Fiji white-eye

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Fiji white-eye
Fiji Whiteeye deVoeux jun08.JPG
In forest at De Voeux Peak on Taveuni
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Zosteropidae
Genus: Zosterops
Species:
Z. explorator
Binomial name
Zosterops explorator
Layard, 1875
Fiji in its region.svg
Range highlighted in red

The Fiji white-eye (Zosterops explorator) is a species of passerine bird in the white-eye family Zosteropidae. The species is also known as Layard's white-eye. [2]

Illustrated by Joseph Smit (1881) Zosterops explorator Smit.jpg
Illustrated by Joseph Smit (1881)

It is endemic to the islands of Viti Levu, Vanua Levu, Taveuni, Kadavu, and Ovalau in Fiji, where it is a common bird of forests. [3] Where it co-occurs with the closely related silvereye it is more common in denser forest.

It is a typical small white-eye of the genus Zosterops, similar in appearance to the silvereye, although the plumage is much yellower, it is chunkier and has a complete eye-ring. [3] The back is olive green and the throat and belly yellow. The call is described as "a high pitched seeu-seeu".

The Fiji white-eye feeds by gleaning insects from shrubs and trees. It will join mixed-species feeding flocks with other Fijian birds, including silvereyes. It also feeds lower down in the trees than silvereyes. [4]

Related Research Articles

White-eye Family of birds

The white-eyes are a family, Zosteropidae, of small passerine birds native to tropical, subtropical and temperate Sub-Saharan Africa, southern and eastern Asia, and Australasia. White-eyes inhabit most tropical islands in the Indian Ocean, the western Pacific Ocean, and the Gulf of Guinea. Discounting some widespread members of the genus Zosterops, most species are endemic to single islands or archipelagos. The silvereye, Zosterops lateralis, naturally colonised New Zealand, where it is known as the "wax-eye" or tauhou ("stranger"), from 1855. The silvereye has also been introduced to the Society Islands in French Polynesia, while the Japanese white-eye has been introduced to Hawaii.

Silvereye Species of bird

The silvereye or wax-eye is a very small omnivorous passerine bird of the south-west Pacific. In Australia and New Zealand its common name is sometimes white-eye, but this name is more commonly used to refer to all members of the genus Zosterops, or the entire family Zosteropidae.

Sri Lanka white-eye Species of bird

The Sri Lanka white-eye is a small passerine bird in the white-eye family, which is endemic to Sri Lanka. It is a resident breeder in forests, gardens and plantations, mainly in the highlands.

Warbling white-eye Species of bird

The warbling white-eye, also known as the Japanese white-eye and mountain white-eye, is a small passerine bird in the white-eye family. The specific epithet is occasionally written japonica, but this is incorrect due to the gender of the genus. Its native range includes much of East Asia, including the Russian Far East, Japan, Indonesia, Korea, and the Philippines. It has been intentionally introduced to other parts of the world as a pet and as pest control, with mixed results. As one of the native species of the Japanese islands, it has been depicted in Japanese art on numerous occasions, and historically was kept as a cage bird.

White-chested white-eye Species of bird

The white-chested white-eye also known as white-breasted white-eye or Norfolk white-eye is a passerine from the family Zosteropidae. It is endemic to Norfolk Island between New Caledonia and New Zealand and it is regarded as either extremely rare or possibly extinct. Since 2000 the Australian government has considered the species extinct.

Orange fruit dove Species of bird endemic to Fiji

The orange fruit dove is a species of bird in the pigeon family Columbidae. One of the most colorful doves, the male has a golden olive head and elongated bright orange "hair-like" body feathers. The golden-olive remiges are typically covered by the long orange wing coverts when perched. The legs, bill and orbital skin are bluish-green and the iris is whitish. The female is a dark green bird with blackish tail and orange-yellow undertail coverts. The young resemble females.

Fiji parrotfinch Species of bird in the family Estreldidae

The Fiji parrotfinch is a species of estrildid finch endemic to Fiji that was formerly considered to be a subspecies of the red-headed parrotfinch. This parrotfinch is a small, mainly green bird with a red head and tail and a stubby dark grey bill. It is found in both forested and open habitats, and has adapted well to man-made environments such as grasslands, pasture and gardens. Pairs have a courtship display in which they fly above the trees in an undulating flight, calling constantly. Breeding birds build a domed grass nest with a side entrance, and lay a clutch normally of four white eggs. Newly hatched chicks are naked and pink, with blue balls at the upper and lower corners of the gape, and black markings inside the mouth; older fledglings resemble the adults, but lack the red head colouring. The Fiji parrotfinch eats seeds, especially of grasses, and also readily feeds on insects and nectar. It forms small flocks of up to six birds after the breeding season.

Fiji goshawk Species of bird

The Fiji goshawk is a species of bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It was once considered to be the same species (conspecific) as the brown goshawk of Australia and New Caledonia. It is endemic to Fiji, where it occurs on the larger islands of Viti Levu, Vanua Levu, Taveuni, Kadavu, Gau and Ovalau. It occupies a range of wooded habitats in Fiji, from natural rainforest to coconut plantations and urban gardens and parks.

Fiji woodswallow Species of bird

The Fiji woodswallow is a species of woodswallow in the family Artamidae. It is endemic to most of the islands of Fiji, although it is absent from Kadavu Archipelago and the Lau Archipelago. The species was once considered a race of the white-breasted woodswallow, which breeds from Australia, New Caledonia and Vanuatu through to Borneo and the Philippines. Some authors retain it in that species.

Polynesian triller Species of bird

The Polynesian triller is a passerine bird belonging to the triller genus Lalage in the cuckoo-shrike family Campephagidae. It has numerous subspecies distributed across the islands of the south-west Pacific.

Golden white-eye Bird in the white-eye family from the Northern Mariana Islands

The golden white-eye is a species of bird in the white-eye family, Zosteropidae. It is the only species within the genus Cleptornis. The golden white-eye was once considered to be a honeyeater in the family Meliphagidae and although it is now known to be a white-eye, its position within that family is still uncertain. The species is restricted to the islands of Saipan and Aguijan in the Northern Mariana Islands, where it is sympatric and competes with the related bridled white-eye. The golden white-eye has golden plumage and a pale eye-ring. It feeds on insects, fruit, and nectar and forages in pairs or small family groups. The bird is monogamous and lays two eggs in a small cup nest.

Abyssinian white-eye Species of bird

The Abyssinian white-eye or white-breasted white-eye is a small passerine bird belonging to the genus Zosterops in the white-eye family Zosteropidae. It is native to north-east Africa and southern Arabia.

Vanuatu white-eye Species of bird

The Vanuatu white-eye or yellow-fronted white-eye is a small passerine bird belonging to the genus Zosterops in the white-eye family Zosteropidae. It is endemic to Vanuatu, where it is one of the most common birds.

Canary white-eye Species of bird

The canary white-eye or yellow white-eye is a species of white-eye endemic to northern Australia in subtropical or tropical mangrove forests. Its common name reflects the circle of white feathers around its eye.

Northern yellow white-eye Species of bird

The northern yellow white-eye, formerly the African yellow white-eye, is a species of bird in the family Zosteropidae. It is found across sub-Saharan Africa, from Senegal in the west across to southern Sudan in the east and south to northern Angola.

Robust white-eye Species of bird

The robust white-eye, also known as the Lord Howe white-eye or robust silvereye and locally as the "big grinnell", was a species of bird in the family Zosteropidae. It was endemic to the lowland forests of Lord Howe Island, east of Australia.

Green-backed white-eye Species of bird

The green-backed white-eye is a species of bird in the family Zosteropidae. It is also known as the New Caledonian white-eye. It is endemic to New Caledonia.

Lord Howe silvereye Subspecies of bird

The Lord Howe silvereye, also known as the Lord Howe white-eye, Lord Howe Island white-eye or, locally, as the "Little Grinnell", is a small bird in the white-eye family, Zosteropidae. It is a subspecies of the silvereye, though sometimes considered a full species. It is endemic to Lord Howe Island in the Tasman Sea, part of New South Wales, Australia.

The Vanikoro white-eye is a species of bird in the family Zosteropidae. It is endemic to Vanikoro in the Santa Cruz Islands of Temotu Province in the south-east of the Solomon Islands chain. The species is named for David Gibbs, who discovered it.

Capricorn silvereye Subspecies of bird

The Capricorn silvereye, also known as the Capricorn white-eye or green-headed white-eye, is a small greenish bird in the Zosteropidae or white-eye family. It is a subspecies of the silvereye that occurs on islands off the coast of Queensland in north-eastern Australia, and which is sometimes considered to be a full species.

References

  1. BirdLife International (2016). "Zosterops explorator". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T22714238A94407690. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22714238A94407690.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. Pacific Birds (2001) List of the Birds of Fiji. Downloaded 22 July 2008
  3. 1 2 Pratt, H., Bruner, P & Berrett, D. (1987) The Birds of Hawaii and the Tropical Pacific Princeton University Press:Princeton ISBN   0-691-08402-5
  4. Langham (1989) "Stratification of passerines in Fijian forests Archived 2008-10-17 at the Wayback Machine ". Notornis36 (4): 267-285