Plain-backed Pipit (Anthus leucophrys)
About the Plain-backed Pipit
The plain-backed pipit or plain pipit (Anthus leucophrys) is a medium-sized passerine bird which is a resident breeder in Africa south of the Sahara Desert. It is found in open habitats, especially short grassland and cultivation. It builds its cup-shaped nest on the ground and usually lays three eggs. Like other pipits, this species is insectivorous. The plain-backed pipit is a large pipit at 17 cm, but is otherwise an undistinguished looking species, faintly streaked grey-brown above and pale below with light breast streaking. It has a strong white supercilium, and dark moustachial stripes. It has long legs and tail, and a long dark bill. Sexes are similar, but juveniles have warmer brown upperparts.
No audio on this page yet
We only publish recordings we may use commercially, because this site is supported by ads. xeno-canto lists 35 recordings for this species: 1 CC BY-NC-ND. None of them permits commercial use, so there is no player here — the page is kept as a profile so the bird is not missing from the guide.
As soon as someone uploads a freely licensed recording, we mirror it and the player appears here.
Listed as recorded in Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Liberia in the xeno-canto catalogue.
Related species you can hear
- Blyth's PipitAnthus godlewskiirecording
- Buff-bellied PipitAnthus rubescensrecording
- European Rock PipitAnthus petrosusrecording
- Long-billed PipitAnthus similisrecording
- Meadow PipitAnthus pratensisrecording
- Ochre-breasted PipitAnthus nattererirecording
This species has no recording here yet — these relatives do, so you can hear what the family sounds like.