Dawn at Doi San Ju in Chiang Mai breaks through dense mountain fog along the Thailand-Myanmar border. The cold air smells of damp moss, pine needles & wet bark. Suddenly, a striking silhouette cuts through the grey mist. On a mossy branch lands the Dark-backed Sibia, a medium-sized, slender & elegant montane acrobat, its long tail balancing a sharp posture.

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Truly long-tailed, even for a sibia, this bird appears rather dainty and small-headed in comparison with most of its relatives. Gray overall, darker on the wings and tail, it mostly lacks the contrasting patterns of other sibias, with only a small white patch near the wingtip. It forages in flocks in open hill forests, edges, and adjacent scrubby second growth. Despite its striking appearance, it is often heard before it’s seen.

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Laughingthrushes are also a family of Old World passerine birds diverse in size and coloration. These are birds of tropical areas, with the greatest variety in Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. The entire family used to be included in the Timaliidae. I have also included some Sibias from Heterophasia as they are a genus of the same family.

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