Melanocichla is a genus of birds in the Old World babbler family Timaliidae.
Taxonomy The genus Melanocichla was introduced in 1883 by the English ornithologist Richard Bowdler Sharpe to accommodate a single species, the black laughingthrush, which is therefore the type species of the genus. The name combines the Ancient Greek melas meaning "black" with kikhlē meaning "thrush".
A 2019 molecular phylogenetic study found that the genus Melanocichla was sister to the genus Pomatorhinus containing the scimitar babblers.
Species The genus contains the following two species: Image Common name Scientific name Distribution Black laughingthrush Melanocichla lugubris extreme south Thailand, Malaysia and Sumatra Bare-headed laughingthrush Melanocichla calva Borneo
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