Scarlet flycatcher
| Scarlet flycatcher | ||||||||||||
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Scarlet Flycatcher ( Petroica boodang ), adult male |
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| Petroica boodang | ||||||||||||
| ( Lesson , 1831) |
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The scarlet flycatcher ( Petroica boodang ), sometimes also called the Australian scarlet flycatcher , is a songbird from the family of flycatchers (Petroicidae) found in Australia and Tasmania .
features
Scarlet flycatchers reach a body length of 12.0 to 13.5 centimeters and a weight of 12.0 to 14.0 grams. There is a clear sexual dimorphism between the sexes in terms of plumage color . Only in the males are the head, throat, back and rump black. The chest and belly base are brightly colored strawberry red ("scarlet red"). A clear white spot stands out on the forehead. The predominantly black wings show a white wing band and narrow whitish markings. The control feathers are black, the flanks and rump are white. The similarly drawn females are much more simply colored. They are gray-brown on the top of the body and ocher-colored on the underside of the body. The chest shows only a small pale orange-red area. The beak is black in both sexes, the iris , legs and feet are dark brown.
Distribution, subspecies and habitat
The scarlet flycatcher is found only in Australia and Tasmania . In addition to the nominate form Petroica boodang boodang , which occurs in southeast Australia , two other subspecies are known:
- Petroica boodang campelli Sharpe , 1898 - in Southwest Australia
- Petroica boodang leggii Sharpe , 1879 - in Tasmania as well as in the Bass Strait lying Flinders Iceland .
The main habitat of the species are light eucalyptus forests. Outside the breeding season, it also migrates to open areas that are towards the center of Australia.
Way of life
The birds feed on arthropods , which they look for on the ground or in low vegetation. The breeding season falls from July to February. Usually two to three broods occur, in rare cases up to five. The cup-shaped nest has an outer diameter of 7.0 to 8.9 centimeters and is usually placed at an average height of six meters (varies between 0 and 24 m) above the ground, preferably on a horizontal branch. It is made from dry grass, moss and small strips of bark, woven with spider threads and padded with animal hair and feathers. The female is responsible for building the nest, completing it in three to nine days and then providing three eggs which are hatched in 14 to 18 days. Both parents provide the young with food. They leave the nest after 16 to 18 days. The breeding success is between eight and 40%. The fan- tailed cuckoo ( Cacomantis flabelliformis ), the bush cuckoo ( Cacomantis variolosus ), the white cuckoo ( Cuculus pallidus ) or the bronze cuckoo ( Chrysococcyx lucidus ) sometimes occur as breeding parasites .
Danger
The scarlet flycatcher is widespread, sometimes numerous, in its areas of occurrence and is therefore classified by the IUCN as a 
“ least concern ”. Some habitats have been lost due to deforestation in breeding areas, but the species is not threatened overall. Occasionally areas where thick undergrowth was destroyed after bushfires were repopulated.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d W. Boles: Scarlet Robin (Petroica boodang). In: J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, DA Christie, E. de Juana (Eds.): Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2017 ( accessed online 7 May 2017).
- ↑ dissemination
- ^ IOC World Bird List
- ^ IUCN Red List
literature
- Josep del Hoyo , Andrew Elliott, Jordi Sargatal : Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 12: Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2007, ISBN 978-84-96553-42-2 .
