Palm chatterbox

Palm chatterbox
	Palm babbler ( Dulus dominicus )
Systematics
Order :	Passerines (Passeriformes)
Subordination :	Songbirds (passeri)
Superfamily :	Bombycilloidea
Family :	Dulidae
Genre :	Dulus
Type :	Palm chatterbox
Scientific name of the family
	Dulidae
	PL Sclater , 1862
Scientific name of the genus
	Dulus
	Vieillot , 1816
Scientific name of the species
	Dulus dominicus
	( Linnaeus , 1766)

Palm chatterbox in La Romana , Dominican Republic

The palm chatterbox ( Dulus dominicus ) is an endemic species of bird on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola and its neighboring islands Île de la Gonâve and Isla Saona . It is the national bird of the Dominican Republic and the only species in the Dulidae family in the order of the passerine birds (Passeriformes). It used to be part of the waxwing family (Bombycillidae). The palm chatterbox is not endangered.

features

The palm chatterbox has brownish or olive-brown plumage on its back and light-colored plumage with brown stripes on its chest and stomach. The trunk is cylindrical-oval and is held in a relatively upright position while sitting on a branch. The head is medium in size, the neck is thick. The beak is medium in length and broad at the base. The wings and tail are medium in size. Legs and feet are short and strong.

Habitat and way of life

The palm chatterbox occurs in a wide variety of habitats on Hispaniola, from open forests to savannahs to agricultural and urban areas. It lives in large groups high in the trees, feeds on fruits and supplements its food with insects, other arthropods, leaves and flowers, especially those of the Roystonea palm genus . It is monogamous and nests with an average of four to ten pairs in large community nests made of twigs, in which each pair has its own nesting chamber lined with grass and leaves. The clutch consists of two to seven eggs. The breeding period is around 15 days and the young birds leave the nest after around 32 days.

supporting documents

↑ ^a ^b ^c David W. Winkler, Shawn M. Billerman, Irby J. Lovette: Bird Families of the World - An Invitation to the Spectacular Diversity of Birds. Lynx Edicions and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2015, ISBN 978-84-941892-0-3 , p. 489.
↑ Dulus dominicus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2008. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2008. Accessed January 31 of 2009.

Web links

Commons : Palm babbler ( Dulus dominicus ) - Collection of images, videos and audio files

[Winkler-1] David W. Winkler, Shawn M. Billerman, Irby J. Lovette: Bird Families of the World - An Invitation to the Spectacular Diversity of Birds. Lynx Edicions and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2015, ISBN 978-84-941892-0-3 , p. 489.

[2] Dulus dominicus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2008. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2008. Accessed January 31 of 2009.