Lühder's bushshrike is a species of bird in the family Malaconotidae. It is found in Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. The common name and Latin binomial commemorate the German naturalist ornithologist W. Lühder.
Region
Central and East Africa
Typical Environment
Occurs patchily from the Congo Basin west to Nigeria and south to northern Angola, eastward through Uganda and Kenya to northwestern Tanzania. It favors lowland and foothill evergreen forests, gallery forests, and dense secondary growth. Often along forest edges, clearings with thickets, and riverine tangles. Typically stays in the understory to midstory, moving quietly through lianas and shrub layers.
Altitude Range
0–2200 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
A secretive forest bushshrike, it is more often heard than seen and is famous for rich, antiphonal duets between mates. It keeps to dense tangles and vine-choked edges where its bright underparts can be surprisingly hard to spot. The species commemorates the German ornithologist W. Lühder.
Temperament
skulking and territorial
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats through dense cover
Social Behavior
Usually found singly or in pairs that maintain territories year-round. Pairs perform coordinated duets and may engage in mutual preening. Nests are cup-shaped and placed low to mid-height in dense shrubs or vine tangles.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Rich, fluty whistles often delivered as antiphonal duets between the pair, with one bird answering the other almost instantly. Calls include mellow, piping notes and sharper chaks when alarmed.
Plumage
Dense, sleek plumage with olive-green upperparts, a grayish head, and vivid warm orange to rufous underparts that may grade paler toward the belly. Wings are dark with pale edging and a subdued panel; tail is olive to dusky with fine fringes.
Diet
Primarily takes insects and other arthropods, including beetles, caterpillars, and spiders. Will also snatch small vertebrates when available and occasionally samples berries or other soft fruits. Forages deliberately, gleaning from leaves and probing clusters of dead foliage.
Preferred Environment
Feeds in dense understory, vine tangles, and along forest edges and clearings. Often works midstory perches and drops to lower levels to pick prey, sometimes making short sallies to grab insects.
