The rosy-patched bushshrike is a species of bird in the family Malaconotidae. It is found in Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, and Tanzania. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland.
Region
Horn of Africa and East Africa
Typical Environment
Occurs from southeastern Egypt through Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti, and Ethiopia to Somalia, and south into Kenya and northern Tanzania. It favors arid and semi-arid habitats including acacia and commiphora bushland, dry scrub, and semi-desert with scattered thorn trees. Birds keep close to dense cover and often use thorn thickets along wadis and seasonal watercourses. It avoids closed forest and very open desert, preferring mosaic scrub with low shrubs.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1800 m
Climate Zone
Arid
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
This skulking bushshrike is often detected by its striking duet: pairs trade clear whistles across thorny scrub. The rosy patch on the sides of the breast is flashed during displays and helps with pair bonding and territory defense. It typically keeps low in dense acacia and commiphora thickets, making brief hops between bushes.
Temperament
shy and skulking
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats between bushes, low and direct
Social Behavior
Usually found singly or in pairs that maintain territories year-round. Pairs often engage in antiphonal duets and keep contact with soft calls while foraging low in scrub. Nests are typically placed in thorny shrubs or small trees, and breeding pairs are presumed monogamous.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
A loud, clear series of whistled notes, often given antiphonally by a pair, creating a back-and-forth duet. Also emits harsh scolds and churring calls when alarmed from dense cover.
Plumage
Sandy-brown to grayish-brown upperparts with a pale buff underbody and a distinct rosy-pink patch on the sides of the breast. Has a narrow white supercilium, darker mask through the eye, and a whitish throat. Wings and tail are darker brown to blackish with paler edges.
Diet
Primarily feeds on insects such as beetles, grasshoppers, caterpillars, and other arthropods. It also takes spiders and occasionally small vertebrates like lizards when available. Prey is gleaned from foliage and branches or pounced upon from low perches.
Preferred Environment
Forages within dense thorn scrub and the lower strata of acacia and commiphora thickets. Often hunts along bushy edges, wadis, and lightly grazed scrub with scattered shrubs.
