Day: January 24, 2014

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Velvet-fronted Nuthatch (Sitta frontalis)

by birdinfo • January 24, 2014 • 0 Comments

The Velvet-fronted Nuthatch (Sitta frontalis) is a small passerine bird found in southern Asia from Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka east to south China and Indonesia. It is a member of the nuthatch family Sittidae. It is a resident breeder of all types of woods, although open evergreen forest is the optimal habitat. It has the ability, like other nuthatches, to climb down trees, unlike species such as woodpeckers which can only go upwards. It is an active feeder on insects and spiders, and may be found in mixed feeding flocks with other passerines. The Velvet-fronted Nuthatch has the typical nuthatch big head, short tail and powerful bill and feet. It is 12.5 cm long. It is violet-blue above, with lavender cheeks, beige underparts and a whitish throat. The bill is red, and there is a black patch on the forehead. Wikipedia – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velvet-fronted_Nuthatch

Plum-headed Parakeet (Psittacula cyanocephala)

by birdinfo • January 24, 2014 • 0 Comments

The Plum-headed Parakeet (Psittacula cyanocephala) is a parakeet endemic to the Indian Subcontinent. Along with Psittacula roseata of the Himalayas it was sometimes known by the name of Blossom-headed Parakeet which is now used to refer only to Psittacula roseata. Plum-headed Parakeets are found in flocks, the males having a pinkish purple head and the females, a grey head. They fly swiftly with twists and turns accompanied by their distinctive calls. The Plum-headed Parakeet is a mainly green parrot, 33 cm long with a tail up to 22 cm. The male has a red head which shades to purple-blue on the back of the crown, nape and cheeks while the female has blueish-gray head. There is a narrow black neck collar with verdigris below on the nape and a black chin stripe that extends from the lower mandible. There is a red shoulder patch and the rump and tail are bluish-green, the latter tipped white. The upper mandible is orangish-yellow, and the lower mandible is dark. Wikipedia – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plum-headed_Parakeet

Black-naped Monarch or Black-naped Blue Flycatcher (Hypothymis azurea)

by birdinfo • January 24, 2014 • 0 Comments

The Black-naped Monarch or Black-naped Blue Flycatcher (Hypothymis azurea) is a slim and agile passerine bird belonging to the family of monarch flycatchers. They are sexually dimorphic with males having a distinctive black patch on the back of the head and a narrow black half collar (“necklace”) while the female is duller and lacks the black markings. They have a call that is similar to that of the Asian Paradise Flycatcher and in tropical forest habitats pairs may join mixed-species foraging flocks. Populations differ slightly in plumage colour and sizes. The adult male Black-naped Monarch is about 16 cm long, and is mainly pale azure blue apart from a whitish lower belly. It has a black nape and a narrow black gorget. The female is duller and lacks the black markings. Her wings and back are grey-brown. There are however several geographically separated breeding populations that differ in the extent and shade of markings. Wikipedia – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-naped_Monarch

Pyrrhuloxia or Desert Cardinal (Cardinalis sinuatus)

by birdinfo • January 24, 2014 • 0 Comments

The Pyrrhuloxia or Desert Cardinal (Cardinalis sinuatus) is a medium-sized North American song bird found in the American southwest and northern Mexico. This distinctive species with a short, stout bill, red crest and wings, closely resembles the Northern Cardinal and the Vermilion Cardinal, all of which are in the same genus. The Desert Cardinal is one of three birds in the genus Cardinalis and is included in the family Cardinalidae, a group of passerine birds found in North and South America. Its name of Pyrrhuloxia – once part of its latin name – comes from Greek terms describing its coloration (πυρρος = pyrrhos = reddish or orange) and the shape of its bill (λοξος = loxos = oblique).[2][3] The common name, Desert Cardinal, refers to it inhabiting the southwest, and often arid regions, of the North American continent. Wikipedia – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_cardinal

Hoatzin (Opisthocomus hoazin)

by birdinfo • January 24, 2014 • 0 Comments

The Hoatzin (Opisthocomus hoazin), also known as the Hoactzin, Stinkbird, or Canje Pheasant, is a species of tropical bird found in swamps, riparian forest and mangrove of the Amazon and the Orinoco delta in South America. It is notable for having chicks that possess claws on two of their wing digits. It is the only member of the genus Opisthocomus (Ancient Greek: “wearing long hair behind”, referring to its large crest[clarification needed]),[2] which in turn is the only extant genus in the family Opisthocomidae. The taxonomic position of this family has been greatly debated, and is still far from clear. The Hoatzin is pheasant-sized, with a total length of 65 centimetres (26 in), with a long neck and small head. It has an unfeathered blue face with maroon eyes, and its head is topped by a spiky, rufous crest. The long, sooty-brown tail is broadly tipped buff. The upperparts are dark, sooty-brown-edged buff on the wing coverts, and streaked buff on the mantle and nape. The under parts are buff, while the crissum,primaries, underwing coverts and flanks are rich rufous-chestnut, but this is mainly visible when it opens its wings. The alternative name of “stinkbird” is derived from the bird’s manure-like odour, caused by its digestive system.[citation needed] The Hoatzin is herbivorous, eating leaves and fruit, and has an unusual digestive system with an enlarged crop used for fermentation of vegetable matter, in a manner broadly analogous to the digestive system of mammalian ruminants. Wikipedia – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoatzin

Common Emerald Dove (Chalcophaps indica)

by birdinfo • January 24, 2014 • 0 Comments

The Common Emerald Dove (Chalcophaps indica) is a pigeon which is a widespread resident breeding bird in the tropical and sub-tropical parts of the Indian Subcontinent and east through Myanmar,Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, to northern and eastern Australia. The dove is also known by the names of Green Dove and Green-winged pigeon. The Common Emerald Dove is the state bird of the Indian State of Tamil Nadu. It has a number of subspecies, with three existing in Australia, longirostris from the Kimberly, Western Australia to Cape York Peninsula, chrysochlora from Cape York Peninsula to southern New South Walesas well as Norfolk Island and Lord Howe Island, and natalis from Christmas Island. This is a common species in rainforest and similar dense wet woodlands, farms, gardens, mangroves and coastal heaths. It builds a scant stick nest in a tree up to five metres and lays two cream-colouredeggs. Breeding tends to occur in Australia spring or early summer in southeastern Australia and late in the dry season in northern Australia. Its flight is fast and direct, with the regular beats and an occasional sharp flick of the wings which are characteristic of pigeons in general. It often flies low between the patches of dense forest it prefers, but when disturbed will frequently walk away rather than fly. They are particularly good weavers when flying through forests. When flying they expose a buff underwing and a chestnut colour of their flight feathers. The Common Emerald Dove is a stocky, medium-sized pigeon, typically 23 to 28 centimetres (10 to 11.2 inches) in length. The back and wings are bright emerald green. The flight feathers and tail are blackish, and broad black and white bars show on the lower back in flight. The head and underparts are dark vinous pink (in chrysochlora, more brown in longirostris), fading to greyish on the lower belly. The eyes are dark brown, the bill bright red and legs and feet rufous. The male has a white patch on the edge of the shoulders and a grey crown, which the female lacks. Females will tend to have a browner complexion with a grey mark on the shoulder. Immature birds resemble females but have brown scallops on their body and wing plumage. Emerald doves usually occur singly, pairs or in small groups. They are quite terrestrial, often searching for fallen fruit on the ground and spending little time in trees except when roosting. They eat seeds and fruits of a wide variety of plants and are generally tame and approachable. The call is a low soft moaning cooing consisting of about six to seven coos starting quietly and rising. They also call a nasal “hoo-hoo-hoon”. Males perform a bobbing dance during courtship. Wikipedia – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emerald_Dove

Nicobar Pigeon (Caloenas nicobarica)

by birdinfo • January 24, 2014 • 0 Comments

The Nicobar Pigeon (Caloenas nicobarica) is a pigeon found on small islands and in coastal regions from the Nicobar Islands, east through the Malay Archipelago, to the Solomons and Palau. It is the only living member of the genus Caloenas. A large pigeon, measuring 40 cm in length. The head is grey, like the upper neck plumage, which turns into green and copper hackles towards the breast. The breast and remiges are dark grey. The tail is very short and pure white. The rest of its plumage is metallic green. The cere of the dark bill forms a small blackish knob; the strong legs and feet are dull red. The irides are dark. Wikipedia – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicobar_Pigeon

Rose-ringed or Ring-necked Parakeet (Psittacula krameri)

by birdinfo • January 24, 2014 • 0 Comments

The Rose-ringed Parakeet (Psittacula krameri), also known as the Ring-necked Parakeet, is a gregarious tropical Afro-Asian parakeet species that has an extremely large range. Since the trend of the population appears to be increasing, the species was evaluated as Least Concern by IUCN in 2012.[1] Rose-ringed parakeets are popular as pets. Its scientific name commemorates the Austrian naturalist Wilhelm Heinrich Kramer.[2] This non-migrating species is one of few parrot species that have successfully adapted to living in ‘disturbed habitats’, and in that way withstood the onslaught of urbanisation and deforestation. In the wild, this is a noisy species with an unmistakable squawking call. Wikipedia – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose-ringed_Parakeet