Rallenflöter
| Rallenflöter | ||||||||||||
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Rallenflöter (historical illustration from 1838) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the family | ||||||||||||
| Eupetidae | ||||||||||||
| Bonaparte , 1850 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Eupetes | ||||||||||||
| Temminck , 1831 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Eupetes macrocerus | ||||||||||||
| Temminck , 1831 |
The whistle ( Eupetes macrocerus ) is a species of bird that is common on the Malay Peninsula , Sumatra, and Borneo . It is the only species in the genus Eupetes . While he used to be the babblers (Timalidae) and later to the Laufflötern was provided (Orthonychidae), it is in its own family today Eupetidae out. Until recently, some apparently similar species were incorporated into these, but it is now regarded as monotypical .
The flute is usually rare, but locally quite common. Presumably the population is mostly underestimated due to the secret way of life. Because of the rapidly advancing deforestation in the region, the species was put on the IUCN's warning list ( near threatened hazard category ).
description
The Rallenflöter is about the size of a blackbird with a body length of 28-30 cm . The weight is between 66 and 72 g. The rather slender bird has a long neck and is quite long-tailed and long-legged. Beak, feet and legs are black, the iris is brown. There is no sexual dimorphism .
The wide white stripe above the eyes begins just in front of the eye and extends to the sides of the neck. Below this, a broad black stripe extends from the base of the beak and the rein over the ear covers and beard stripe, also down to the sides of the neck. Below that there is a blue, featherless field on the neck. In the nominate form , the forehead is lively ocher. The chestnut-colored coloring of the crown, back of the head and neck runs into the reddish brown of the rest of the top. The chin, throat and front neck are bright chestnut in color. The rest of the underside is ocher-brown and chestnut-colored on the chest and greyish on the belly. The wings are matte brown with golden brown hems on the outer flags. The ocher-beige upper wing covers are also lined with golden brown; the under wing-coverts are reddish brown. The upper tail-coverts are a little more vividly colored than the upper side; the control feathers are red-brown with ocher-colored edges.
Birds in the first year are more dull in color than adults . The forehead is gray and the throat white. The underside is brown-gray.
voice
The eponymous song is performed from an elevated position, such as from a fallen, rotting tree trunk. The bird buckles its legs, lowers its body forward and stretches its head and neck. The tail is raised and moved up and down. Initially, two or three cackling sounds, audible only at close range, are uttered. This is followed by a timid, monotonous whistling that increases in volume. The bare, blue fields on the sides of the neck are inflated.
The presumed contact call is described as tok , a frog-like, cackling goink is possibly the alarm call.
Geographic variation
Two subspecies are recognized. The subspecies E. m. borneensis differs from the nominate form in that it has a livelier brown head, a reddish upper side - especially on the tail - and more extensive red-brown areas on the underside.
- E. m. macrocerus Temminck , 1831 - southern Thailand , Malay Peninsula and Sumatra.
- E. m. borneensis Robinson & Kloss , 1921 - northern Borneo.
Way of life
The Rallenflöter lives in extensive primary forests and forests with a closed canopy, pronounced stratification and a dense to relatively loose herbaceous layer. Swamp forests and Kerangas are also populated. The height distribution extends from the lowlands to the edge of the mountain forests. On the Malay Peninsula, the species can be found up to 1300 m, on Sumatra and Borneo up to 900 m.
The flutes feed on insects such as cicadas or beetles . Spiders complement the food spectrum. The prey is searched for striding on the forest floor and sometimes followed by running. The species is quite secret. In the event of danger, she does not fly up, but runs away and looks for a hiding place.
Clutches were found in late January or early February, young birds were observed in June. The nest is a loose, bowl-shaped structure made of plant fibers. In one documented case, it stood 30 cm high in a cluster of fallen leaves between the stems of a plant. The clutch consists of two white eggs.
literature
- Walter Boles: Rail-babbler (Eupetes macrocerus). In: Josep del Hoyo , Andrew Elliott, David Christie: Handbook of the Birds of the World . Volume 12: Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Lynx Edicions 2007 (revised version by Arnau Bonan, 2013, HBW Alive), p. 365.
- Herbert Christopher Robinson, Cecil Boden Kloss: Nine new oriental birds . In: Journal of the Federated Malay States Museums . tape 10 , no. 3 , 1921, pp. 203-206 ( online [accessed August 15, 2013]).
Individual evidence
- ↑ Walter Boles: Rail-babbler (Eupetes macrocerus) (p. 365) and Eupetidae - Jewel-babblers and allies (p. 348f) in Josep del Hoyo, Andrew Elliott, David Christie: Handbook of the Birds of the World , Volume 12 , Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees , Lynx Edicions 2007
- ↑ Herbert Christopher Robinson et al. a., p. 204
Web links
- Eupetes macrocerus in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2012. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2012. Accessed August 13, 2013.
- Photos of Eupetes macrocerus in the Oriental Bird Club image database , accessed August 13, 2013
- xeno-canto: Sound recordings - Eupetes macrocerus , accessed on August 13, 2013
- Eupetes macrocerus videos, photos and sound recordings in the Internet Bird Collection , accessed August 13, 2013
