Palani Laughingthrush
Photo: Chandru0072 · CC BY-SA 3.0

Laughingthrushes and Allies

Palani Laughingthrush

Montecincla fairbanki

NTNear Threatened Endemic to India
Family
Laughingthrushes and Allies (Leiothrichidae)
Order
Passeriformes

Overview

The Palani laughingthrush (Montecincla fairbanki) is a species of laughingthrush endemic to the hills of the Western Ghats south of the Palghat Gap in Southern India. Found in the high montane forests, this grey bibbed, rufous bellied bird with a prominent dark eyestripe and broad white brow was grouped along with the grey-breasted subspecies of the black-chinned laughingthrush and known as the grey-breasted laughingthrush. This species is found in the Palni Hills while another closely related form, the Ashambu laughingthrush (Montecincla meridionalis) with a shorter white brow is found in the high hills south of the Achankovil Gap and was treated as a subspecies. The two forms were together formerly treated as the Kerala laughingthrush.

Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Range and habitat

Southern India (Palni and Anaimalai hills and northern Kerala).

Range description: AviList Global Avian Checklist.

Continents

Countries

Sources and further reading

Last updated September 29, 2026.