Bald mousebird

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Bald mousebird
Bald mousebird

Bald mousebird

Systematics
Order : Mouse birds (Coliiformes)
Family : Mouse birds (Coliidae)
Genre : Colius
Type : Bald mousebird
Scientific name
Colius leucocephalus
Reichenow , 1879

The white-headed mousebird ( Colius leucocephalus ) is a bird art from the family of mousebirds (Coliidae). The subspecies C. l. leucocephalus and C. l. turneri differentiated. The species occurs in East Africa .

features

The bald mousebird reaches a size of 29 to 31 cm. The long tail accounts for about 20 cm of this. The male reaches a weight of 31 to 42 g, the female a weight of 28 to 39 g. The average weight of both sexes is 35 g. The plumage is predominantly gray. The parting is creamy white. The hood, the cheeks and the upper back are banded in black and white. The long tail is graduated. In both sexes of the nominate form , a white stripe runs along the back, which is often hidden by the wings. The wings and tail are blue-gray. The throat is pinkish brown. The chest and flanks are wine pink. The belly is light beige. The throat and chest are brightly banded. The skin of the face is blackish gray. The upper bill is light gray with a dark tip, the lower bill is lighter with a yellowish tip. The feet and legs are pink to coral red. The iris is brown. The juvenile birds have a white crest. Throat and chest are yellow-brown. The banding on the coat, back and throat is very pale or absent. The upper bill is green in the young birds, the lower bill gray. Their legs and feet are light pink. The subspecies C. l. turneri is bigger. The average wing length is 89.4 mm, while the nominate shape was measured at 87.2 mm. The throat, the mantle and the small elytra are darker. The neck is more strongly banded. The wine-pink coloring is limited to the upper chest and the flanks.

Vocalizations

The reputation is poorly described in the literature. Mention was made of a cry of complaint and a call that sounds like "rit-rit".

Subspecies and their distribution

The nominate form Colius leucocephalus leucocephalus is distributed from southeastern Ethiopia, through southern Somalia and southeastern Kenya to the adjacent region in northeastern Tanzania. The subspecies Colius leucocephalus turneri , described by Victor Gurney Logan Van Someren in 1919, occurs in north-central Kenya.

habitat

The bald mousebird lives in dry thorn bush vegetation in semi-arid areas. It can often be seen in the thicket along watercourses.

Eating behavior

Little is known about feeding behavior. The diet consists of fruits (e.g. nightshade ) and leaf buds (e.g. acacias ). Small groups of six to eleven birds have been observed foraging for food. The bald mousebird is a resident bird . Presumably, however, he wanders around nomadically and stray.

Reproductive behavior

The eggs are laid at different times. It was observed in Somalia in July, in southwest and central Kenya from June to August, and in Tanzania in February, from May to July and November. The nest is an open shell made of twigs and flexible material. The clutch probably consists of up to three dull white eggs. Further information is not available.

status

BirdLife International classifies the bald mousebird as "not endangered" (least concern). It's relatively rare. Its range is probably split into four different regions. It is quite common and widespread in the coastal region of southern Somalia. However, it is almost absent near the border with Ethiopia. In Kenya it is only distributed locally and quite rare. It was previously described as common in southeastern Ethiopia, but in fact there has only been one confirmed sighting in that country.

literature

  • Eduardo de Juana: Family Coliidae (Mousebirds). In: Josep del Hoyo , Andrew Elliott, Jordi Sargatal : Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 6: Mousebirds to Hornbills. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2001, ISBN 978-84-87334-30-6 , p. 75.
  • Anton Reichenow: New Birds from East Africa . In: Ornithological Centralblatt. Organ for Science and Transport. Bulletin of the whole association and scoreboard for collectors, breeders and dealers. Supplement to the journal for ornithology. On behalf of the General German Ornithological Society. tape 4 , no. 15 , 1879, p. 114 ( online [accessed August 29, 2015]).
  • Victor Gurney Logan Van Someren: Dr. VG van Sommeren Exhibited and Described the Following new forms from Africa, Which FORMED part of a magnificant collection he had recently Brought home: . In: Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club . tape 40 , no. 245 , 1919, pp. 19–28 ( online [accessed August 25, 2015]).

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Anton Reichenow, p. 114.
  2. ↑ Victor Gurney Logan Van Someren, p. 27.