Carolina honeyeater
| Carolina honeyeater | ||||||||||||
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Carolahoney Eater ( Melipotes carolae ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Melipotes carolae | ||||||||||||
| Beehler , Prawiradilaga , de Fretes & Kemp |
The wattled ( Melipotes carolae ) is a poorly understood species from the family of honeyeater (Meliphagidae). The species epithet honors Carol Beehler, wife of ornithologist Bruce Beehler , who discovered the taxon in November 2005 in the Foja Mountains in the province of Papua in western New Guinea and wrote the first scientific description in 2007.
features
The carolina honey eater was described on the basis of five specimens: one male, one female and three specimens for which no gender information is available. The birds have an average height of 22 centimeters. The holotype - a male - has a weight of 52.5 grams. The weight of the female is given as 54 grams and the weight of the three specimens without gender is 59 to 65 grams. From a distance the plumage has a generally slate black appearance. The forehead, crown and back of the head are dark pitch black. The coat and the top are pitch black to blackish gray. The chin and throat are black-gray to dark gray. The underside is dark lead gray with light gray edged contour feathers on the chest. The shoulder feathers and hand wings are light dull brown. The under tail-coverts are dark smoky gray. Around the eye is a large area of bare, light red-orange facial skin. The rear edge of the base of the beak is marked by a large, loosely hanging, fleshy red-orange wattled collar. The iris is dark brown. The legs and short beak are black.
habitat
The Carola honey eater was found at altitudes above 1,150 meters in the Foja mountains. The expedition team described it as frequent in the forest interior and on the edge of the forest. The birds observed stayed in the middle and higher areas of the vegetation, especially on plants that bore small fruits. The terra typica is a peat bog with a diameter of about 500 meters. The moor is surrounded by a moss-covered forest, which is dominated by naked samers such as Dacrydium as well as by bedecktsamers such as beech and lithocarpus .
Way of life
Almost nothing is known about his way of life. It feeds mainly on fruits.
Hazard and protection
The Foja Mountains cover a region of over 3000 km² and are largely characterized by untouched forests. The Carola honey eater seems to be widespread within this range.
discovery
In November and December 2005, Dr. Bruce Beehler and his team set up an expedition organized by Conservation International to the little explored region of the Foja Mountains. With the detection of the Carola honey eater, a new bird taxon was first discovered in New Guinea since 1939. On 15 occasions five specimens of this species were observed in a peat bog . In June 2007 Bruce Beehler again traveled to the Foja Mountains with a film crew, and for the first time succeeded in filming the Carolahonigfresser.
Individual evidence
- ↑ J. Del Hoyo, A. Elliot, D. Christie (Eds.): Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 13: Penduline-Tits to Shrikes . Lynx Edicions, 2008, ISBN 978-84-96553-45-3 .
literature
- J. Del Hoyo, A. Elliot, D. Christie (Eds.): Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 13: Penduline-Tits to Shrikes . Lynx Edicions, 2008, ISBN 978-84-96553-45-3 .
- B. Beehler, D. Prawiradilaga, Y. de Fretes, N. Kemp: A new species of smoky honeyeater (Meliphagidae: Melipotes) from western New Guinea. In: The Auk. Volume 124, No. 3, 2007, pp. 1000-1009. (PDF, online)
