Yellow Bridge Bearded Bird

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Yellow Bridge Bearded Bird
Western green tinkerbird.jpg

Yellow-bridged bearded bird ( Pogoniulus coryphaeus )

Systematics
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Woodpecker birds (Piciformes)
Family : African bearded birds (Lybiidae)
Genre : Dwarf beards ( Pogoniulus )
Type : Yellow Bridge Bearded Bird
Scientific name
Pogoniulus coryphaeus
( Reichenow , 1892)

The yellow-bridged bearded bird ( Pogoniulus coryphaeus ) is a species of bird in the African bearded family . It has a very disjoint distribution area and occurs in Africa on both sides of the equator. Several subspecies are distinguished. The IUCN classifies the Yellow Bridge Bearded Bird as not endangered ("least concern"). The first description was in 1892 by Anton Reichenow .

Appearance

The body length of the yellow bridge bearded bird is about 9 cm. The males of the nominate form reach a wing length of 5.0 to 5.5 centimeters. The beak length is 0.9 to 1.1 centimeters. The tail reaches a length of 2.4 to 3.0 centimeters. Females have similar body measurements. As with all dwarf beards , there is no noticeable sexual dimorphism .

Males and females have a broad, golden to lemon-yellow top stripe that runs from the middle of the forehead to the rump . The head and forehead sides, the sides of the crown of the head, the ear covers, and the top of the neck and back are black. Similar to the mountain beard bird , a conspicuous white facial stripe runs below the eyes from the base of the beak to the sides of the neck. This stripe becomes a little wider on the sides of the neck. The wings are black, the outer flags of the arm wings and the inner hand wings are lined with gold. The black upper tail-coverts are partially covered by long, yellow rump feathers. The control feathers are black and, when they have just been moulted, have a narrow greenish-yellowish to white border that fades over time and recedes or disappears entirely. The underside of the body is dark olive gray or pale gray with an olive yellow overlay from the chin to the lower chest. The underside of the tail, as well as the belly of most individuals, are yellowish-white.

The black beak is short and strong. The featherless skin around the eyes is black, the eyes are usually brown, and in some individuals red. Legs and feet are olive gray to brown or dark gray.

The subspecies P. c. hildamariae is from P. c. coryphaeus can hardly be distinguished. It tends a little more to lemon yellow and less to gold, especially on the rump and on the wings and can be a little smaller. P. c. angolensis is a little paler yellow than P. c. hildamariae , the underside is more dull and grayer.

Distribution area

The yellow-bridged bearded bird is found in three regions of Africa: from eastern Nigeria to the southwest and center of Cameroon, in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the adjoining west of Rwanda and southwest of Uganda, and in the Môco highlands in western Angola.

It lives in the undergrowth of mountain forests at altitudes between 1150 and 3000 meters above sea level, most often at altitudes between 1900 and 2500 meters. Non-breeding yellow-bridge bearded birds occasionally migrate to lower elevations and have even been observed on the Cameroon Mountain at altitudes of 50 meters. There they compete with a number of other dwarf beards who prefer to live at lower altitudes, especially with the yellow tufted dwarf beardling .

Way of life

The yellow-whiskered bearded bird occurs in mountain forests, in forest clearings, in dense secondary forest and thickets along streams and occasionally in acacia forests. Its food spectrum consists mainly of fruits and berries, mistletoe berries make up a particularly large proportion of them. It also eats insects. While foraging for food, the birds occasionally hang upside down on the branches like a tit.

The yellow tufted bearded bird lives mainly in pairs and presumably defends a territory, although behavior indicating territory has not yet been described. Like almost all bearded birds, it is a cave breeder. The cave is chopped into dead trees by himself. Sometimes the cave entrance is only 75 centimeters above the ground. The clutch consists of three eggs. Further data on reproductive biology are not yet known.

Systematics

Three subspecies are recognized:

  • Pogoniulus coryphaeus angolensis (Boulton, 1931) - Western and Central Angola.
  • Pogoniulus coryphaeus coryphaeus (Reichenow, 1892) - Eastern Nigeria and the adjacent highlands of Western Cameroon.
  • Pogoniulus coryphaeus hildamariae (WL Sclater, 1930) - Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, southwest Uganda and Western Rwanda.

supporting documents

literature

  • Lester L. Short and Jennifer FM Horne: Toucans, Barbets and Honeyguides - Ramphastidae, Capitonidae and Indicatoridae . Oxford University Press, Oxford 2001, ISBN 0-19-854666-1

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Terry Stevenson, John Fanshawe: Birds of East Africa. Christopher Helm Verlag, 2004, ISBN 978-0713673470 , p. 252.
  2. ↑ Short et al., P. 155
  3. ↑ Short et al., P. 156
  4. ↑ Short et al., P. 157
  5. ↑ Short et al., P. 157
  6. ↑ Videos, photos and sound recordings for Western Green Tinkerbird (Pogoniulus coryphaeus) in the Internet Bird Collection