Boran Cisticola Cisticola bodessa

A large, long-tailed, streak-backed upland cisticola. Note the pale tips to the tail and the brown cap. Generally scarce and highly localized. Found in woodland and scrub on rocky hillsides. Extremely similar in appearance to Rattling Cisticola, and best distinguished by song, but also separated by the unstreaked brown cap and less distinct streaking on the back. Also similar to Ashy Cisticola, but richer brown overall, with an unstreaked cap. The calls are “chit” and “pit-dit” notes, which usually precede the song: a quick descending series of scratchy notes, similar to the song of Ashy Cisticola, but shorter, faster, and with less variation in pitch.