Bonin glasses bird

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bonin glasses bird
Bonin glasses bird

Bonin glasses bird

Systematics
Order : Passerines (Passeriformes)
Subordination : Songbirds (passeri)
Superfamily : Sylvioidea
Family : Spectacled birds (Zosteropidae)
Genre : Apalopteron
Type : Bonin glasses bird
Scientific name of the  genus
Apalopteron
Bonaparte , 1854
Scientific name of the  species
Apalopteron familial
( Kittlitz , 1830)

The Bonin-eyed bird ( Apalopteron familiare ) is a small songbird in the spectacled family that is endemic to the Japanese Ogasawara Islands in the Pacific . Until recently the species was assigned to the honey eater family (Meliphagidae) and was therefore called bonin honey eater .

The Bonin glasses bird is classified as endangered ( vulnerable ) by the IUCN .

features

The Boninbrillenvogel is a small songbird from the order of the passerine birds , which can reach a length of 13.5 centimeters. It has a yellowish to olive-green back plumage . The crown and coat are also olive green. The wings are a little lighter with a yellow border around the flight feathers. The belly plumage is pale yellow with gray stripes on the sides. The forehead and the back of the ears, as well as the chin and throat, have a light yellow color, while the nape and the flanks are grayish-yellow. The tail feathers have a dark olive green color. The bird has a striking black facial pattern, which gave the species its name in Japanese　 ( Japanese メ グ ロ , Meguro , "black eye"). The black stripe on the front part of the head and on the forehead widens into a black spot in the eye area, which extends in the form of an elongated triangle far below the eye. Like most spectacle bird species, the Bonin spectacle bird has a distinctive white eye ring (see English white-eye ). The eyes themselves are reddish-brown. The bird has a narrow, pointed beak. The legs are black and strongly built.

Habitat and behavior

The bonin-eyed bird inhabits rural gardens with high bushes as well as plantations , forest edges and open subtropical forests , which represent the original vegetation of the Ogasawara Islands. Because much of the original vegetation has disappeared, the species had to move to other habitats . On Hahajima , the bonin-eyed bird can also be found near human dwellings, in the undergrowth and undergrowth along roads, in built-up areas and pine forests, as well as mountain forests and valleys. Bonin-eyed birds feed primarily on invertebrates , which they collect from twigs and leaves at a height of two to six meters. Fruits and berries also make up an important part of the diet, especially papaya fruits .

The nests are mostly in forked branches at a height of six meters, but sometimes also in tree hollows. The breeding season runs from March to June. The female lays two eggs by May, which are incubated together with the male. Both parent birds share the rearing of the young.

Distribution and existence

Extinct northern subspecies A. f. familial ( nominate form ); to von Kittlitz

The bonin-eyed bird is endemic to the Ogasawara Islands of Japan. The species was originally found on all three archipelagos in the Ogasawara chain of islands, but the nominate form from the northern islands of Muko-jima and Chichi-jima has become extinct. The last reports of sightings on Muko-jima were in 1930 and on Chichi-jima in the early 1970s. So the occurrence is now limited to Haha-jima and two offshore smaller islands. The total population is declining and is estimated at 3,500 to 15,000 adult individuals.

Systematics

Until recently, the Bonin spectacle bird was classified as a honeyeater (Meliphagidae), but a molecular genetic investigation has shown that the species is a member of the spectacle bird family (Zosteropidae) and is closely related to the golden- eyed bird ( Cleptornis marchei ) found on the Mariana Islands . Two subspecies have been distinguished since 1930 : The nominate form A. f. familial from the northern Ogasawara islands Chichi-jima and Muko-jima , as well as A. f. hahasima Yamashina , 1930 from Haha-jima and some minor islands. The northern subspecies and nominate form A. f. familiare is already extinct, so that the species is related to the populations of the subspecies A. f. hahasima is restricted to Hahajima and two small neighboring islands - Imoto-jima and Mukoh-jima . DNA analyzes have shown that these are three different populations.

Hazard and protection

The almost complete clearing of the original forest on the Bonin Islands has led to the disappearance of the Bonin Spectacle Bird on several islands and continues to represent the greatest threat to the species. Nest looting by introduced domestic rats is possibly another threat. Competition from the Japanese Spectacle Bird however, has only a minor or no negative effect on the spread of the Bonin glasses bird.

The bonin-eyed bird is protected by law in Japan. The Ogasawara island chain is a state nature reserve, primarily to protect the bonin-eyed bird. Native plants are being reintroduced, and measures to eradicate invasive species such as domestic cats and rats are being implemented.

Etymology and history of research

Heinrich von Kittlitz described the bird with glasses under the name Ixos familiaris . He brought the type specimen with him from a 14-day stay on Bonisima in May 1828.

The term “Apalopteron” is derived from the Greek words “hapalos ἁπαλός ” for “tender, soft” and “ptilon πτίλον ” for “feather”. The Latin epithet »familiaris« means »familiar, familiar, friendly«. Von Kittlitz wrote about their behavior:

"In the winter time he is said to have come around that apartment in crowds and shed all shyness."

The word "hahasima" is supposed to describe the place where the subspecies was found, the island of Haha-jima .

literature

  • James A. Jobling: Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names . Christopher Helm, London 2010, ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4 .
  • Heinrich von Kittlitz: Observed about the birds of the Bonisima archipelago at the beginning of May 1828 . In: Mémoires Presentés a l'Académie Impériale des Sciences de St. Petersbourg par divers savans, et lus dans ses assemblées . tape 1 , no. 3 , 1830, p. 231–248 ( online [accessed November 19, 2013]).

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Brazil, Mark: Birds of East Asia , London 2009, p. 386
  2. ↑ a b c Apalopteron familiare in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2013.2. Listed by: BirdLife International, 2012. Retrieved December 1, 2013.
  3. ↑ a b c d e f BirdLife International (2001) Threatened birds of Asia: the BirdLife International Red Data Book. Cambridge, UK: BirdLife International.
  4. ↑ BirdLife International: Species Factsheet - Bonin White-eye (Apalopteron familiare).
  5. ↑ Kawakami, K .; Higuchi, H. 2003. Interspecific interactions between the native and introduced White-eyes in the Bonin Islands. Ibis 145: 583-592.
  6. ^ Heinrich von Kittlitz, p. 235
  7. ^ Heinrich von Kittlitz, p. 231
  8. ↑ James A. Jobling, p. 50
  9. ↑ James A. Jobling, p. 157
  10. ^ Heinrich von Kittlitz, p. 236