Black-headed nun

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Black-headed nun
Adult Black-headed Munia.jpg

Black-headed nun ( Lonchura atricapilla )

Systematics
Order : Passerines (Passeriformes)
Subordination : Songbirds (passeri)
Family : Fine finches (Estrildidae)
Subfamily : Lonchurinae
Genre : Bronze man ( lonchura )
Type : Black-headed nun
Scientific name
Lonchura atricapilla
( Vieillot , 1807)
Black-headed nun of the subspecies Lonchura atricapilla jagori
Young bird

The black-headed nun ( Lonchura atricapilla ) is a species from the finch family . Several subspecies are distinguished. The black-headed nun was long considered a subspecies of the black-bellied nun . The two species have, among other things, differences in brightness in their juvenile plumage and deviations in the throat markings of the nestlings.

The species is classified by the IUCN as not endangered ("least concern").

description

Schwarzkopf nuns reach a body length of eleven to twelve centimeters. The sexual dimorphism is not very pronounced.

The head and neck are black up to the goiter area. The upper tail-coverts and the hems of the tail feathers are brownish-yellow. The front chest and sides of the body, like the back and wings, are an intense maroon. The eyes are reddish brown to brown. The beak is light blue-gray. The feet and legs are lead gray.

The females are usually a little more dull in color than the males. The fledglings are reddish brown on the top of the body and grayer on the head and throat. In the young birds of the black-headed nuns, the horseshoe-shaped pattern in the throat is somewhat smaller than in the black-bellied nuns. The drawing in the upper and lower beak are separated from each other by a large gap.

Distribution and way of life

The individual subspecies have the following distribution areas:

  • Lonchura atricapilla atricapilla ( nominate form ) occurs from eastern Nepal and Bihar via Assam and eastern Pakistan to western Myanmar . Individual populations also occur in the north, east and south of Myanmar as well as in Yunnan , which borders Myanmar .
  • Lonchura atricapilla rubroniger : Foreland and foothills of the Himalayas from Ambala in the eastern Punjab to the central country of Nepal and the northwest of Bihar.
  • Lonchura atricapilla sinensis : Malay Peninsula including Singapore to southernmost Thailand and the lowlands of Sumatra .
  • Lonchura atricapilla formosana : Low altitudes in Taiwan and in the northeast of Luzon .
  • Lonchura atricapilla deignani : Thailand and probably parts of Indonesia as well .
  • Lonchura atricapilla brunneiceps (so-called Braunkopfnonne): South peninsula of Sulawesi and the island of Ambon
  • Lonchura atricapilla jagori : The island of Luzon with the exception of the north as well as Ticao and Lubang
  • Lonchura atricapilla selimbauensis : Southwest Borneo
  • Lonchura atricapilla obscura : Central South of Borneo
  • Lonchura atricapilla batakana : Sumatran highlands

Black-headed nuns colonize high grass areas and are also found in reeds and swampy bushes. They generally prefer lower altitudes, but in Borneo they also occur at altitudes of 1,800 meters, in southern India at altitudes of 1,600 and in the Himalayan region up to 1,200 meters. They feed mainly on grass seeds and grains of rice. These are picked up from the ground as well as picked from the panicles and ears. The birds are very skilled climbers and use their feet to help hold blades of grass or pull ears of wheat towards them.

The breeding season varies depending on the distribution area, but the main breeding season is the rainy season. The nest is built by both partners. Both breed and raise the young birds together. The incubation period is twelve to thirteen days, the nestling period between 22 and 28 days. Young birds are independent one to three weeks after they have fled their homes.

attitude

The black-headed nun was kept as an ornamental bird in Europe as early as the 1870s. It has been imported regularly since 1950, but only bred in very small numbers.

literature

  • Jürgen Nicolai (Ed.), Joachim Steinbacher (Ed.), Renate van den Elzen, Gerhard Hofmann: Prachtfinken - Australia, Oceania, Southeast Asia. Eugen Ulmer Verlag, Stuttgart 2001, ISBN 3-8001-3249-4 .
  • Peter Clement , Alan Harris, John Davis: Finches and Sparrows. An Identification Guide. Christopher Helm, London 1993, ISBN 0-7136-8017-2 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Nicolai et al., P. 248.
  2. ↑ BirdLife Factsheet , accessed July 7, 2010.
  3. ↑ Nicolai et al., P. 250.
  4. ↑ Nicolai et al., P. 252.

Web links

Commons : Black-headed nun ( Lonchura atricapilla )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files