Systematics

Turdus aethiopicus Gmelin, 1789, Systema Naturae, Ed. 13, Vol. 1, Pt. 2, p. 824. Type locality given as "Abyssinia" [=Ethiopia] (14 Gmelin, J.-F. (1789). Systema Naturae, per regna tria Natura: secundum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, cum Characteribus, Differentiis, Synonymis, Locis. 13th edition. Tome 1, pars II. Impensis George Emanuel Beer, Leipzig, Germany. Close ).

Ethiopian Boubou was formerly considered a subspecies of Tropical Boubou (Laniarius major), but genetic analyses have shown that this latter species forms a polyphyletic cryptic species complex (3 Nguembock, B., J. Fjeldså, A. Couloux, and É. Pasquet (2008). Phylogeny of Laniarius: molecular data reveal L. liberatus synonymous with L. erlangeri and “plumage coloration” as unreliable morphological characters for defining species and species groups. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 48(2):396–407. Close ), with Ethiopian Boubou not falling out with other members of the Tropical Boubou sensu lato, but instead appearing to be closely related to Turati's Boubou (Laniarius turatii). The taxonomy of the black-and-white boubous is still confused, and there are populations in coastal Kenya that may be closely related to Ethiopian Boubou and Turati's Boubou, but further work is needed to clarify the status of these birds.

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Full extent of relationships in Laniarius are unresolved. Molecular phylogenetic studies using DNA sequence data found that Ethiopian Boubou appears to be closely related to Turati's Boubou (3 Nguembock, B., J. Fjeldså, A. Couloux, and É. Pasquet (2008). Phylogeny of Laniarius: molecular data reveal L. liberatus synonymous with L. erlangeri and “plumage coloration” as unreliable morphological characters for defining species and species groups. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 48(2):396–407. Close , 5 Finch, B. W., N. D. Hunter, I. Winkelmann, K. Manzano-Vargas, P. Njoroge, J. Fjeldså, and M. T. P. Gilbert (2016). Redefining the taxonomy of the all-black and pied boubous (Laniarius spp.) in coastal Kenya and Somalia. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 136(2):74–85. Close ). These two species appear to also be closely related to another population of Laniarius from coastal Kenya which appear to be unnamed but may refer to Zanzibar Boubou (Laniarius sublacteus) (3 Nguembock, B., J. Fjeldså, A. Couloux, and É. Pasquet (2008). Phylogeny of Laniarius: molecular data reveal L. liberatus synonymous with L. erlangeri and “plumage coloration” as unreliable morphological characters for defining species and species groups. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 48(2):396–407. Close , 5 Finch, B. W., N. D. Hunter, I. Winkelmann, K. Manzano-Vargas, P. Njoroge, J. Fjeldså, and M. T. P. Gilbert (2016). Redefining the taxonomy of the all-black and pied boubous (Laniarius spp.) in coastal Kenya and Somalia. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 136(2):74–85. Close ). More work is needed to clarify the relationships among these taxa.

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Alternately referred to as Bellbird (or Bell Shrike), along with its sister species, the Tropical Boubou (Laniarius major), due to its ringing, resonant bell-like duet song.

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