Geokichla

The Geokichla thrushes are medium-sized mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the thrush family, Turdidae. They were traditionally listed in the Zoothera, but molecular phylogenetic studies published in 2008 led to their placement in a separate genus.

Geokichla
Siberian thrush (Geokichla sibirica)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Turdidae
Genus:	Geokichla S. Müller, 1836
Type species
Turdus citrinus[1] Latham, 1790

Taxonomy

The genus Geokichla was introduced in 1836 by the German naturalist Salomon Müller with Turdus citrinus Latham, 1790, the orange-headed thrush, as the type species.^[2][3][4] The genus name combines the Ancient Greek geō- meaning "ground-" with kikhlē meaning "thrush.^[5]

These species were formerly placed in the genus Zoothera. Molecular phylogenetic analysis by Gary Voelker and collaborators published in 2008 found that Zoothera was polyphyletic.^[6][7] To create monophyletic genera 21 species were moved from Zoothera to the resurrected genus Geokichla.^[8]

List of species

The genus contains the following 21 species:^[8]

• Siberian thrush, Geokichla sibirica
• Pied thrush, Geokichla wardii
• Grey ground thrush, Geokichla princei
• Black-eared ground thrush, Geokichla camaronensis
• Spotted ground thrush, Geokichla guttata - formerly G. fischeri
• Spot-winged thrush, Geokichla spiloptera
• Crossley's ground thrush, Geokichla crossleyi
• Abyssinian ground thrush, Geokichla piaggiae
  • Kivu ground thrush, Geokichla piaggiae tanganjicae
• Oberländer's ground thrush, Geokichla oberlaenderi
• Orange ground thrush, Geokichla gurneyi
• Orange-headed thrush, Geokichla citrina
• Buru thrush, Geokichla dumasi
• Seram thrush, Geokichla joiceyi
• Orange-sided thrush, Geokichla peronii
• Slaty-backed thrush, Geokichla schistacea
• Chestnut-capped thrush, Geokichla interpres
• Enggano thrush, Geokichla leucolaema
• Chestnut-backed thrush, Geokichla dohertyi
• Ashy thrush, Geokichla cinerea
• Red-backed thrush, Geokichla erythronota
• Red-and-black thrush, Geokichla mendeni

A subfossil specimen of a ground thrush has been found on the island of Mauritius:^[9]

• Mauritius ground thrush, Geokichla longitarsus