Thamnolaea cinnamomeiventris
Silhouette: Martin Bulla, based on François Desbordes' illustration · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%
The mocking cliff chat, mocking chat or cliff chat, (Thamnolaea cinnamomeiventris) is a species of chat in the family Muscicapidae which occurs in rocky habitats in much of eastern Sub-Saharan Africa. It is the only species placed in the genus Thamnolaea.
The mocking cliff chat was formally described and illustrated in 1836 by the French ornithologist Frédéric de Lafresnaye based on a specimen that had been sent to France from the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. Lafresnaye placed the species with the thrushes in the genus Turdus and coined the binomial name Turdus cinnamomeiventris. The specific epithet combines Modern Latin cinnamomeus meaning "cinnamon-coloured" with Latin venter, ventris meaning "belly". The type locality has been designated as Cape Province. The mocking cliff chat is now the only species placed in the genus Thamnolaea that was introduced in 1851 by the German ornithologist Jean Cabanis. The genus name combines the Ancient Greek θαμνος/thamnos meaning "bush" with λαιος/laios meaning "thrush".
Nine subspecies are recognised: Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | uMkhuze Game Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Kidepo Valley National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 4 | Gonarezhou National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 5 | Pilanesberg National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 6 | Ruaha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 7 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 8 | Serengeti National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 9 | Lake Nakuru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 10 | Tarangire National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 11 | Masai Mara National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 12 | Kafue National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 13 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 14 | Nairobi National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya |
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Mocking Cliff Chat sighting in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park on a given day, based on 192 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 32nd most-seen of the 220 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February
In that month about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Mocking Cliff Chat in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park on a given day, against about 20% in March, May–June and November–December, the lowest months. That is one of Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park's wettest months, with about 140 mm of rain against 15 mm in June.
Between 6 and 9 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Mocking Cliff Chat sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 14 parks where we can rate Mocking Cliff Chat sightings, Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park has the highest daily chance: about 30%. Next come uMkhuze Game Reserve (South Africa, about 30%) and Kidepo Valley National Park (Uganda, about 20%).
Same family: Muscicapidae
The closest relatives of the Mocking Cliff Chat that you can see in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park (family Muscicapidae, Old World Flycatchers, Robins, and Chats) are White-browed Scrub Robin (about 30%), African Stonechat (about 20%) and Southern Black Flycatcher (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Mocking Cliff Chat is recorded against all the birds logged in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park (192 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
