The Taita apalis (''Apalis fuscigularis'') is a bird in the family Cisticolidae that is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the Taita Hills in

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

. It was formerly considered to be a subspecies of the

bar-throated apalis The bar-throated apalis (''Apalis thoracica'') is a small African passerine bird belonging to the genus ''Apalis'' of the family Cisticolidae. It is native to the eastern and southern Afrotropics. Range and habitat It inhabits forest and scrub ...

. 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 ...

is subtropical or tropical moist

montane forest Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial f ...

. It is threatened by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

. It is one of the rarest birds in the world. The population is currently estimated at 300–650 mature individuals though a survey in 2009–2010 suggests the species has suffered a severe population decline in extent of its habitat and its population may now be as low as 60–130 individuals. Most of the original forest has been cultivated or reforested with non-native timbers. Though little is known about this population crash as

illegal logging Illegal logging is the harvest, transportation, purchase or sale of timber in violation of laws. The harvesting procedure itself may be illegal, including using corrupt means to gain access to forests; extraction without permission, or from a pro ...

and disturbance in the taita hills have been significantly reduced. However a serious drought in 2009 may have been a factor. The

International Union for Conservation of Nature 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 ...

considers this species to be critically endangered due to its tiny occupied range of which is severely fragmented. This is a medium–sized arboreal warbler at long and in weight with dark grey upperparts slightly darker shade on wings and tail. The throat and breast is black and the underparts are white to off-white. The eye is silvery white. Call is a repeated ''pillipp, pillippp'' similar to that of the bar–throated apalis while the song of the male is a loud ''chwee, chwee'' or ''chewk, chewk, chewk'', with which the female may duet, giving a high pitched song cheek.

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 ...

Lynx Edicions,

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

References

External links

BirdLife Species Factsheet.

Taita apalis The Taita apalis (''Apalis fuscigularis'') is a bird in the family Cisticolidae that is endemic to the Taita Hills in Kenya. It was formerly considered to be a subspecies of the bar-throated apalis. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical ...

Endemic birds of Kenya

Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Cisticolidae-stub