Rodrigues reed warbler
Rodrigues reed warbler | ||||||||||||
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![]() Rodrigues reed warbler ( Acrocephalus rodericanus ) |
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Systematics | ||||||||||||
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Scientific name | ||||||||||||
Acrocephalus rodericanus | ||||||||||||
( A. Newton , 1865) |
The Rodrigues reed warbler ( Acrocephalus rodericanus ) is a rare songbird that is endemic to the Mascarene island of Rodrigues . It is closely related to the Seychelles reed warbler ( Acrocephalus Sechellensis ).
description
The Rodrigues reed warbler reaches a length of 13.5 centimeters. It is uniformly olive brown on the top and light dirty yellow on the underside. The beak is long. At the lower beak it shows a pink color. The top of the head is characterized by an upright spring hood. The voice consists of a high-pitched, chattering alarm call and melodious chant.
Occurrence and way of life
The Rodrigues reed warbler is a territorial insectivore found in the thicket vegetation on central Rodrigues. The introduced Malabar plum ( Syzygium jambos ) is the dominant plant species in this habitat. He also lives in plantations with Swietenia , Tabebuia and Araucaria sp.
Danger
The Rodrigues reed warbler is one of the rarest bird species in the Mascarene Islands . 150 individuals live in a 3 km² breeding area. The Rodrigues reed warbler used to appear frequently on Rodrigues. Until the 1970s, however, the population decreased so dramatically that in 1979 only 17 specimens were counted (8 pairs and a single bird). From 1982 the population increased again and since 1999 it has been around 150 birds. Lumber harvesting, agricultural use and overgrazing have reduced the habitat to a savannah landscape with few trees. At present, cats and rats are the most vulnerable.
literature
- Staub, France (1976), Birds of the Mascarenes and Saint Brandon. LABAMA HOUSE, Port Louis, Mauritius.
Web links
- Birdlife factsheet
- description
- Acrocephalus rodericanus inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017.3. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2016. Retrieved December 29, 2017.