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Albertine Rift EndemicSamalela Camp

Red-throated Alethe

Alethe poliophrys

A ground-loving chat with a distinctive brick-red throat, often following ant columns on the forest floor.

Red-throated Alethe (Alethe poliophrys) in the Rwenzori Mountains
15 cm / 6"
Size
1,780–3,400 m
Altitude in the Rwenzori
Albertine Rift Endemic
Status
Identification

How to recognise it

The head is black with a long, broad grey supercilium extending to the nape, and a distinctive brick-red throat. Otherwise chestnut-brown above and dull greyish-white below. The juvenile is dark above and on the breast with many rufous spots and streaks.

Calls & Song

What it sounds like

A noisy, monotonous songster — mostly repeated piping notes, or rising and falling slurs, apparently delivered at random.

Distribution

Where you'll find it

Endemic to the highland forests along the Albertine Rift from 1,500 m up to 3,000 m. In our area it is seen from 1,780 m to 3,400 m — from the suspended bridge toward the riverside trail up to Samalela, including the bamboo zone.

Behaviour — Feeding

Diet

Mostly seen where ants are on the move, hunting the ants' eggs and the insects trying to escape them.

Breeding & Nesting

Nesting

Breeds mostly in the dry season (May to late August, sometimes January–March), nesting in the undergrowth a few centimetres from the ground.

Movement & Local Notes

On the trail

Moves in short hops on the ground, following ant tracks, mostly in cleared areas along trails or in openings in the forest floor. Not a migrant, and not shy while feeding.

Hoping to see the Red-throated Alethe?

Our guides know where to find it along the Kilembe Trail. Let us build a trek around the birds you most want to see.