia svecica)'' and Norther ...

in the group popularly known as chats. Most taxonomists consider it a single species, but some reviews have recommended recognizing 5 species. It has a total length of around , has dark upperparts, and a throat and chest that, depending on the subspecies, is yellow-orange or deep orange.Collar, N. (2005). Forest Robin (''Stiphrornis erythrothorax''). Pp. 730-731 in: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., & Christie, D. eds. (2005). ''Handbook of the Birds of the World.'' Vol. 10. Cuckoo-shrikes to Thrushes. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.

Description

It has a total length of around , has dark upperparts, and a throat and chest that, depending on the exact subspecies, is yellow-orange or deep orange.

Taxonomy

The initial split into multiple species within this genus is based on a review from 1999 where it, based on the

phylogenetic species concept In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sex ...

, was argued that all then recognized

taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...

should be considered

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

species. Of these, ''S. gabonensis'' and ''S. xanthogaster'' were formerly considered subspecies of ''S. erythrothorax'', whereas ''S. sanghensis'' was described as an entirely new species. The split was not followed in

Handbook of the Birds of the World The ''Handbook of the Birds of the World'' (HBW) is a multi-volume series produced by the Spanish publishing house Lynx Edicions in partnership with BirdLife International. It is the first handbook to cover every known living species of bird. T ...

, where it was described as ''"perhaps premature"''. Comparably, the

BirdLife BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...

Taxonomic Working Group (and consequently

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

) recommended not following the split, as differences in

plumage Plumage ( "feather") is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, ...

s are relatively small, genetic sampling considered incomplete, and evidence for

intergradation In zoology, intergradation is the way in which two distinct subspecies are connected via areas where populations are found that have the characteristics of both. There are two types of intergradation: primary and secondary intergradation. Primary ...

parapatry In parapatric speciation, two subpopulations of a species evolve reproductive isolation from one another while continuing to exchange genes. This mode of speciation has three distinguishing characteristics: 1) mating occurs non-randomly, 2) gene ...

is lacking. Another species from this

complex Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...

, ''S. pyrrholaemus'', was described as a new species in 2008. Based on

mtDNA Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA or mDNA) is the DNA located in mitochondria, cellular organelles within eukaryotic cells that convert chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial DNA ...

, it is placed within ''S. erythrothorax

sensu lato ''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular co ...

'', and consequently is only a species (rather than a subspecies of ''S. erythrothorax'') if at least some of the

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

recommended in 1999 is followed. The

genetic divergence Genetic divergence is the process in which two or more populations of an ancestral species accumulate independent genetic changes (mutations) through time, often leading to reproductive isolation and continued mutation even after the populations hav ...

between ''S. pyrrholaemus'' and other members of the genus is comparable to that between some other closely related species. Three additional taxa in the forest robin complex were described (as species) in 2016: ''Stiphrornis'' (''erythrothorax'') ''dahomeyensis'' (Dahomey forest robin), ''S.'' (''e.'') ''inexpectatus'' (Ghana forest robin), and ''S.'' (''e.'') ''rudderi'' (Rudder's forest robin). These three taxa are nested within ''S. erythrothorax sensu lato''; however, using the phylogenetic species concept, the study recommended the treatment of all eight forest robin taxa as distinct species. Clements recognizes three species. the olive-backed forest robin,'' Stiphrornis pyrrholaemus'', the orange-breasted forest robin, ''Stiphrornis erythrothorax'', and the yellow-breasted forest robin, ''Stiphrornis mabirae''.

Subspecies

The currently-recognized taxa in the forest robin complex are:Gill, F & D Donsker (Eds). 2017
IOC World Bird List (v 7.1)
. *

Olive-backed forest robin The olive-backed forest robin (''Stiphrornis erythrothorax pyrrholaemus'') is a subspecies of the forest robin found in the Gamba Complex in southwest Gabon. It was described in 2008. The olive-backed forest robin can be separated from other su ...

''Stiphrornis erythrothorax pyrrholaemus'' Schmidt & Angehr, 2008 *

Western forest robin The western forest robin (''Stiphrornis erythrothorax erythrothorax'') is a subspecies of the forest robin found at low levels in West African forests from Sierra Leone to Nigeria.Collar, N. (2005). Forest Robin (Stiphrornis erythrothorax). Pp. 7 ...

''Stiphrornis erythrothorax erythrothorax'' Hartlaub, 1855 *

Gabon forest robin The Gabon forest robin (''Stiphrornis erythrothorax gabonensis'') is a subspecies of the forest robin found at low levels of forests in Cameroon, Gabon and Bioko.Collar, N. (2005). Forest Robin (Stiphrornis erythrothorax). Pp. 730-731 in: del Hoy ...

''Stiphrornis erythrothorax gabonensis'' Sharpe, 1883 *

Dahomey forest robin The forest robin or orange-breasted forest robin (''Stiphrornis erythrothorax'') is a species of bird from Central and West Africa. It is monotypic in the genus ''Stiphrornis''. It has been placed in the family Turdidae, but is now generally plac ...

''Stiphrornis erythrothorax dahomeyensis'' Voelker et al., 2016 *

Ghana forest robin The forest robin or orange-breasted forest robin (''Stiphrornis erythrothorax'') is a species of bird from Central and West Africa. It is monotypic in the genus ''Stiphrornis''. It has been placed in the family Turdidae, but is now generally plac ...

''Stiphrornis erythrothorax inexpectatus'' Voelker et al., 2016 *

Eastern forest robin The eastern forest robin (''Stiphrornis erythrothorax xanthogaster'') is a subspecies of the forest robin found at low levels in forests from Cameroon and Gabon to DR Congo and Uganda.Collar, N. (2005). Forest Robin (Stiphrornis erythrothorax). P ...

''Stiphrornis erythrothorax xanthogaster'' Sharpe, 1903 *

Sangha forest robin The Sangha forest robin (''Stiphrornis erythrothorax sanghensis'') is a subspecies of the forest robin that is endemic to south-western Central African Republic, but may also occur in adjacent parts of DR Congo, Cameroon and Republic of the Congo ...

''Stiphrornis erythrothorax sanghensis'' Beresford & Cracraft, 1999 *

Rudder's forest robin The forest robin or orange-breasted forest robin (''Stiphrornis erythrothorax'') is a species of bird from Central and West Africa. It is monotypic in the genus ''Stiphrornis''. It has been placed in the family Turdidae, but is now generally plac ...

''Stiphrornis erythrothorax rudderi'' Voelker et al., 2016 The relationships among the taxa are as follows:

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15198021

forest robin The forest robin or orange-breasted forest robin (''Stiphrornis erythrothorax'') is a species of bird from Central and West Africa. It is monotypic in the genus ''Stiphrornis''. It has been placed in the family Turdidae, but is now generally plac ...

Birds of Sub-Saharan Africa