Fernwren

Last updated

Fernwren
Fernwren.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Acanthizidae
Genus: Oreoscopus
North, 1905
Species:
O. gutturalis
Binomial name
Oreoscopus gutturalis
(De Vis, 1889)

The fernwren (Oreoscopus gutturalis) is a species of bird in the family Acanthizidae. It is monotypic within the genus Oreoscopus. [2]

Contents

It is endemic to northern Queensland in Australia. Its natural habitats are tropical moist lowland forest and tropical moist montane forest.

Taxonomy

The fernwren was first described by the English zoologist and ornithologist Charles Walter De Vis in 1889, and grouped with the scrubwrens as Sericornis gutturalis. It was later included in the genus Crateroscelis , along with three species of mouse-warblers found in New Guinea, but was subsequently moved to the monotypic genus Oreoscopus (established by North in 1905). The fernwren is a basal (subfamily) member of Acanthizidae and sister to the genus Pachycare . [3] [4]

The generic name Oreoscopus derives from the Ancient Greek oros meaning 'mountain' and scopos meaning 'guardian' or 'watcher'. [5] The specific epithet gutturalis is Mediaeval Latin for 'of the throat', referring to the prominent white throat of this species. [6] It was also known colloquially as the collared scrubwren. [7]

Description

The fernwren has a white eyebrow and throat, enclosing a dark brown face. Beneath the white throat, it has a black bib. [8] It has a long-slender bill. The upperparts are dark olive-brown and the underparts paler. [9] It is 12–14 cm (4.7–5.5 in) in length. The female is very similar to the male. Juveniles are dark brown without the white facial markings of the adult. [9]

Distribution and habitat

The fernwren is found in northeast Queensland rainforest between 300–1,500 m (980–4,920 ft) above sea-level, [10] although more often above 650 m (2,130 ft). [9] It is found in the Paluma Range, near Townsville, and from the Tully Gorge National Park northwards to Cape Tribulation. [11] [7] It is sedentary and classified as endangered on the IUCN Red List. [10]

Behaviour

The fernwren forages in the moist leaf-litter amongst the ferns and dense shrubbery, particularly in shady gullies of highland rainforests. [8] As it searches through the accumulated debris of the forest floor, it frequently bows its head and flicks its short tail. [9] It feeds on arthropods and small skinks (Scincidae). [12] It has a variety of calls, including high-pitched squeaks and whistles, a softer chattering sequence, and a buzzing, scolding call. [8] [9]

Breeding

In the breeding season from July to January (mainly October and November), [12] the male and female fernwrens together construct a domed nest, often hidden beneath an overhanging bank, fallen log or in a small cave amid the ferns. [8] The nest is composed of twigs, rootlets, moss, and lichen. [7] The female lays a clutch of two eggs, which are glossy white, sometimes finely spotted chestnut and tan. [7] The eggs measure 22 mm (0.87 in) long by 17 mm (0.67 in) wide. [8] Incubation by the female lasts about 29 days, and nestlings are fed by both sexes for 21-23 days. [12]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-throated robin</span> Species of bird

The white-throated robin, or irania, is a small, sexually dimorphic, migratory passerine bird. The vernacular and genus name Irania alludes to Iran, its type locality, while the specific name gutturalis is Medieval Latin for "of the throat". It breeds in western Asia and overwinters in East Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-tailed sabrewing</span> Species of hummingbird

The white-tailed sabrewing is a Near Threatened species of hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is found on Tobago and in Venezuela.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brown thornbill</span> Species of bird

The brown thornbill is a passerine bird usually found in eastern and south-eastern Australia, including Tasmania. It can grow up to 10 cm (3.9 in) long, and feeds on insects. It is brown, grey and white. The species has five subspecies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellow-rumped thornbill</span> Species of bird

The yellow-rumped thornbill is a species of passerine bird from the genus Acanthiza. The genus was once placed in the family Pardalotidae but that family was split and it is now in the family Acanthizidae. There are four subspecies of yellow-rumped thornbill. It is a small, brownish bird with a distinctive yellow rump and thin dark bill. It inhabits savannah, scrub and forests across most of Australia and eats insects. The species engages in cooperative breeding.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellow-throated scrubwren</span> Species of bird

The yellow-throated scrubwren is a passerine in the family Acanthizidae that is found in parts of eastern coastal Australia. It was formerly placed in the genus Sericornis, but is now the only species in the genus Neosericornis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Garnet-throated hummingbird</span>

The garnet-throated hummingbird is a species of hummingbird in tribe Lampornithini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is found in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ferruginous partridge</span> Species of bird

The ferruginous partridge is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It belongs to the monotypical genus Caloperdix. It is found in Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Thailand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forest kingfisher</span> Species of bird

The forest kingfisher, also known as Macleay's or the blue kingfisher, is a species of kingfisher in the subfamily Halcyoninae, also known as tree kingfishers. It is a predominantly blue and white bird. It is found in Indonesia, New Guinea and coastal eastern and Northern Australia. Like many other kingfishers, it hunts invertebrates, small frogs, and lizards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scrubtit</span> Species of bird

The scrubtit is a species of bird in the thornbill family Acanthizidae. It is endemic to Tasmania and King Island in Australia. Its natural habitat is the temperate rainforest, Nothofagus beech forest and eucalypt woodland. It is a small species that resembles the Sericornis scrubwrens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scarlet-and-white tanager</span> Species of bird from South America

The scarlet-and-white tanager is a species of bird in the family Thraupidae. It is found in Colombia and northern Ecuador. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and heavily degraded former forest. The male is highly distinctive and has bright scarlet upperparts, darker red wings and undertail coverts, and white underparts with a scarlet median stripe running down the throat and belly. Females are patterned like the males, but are olive-brown instead of scarlet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Speckled warbler</span> Species of bird

The speckled warbler is a species of bird in the family Acanthizidae. It is endemic to eastern Australia. Its natural habitat is temperate forests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-throated manakin</span> Species of bird

The white-throated manakin is a species of bird in the family Pipridae. It is found in Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, and Venezuela. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sooty ant tanager</span> Species of bird

The sooty ant tanager is a species of bird in the cardinal family (Cardinalidae); formerly, it was placed with the true tanagers in the family Thraupidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grey-headed robin</span> Species of bird

The grey-headed robin is a species of bird in the family Petroicidae. It is found in northeastern Cape York Peninsula.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rockwarbler</span> Species of bird (Origma solitaria)

The rockwarbler, is a bird in the family Acanthizidae. It is the only bird species endemic to the state of New South Wales in Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goldenface</span> Species of bird

The goldenface is a species of passerine bird endemic to New Guinea. It is the only species (monotypic) within the genus Pachycare.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pilotbird</span> Monotypic genus of Australian bird

The pilotbird is a species of passerine bird in the family Acanthizidae. It is monotypic within the genus Pycnoptilus. The species is endemic to south-eastern Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tasmanian scrubwren</span> Species of bird

The Tasmanian scrubwren or brown scrubwren is a bird species endemic to the temperate forests of Tasmania and nearby King Island. It lives in the understory of rainforest, woodland, dry forest, swamps and coastal scrublands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Large-billed scrubwren</span> Species of bird

The large-billed scrubwren is a passerine bird in the family Acanthizidae, endemic to eastern Australia. It is found in denser undergrowth in temperate forest, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acanthizidae</span> Family of birds

Acanthizidae—sometimes called Australian warblers—are a family of passerine birds which includes gerygones, thornbills Acanthiza, and scrubwrens Sericornis. The family Acanthizidae consists of small to medium passerine birds, with a total length varying between 8 and 19 centimetres. They have short rounded wings, slender bills, long legs, and a short tail. Most species have olive, grey, or brown plumage, although some have patches of a brighter yellow. The weebill is the smallest species of acanthizid, and the smallest Australian passerine; the largest is the pilotbird.

References

  1. BirdLife International (2022). "Oreoscopus gutturalis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2022: e.T22704520A210662799. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
  2. Del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A. & Christie D. (editors). (2006). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 12: Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Lynx Edicions. ISBN   978-84-96553-42-2
  3. Schodde, R. and Christidis, L. (2014). "Relicts from Tertiary Australasia: undescribed families and subfamilies of songbirds (Passeriformes) and their zoogeographic signal". Zootaxa. 3786 (5): 501–522.
  4. Gill, F. and D. Donsker, eds. (2020). IOC World Bird List (v 10.1). Doi 10.14344/IOC.ML.10.1. http://www.worldbirdnames.org/
  5. Jobling, James A. "Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird-names". p. 283. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  6. Jobling, James A. "Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird-names". p. 182. Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Pizzey, Graham; Doyle, Roy (1980) A Field Guide to the Birds of Australia. Collins Publishers, Sydney. ISBN o73222436-5
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 Morcombe, Michael (2012) Field Guide to Australian Birds. Pascal Press, Glebe, NSW. Revised edition. ISBN   978174021417-9
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 Simpson, Ken, Day, N. and Trusler, P. (6th edn., 1999). Field Guide to the Birds of Australia. Ringwood, Victoria: Penguin Books Australia ISBN   067087918-5.
  10. 1 2 BirdLife International (2016). "Oreoscopus gutturalis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T22704520A93973740. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22704520A93973740.en . Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  11. "eBird species map: Fernwren" . Retrieved 2020-04-16.
  12. 1 2 3 Gregory, P. (2020). "Fernwren (Oreoscopus gutturalis), version 1.0." In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.fernwr1.01