The moorland chat (Pinarochroa sordida), also known as the alpine chat or hill chat, is a species of songbird in the Old World flycatcher family. It is endemic to the eastern Afromontane. It lives at high altitudes on moors and grassland, usually above 3,400 m (11,100 ft), but can live as low as 2,100 m (6,900 ft). It has a short tail and long legs. It is bold and will approach people. == Taxonomy == The moorland chat was formally described in 1837 by the German naturalist Eduard Rüppell from a specimen collected in the Simien Mountains of northern Ethiopia. Rüppell coined the binomial name Saxicola sordica. The chat was discovered on Mount Elgon on the Uganda-Kenya border by Frederick Jackson. The English geographer Halford Mackinder brought back the same bird from Mount Kenya in 1899. He presented a paper on the first ascent to the Royal Geographical Society in 1900. The scientific results of his expedition were discussed in detail afterwards. A very curious little bird was found by Mr Jackson on Mount Elgon at a height of 11,000 feet, and I remember saying to Mr. Mackinder that he was bound to find the same sort of little chat…
Ethiopian Bird Watching
Mount Elgon National Park
Matumbei ward, Kenya
+164 birds+7 mammals
Where the volcanic slopes of Mount Elgon rise above the Trans-Nzoia landscape, a montane wilderness unfolds across multiple ecological zones, each harbouring distinct communities adapted to…
VIEW NATIONAL PARKMount-Kenya National Park
Abothuguchi west ward, Kenya
+334 birds+11 mammals
Where the slopes of Kenya's second-highest mountain rise steeply from the Meru County foothills, a landscape of profound ecological richness unfolds across Mount Kenya National Park.…
VIEW NATIONAL PARKNgorongoro Conservation Area
Tanzania
+626 birds+55 mammals
Volcanic calderas and open grassland dominate this high plateau in northern Tanzania, where the landscape rises above 2,000 metres and ancient geological forces have shaped both…
VIEW WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREABale Mountains National Park
Ethiopia
+397 birds+20 mammals
Where the Ethiopian highlands rise above 4,000 metres, the Bale Mountains create a landscape of stunning ecological extremes—from afroalpine grasslands swept by wind and mist to…
VIEW NATIONAL PARKAwash National Park
Didiga, Ethiopia
+473 birds+23 mammals
Where the Ethiopian Rift Valley carves through volcanic plateaus, a ribbon of riverine forest winds through acacia scrubland and grassland, creating a mosaic of habitats that…
VIEW NATURAL PARKSimien Mountains National Park
Debark, Ethiopia
+120 birds+9 mammals
Where granite escarpments plunge thousands of metres into misty valleys, the Ethiopian highlands reveal a landscape of almost mythical drama. These volcanic plateaus, carved by ancient…
VIEW NATIONAL PARKYabelo Wildlife Sanctuary
Bedewera, Ethiopia
+359 birds+5 mammals
Where acacia woodlands meet volcanic plateaus in southern Ethiopia, a landscape of austere beauty unfolds across nearly 2,500 square kilometers. Yabelo Wildlife Sanctuary sprawls across semi-arid…
VIEW WILDLIFE SANCTUARYAberdare National Park
Mweiga ward, Kenya
+394 birds+30 mammals
Where the central highlands of Kenya rise to their elemental grandeur, the Aberdare range unfolds across Nyeri County as a montane stronghold of cool, misty forest…
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