Nymph pitta

Nymph pitta
	Nymph pitta ( Pitta nympha )
Systematics
Order :	Passerines (Passeriformes)
Subordination :	Screeching Birds (Tyranni)
Partial order :	Screaming birds of the old world (Eurylaimides)
Family :	Pittas (Pittidae)
Genre :	Pitta
Type :	Nymph pitta
Scientific name
	Pitta nympha
	( Temminck & Schlegel , 1850)

The fairy pitta ( Pitta nympha ) is an in East Asia occurring Sperling bird from the genus Pitta within the family of the Pitta (Pittidae). The nymph pitta is also sometimes referred to as the nine-color pitta . However, this name is also used for the Bengal pitta common in India . The type is according to the IUCN Red List of the IUCN due to deforestation in their breeding areas as vulnerable ( vulnerable classified).

Appearance

Nymph pitta (left) and cap pitta ( Pitta sordida ) in an illustration from 1870

The nymph pitta reaches a body length of 16 to 20 centimeters and a body weight of 67-155 grams. The species has a relatively large head, long and wide wings, but only a short tail, so that the hand wings protrude over its tip. The posture is upright.

Nymph pitta ( Pitta nympha )

The nymph pitta has very colorful plumage. The crown has a maroon coloration, the forehead is covered with a black central stripe. The black face mask extends from the beak over the eyes with black iris to the neck and is bordered at the top by a distinctive, light yellow-brown over - eye stripe , which also extends to the neck. The chin, throat and chest feathers are pale yellow in color, while the shoulder feathers and the upper and back feathers are apple green. In flight, the outer coverts and the hand wings appear black. The upper tail feathers are bright blue, while the lower abdomen and the lower tail feathers are bright red. The legs are pale pink to flesh colored and end in four toes, one of which points backwards. The elongated and strongly built beak is black in adult birds, in juvenile specimens rather dark brown with an orange tip. The young birds are generally duller in color and have white spots on the central coverts .

The species is similar to the related Little Blue-winged Pitta ( Pitta moluccensis ), but the latter is larger. In addition, the two species differ in the color of their crown, which in Pitta moluccensis is yellow-brown. The little blue-winged pitta has a lighter blue of the trunk and upper tail feathers. In addition, all the elytra are blue and the underside has a darker yellow-brown tint.

Habitat and Ecology

Nymph pitta in the habitat

The breeding grounds of the nymph pitta are usually in subtropical forests. The locally concentrated breeding occurrence of the nymph pitta indicates special demands on the habitat. In Japan, the birds breed mainly in evergreen deciduous forests near the coast up to a height of 500 meters. However, broods on plantations have also been documented, an indication that the species can also adapt to changed habitats. In South Korea, the nymph pitta breeds in dense moist forests and deciduous forests near the coast up to 1200 meters above sea level. The occurrence on Jeju Island is limited to the south side of the island.

In Taiwan , the breeding areas of the species are on the slopes of hills below 1,300 meters. The breeding season here begins in late April when the adult males start singing. In mid to late May or early June, the female lays three to five creamy eggs with purple-brown speckles. However, less than eggs are rare. The dome-shaped nest is usually built primarily from twigs, grass and root fibers in small crevices in the rock or in the foliage up to 5 meters above the ground. Sometimes there is also a small platform in front of the nest. It is 45 centimeters wide and around 40 centimeters high and has a side entrance. The young hatch from the beginning of June and are fed by both parent birds, which during the breeding season always stay close to the nest within a radius of 100 to 400 meters. The nymph pitta mainly feeds on invertebrates such as worms , spiders , insects and their larvae as well as snails , which it ingests on the ground under the leaf litter. Earthworms make up the vast majority of their food during the breeding season. Before they fled, the young birds eat around 70 to 80 worms a day. Occasionally it also preyes on small snakes or rodents. In captivity, nymph pittas have been observed using stones as anvils to open snail shells. Foraging takes place in the undergrowth and on the ground, the males sing high in the trees.

The nymph pitta is the carrier of a parasitic roundworm of the genus Strongyloides . It is believed that the roundworms could cause epizootic diseases among bird populations.

Distribution and existence

The breeding areas of the nymph pittas are in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and the southern Chinese mainland. In Japan it breeds mainly on Kyūshū , Shikoku and in the west and south of Honshū . Brood occurrences also exist on Tsushima . The Korean breeding occurrences are mainly in the south of the peninsula, z. B. on the islands of Geoje and Jeju .

The wintering area mainly includes Borneo , i. H. the east of Malaysia , Brunei and Kalimantan . Sightings from North Korea , Vietnam , Hong Kong and Thailand are also known. Individual sightings have also come down to us from North Honshū and Hokkaidō . Investigations in Jiangxi , Guangxi and Hainan have identified previously unknown locations.

Overall, the total population is probably no more than a few thousand individuals, but in no case more than 10,000 specimens. Estimates assume a total population of 1,500-7,000 adult specimens. It is estimated that Taiwan's breeding population is approximately 2000 individuals. The Japanese population does not exceed 150 individuals, although surveys in 1997-2002 indicate an increase in the population compared to the 1970s.

Systematics

Various very similar species of the Pittidae

Nymph pitta

Bengal pitta

Mangrove pitta

Little blue-winged pitta

The species is monotypical . A second subspecies Pitta nympha melli was described by Erwin Stresemann in 1923 in southern China on the basis of different sizes. Although research suggests that northern members of the nymph pitta are generally somewhat larger than their southern counterparts, it is doubtful whether these differences are sufficient to justify a separation into two subspecies.

The nymph pitta forms together with the bengal pitta ( P. brachyura ), the little blue-winged pitta ( P. moluccensis ) and the mangrove pitta ( P. megarhyncha ) a super species . In the past, the species was often viewed as conspecific with Pitta brachyura , but the two species differ in their morphology, plumage and vocalizations.

Hazards and protective measures

threat

Pitta nympha is classified as endangered by the IUCN because the population is rapidly declining due to the clearing of forests in the breeding areas for agriculture and the timber industry. Another threat is the interception of migratory birds in cages for illegal trade in Taiwan in the past and bird hunting in China. Uncontrolled forest fires have destroyed more forest areas. In addition, there are disturbances from humans in Taiwan and South Korea and especially in Japan, where the species is often harassed by photographers, especially during breeding. The Huben-Hushan Important Bird Area (IBA ) in Yunlin County in western Taiwan is home to the largest breeding population of the nymph pitta, but is severely threatened by the planned Hushan Dam project, which would flood 422 hectares of the habitat. Despite resistance from environmental groups, the project has not yet been stopped and disruptions on the construction site have already led to a decrease in breeding pairs from 32 to 18 in 2007.

Protective measures

The nymph pitta is listed in Appendix II of the Washington Convention on Endangered Species and thus enjoys legal protection in China, Taiwan, Japan, North Korea and South Korea. The rare bird species occurs in some important protected areas, of which the national park on the South Korean island of Geoje deserves mention, which is an important breeding area in South Korea. In the past, Birdlife International and the Taiwan Wild Bird Association have successfully campaigned against gravel mining in the important Huben-Hushan bird area, but construction of the dam in the same area has already started despite a protest campaign by Birdlife International and Taiwan Wild Bird Association. In Japan, the fairy pitta is under 1B on the Red List, representing a status as "high risk" ( endangered ) corresponds.

Future protective measures to preserve the species include further surveys of the breeding areas and further research into occurrence and distribution. More detailed research into the ecology of the nymph pitta and its demands on the habitat is necessary for the purpose of improved forest management in protected areas with nymph pitta occurrences. Other forest areas containing these and other endangered species must also be protected and managed accordingly. In addition, adequate protection of already protected areas must be ensured in order to prevent hunting and trapping in these areas. The IUCN also advises continuing the resistance to the Hushan Dam project in order to preserve one of the most important breeding areas of this species.

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j BirdLife International 2012. Pitta nympha . In: IUCN 2013. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
^ ^A ^b ^c ^d ^e Mark Brazil: Birds of East Asia. London 2009, p. 290.
↑ BirdLife International: Species Factsheet - Fairy Pitta (Pitta nympha).
↑ ^a ^b ^c Bird Base: Fairy Pitta
↑ ^a ^b ^c J. Erritzoe: Family Pittidae (pittas). In: J. del Hoyo, AD Elliott, DA Christie (Eds.): Handbook of the birds of the world. Volume 8: Broadbills to Tapaculos. Barcelona, 2003, ISBN 84-87334-50-4 , pp. 106-160.
^ ^A ^b Ruey-Shing Lin, Cheng-Te Yao, and Pei-Fen Lee: The Diet of Fairy Pitta Pitta nympha Nestlings in Taiwan as Revealed by Videotaping. In: Zoological Studies. Volume 46, No. 3, 2007, pp. 355-361.
↑ ^a ^b Eun-Mi Kim, Chan-Ryul Park, Chang-Wan Kang, Se-Jae Kim: The nestling diet of fairy pitta Pitta nympha on Jeju Island, Korea. In: Open Journal of Ecology. Volume 2, No. 4, November 2012, p. 178.
↑ ^a ^b ^c Tomoo Yoshino, Daisuke Hayakawa, Miku Yoshizawa, Yuichi Osa, Mitsuhiko Asakawa: First record of the genus Strongyloides (Nematoda: Rhabditoidea) obtained from a fairy pitta, Pitta brachyura nympha. In: Bull. Tokushima Pref. Mus. No. 22, 2012, pp. 1-6.
^ Wildlife Division of the Ministry of the Environment: Red Data Book: Birds. Japan Wildlife Research Center, Tokyo 2002, p. 278.