Golden bowerbird

Last updated

Golden bowerbird
Prionodura newtoniana by Bowdler Sharpe.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Ptilonorhynchidae
Genus: Prionodura
De Vis, 1883
Species:
P. newtoniana
Binomial name
Prionodura newtoniana
De Vis, 1883

The golden bowerbird (Prionodura newtoniana) is a species of bird in the family Ptilonorhynchidae, the bowerbirds. It is endemic to Queensland in Australia, where it is limited to the Atherton region. [1]

Contents

Distribution

The golden bowerbird has a patchy distribution in northeastern Queensland. It has a limited range and its population is thought to have declined as much as 60% over three generations of the species. It is a near-threatened species on the IUCN Red List, with the primary threat being climate change. [1] This bird lives in rainforests above 350 metres (1,100 ft) in elevation, including some habitat that has been disturbed by human activities such as logging. [1]

Description

The male golden bowerbird has a brown head and brown wings which are bright yellow-gold underneath, as are the tail, crest and nape. The female is olive brown with ash-gray underparts. Immatures look similar to the female except their eyes are brown. [2] This is the smallest species of bowerbird. [3] [4]

Habitat

The habitat of the golden bowerbird is upland rainforests from 350 and 1530 metres. Traditional bowerbird habitats include mild slopes, ridges immediately surrounding hill crests, and below steeper slopes where terrain levels off; canopy coverage is often greater than 70%; none on hilltops or in disturbed forest. [5]

Life history

Like most other bowerbirds, the male builds and maintains a bower over several years. Males do not grow their adult plumage for at least five or six years, during which time they wander, learn the social hierarchy of mature males, and practice building bower-like structures. Upon maturity, a male establishes his bower site, builds his structure, and spends much time decorating it. He may steal decorations from his neighbours, and defend his possessions from other males. During the breeding season, generally August through December, the male perches at his bower and produces a number of vocalizations, which attract females. [6]

The female establishes a nest in cup-shaped crevices, usually in tree trunks. There are one to two eggs per clutch. The nestlings are fed fruit and insects, and fledging occurs most often in January. [7] The life span ranges from 6 to 30 years, depending on the species. [8]

Diet and foraging

The golden bowerbird feeds mainly on fruits, and sometimes takes insects and spiders. [6] Fruits, especially those from vines, as well as flowers, buds, and arthropods. Nestlings eat largely fruits and a few insects, mostly cicadas (Cicadidae), with the percentage of fruit rising as the nestling grows older. Fruits and insects are eaten by fledglings. In the Paluma Range, males cache fruits, especially bunches of wild pepper (Piper), in crevices surrounding bower sites to be recovered for later use; one nesting female was spotted retrieving a cached fruit. Forages by sallying and seeking; cicadas are infrequently hawked. Usually eats alone; however, 3–4 (often juvenile) individuals may forage in the same fruiting canopy with other bird species, including other bowerbirds. [9]

Sounds and vocal behavior

Peak calling season is September–December. The sounds the golden bowerbird makes vary by populations. However, the typical male call song is a pulsating rattle note, which lasts 1-2 seconds and is repeated several times. Other kinds of calls include: squeals, screeches, scold-rasps, or wolf-whistle notes or a medley of them; also high-quality mimicry of calls of other bird species. In addition, the male birds are known to respond more strongly to the local dialects than foreign dialects. This means that when one of the male birds recognises the call they respond in a different manner than if they did not recognise the call. [10]

Conservation status

The golden bowerbird's population has decreased 20–29% recently due to the effects of cyclones that moved through their habitat, which destroyed many nesting areas. These cyclones and climate change continue to threaten the golden bowerbird's population, including heat waves that have resulted in lower resources for the birds. The birds' range is mostly within a conservation area, so they are afforded protection from many human activities. Currently, there are suggestions for further studies examining how the birds are affected by climate change in order to mitigate some of its effects. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swallow-tailed bee-eater</span> Species of bird

The swallow-tailed bee-eater is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family, Meropidae.

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

Bowerbirds make up the bird family Ptilonorhynchidae. They are renowned for their unique courtship behaviour, where males build a structure and decorate it with sticks and brightly coloured objects in an attempt to attract a mate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grey crowned crane</span> Species of bird in the family Gruidae

The grey crowned crane, also known as the African crowned crane, golden crested crane, golden crowned crane, East African crane, East African crowned crane, African crane, Eastern crowned crane, Kavirondo crane, South African crane, and crested crane, is a bird in the crane family, Gruidae. It is found in nearly all of Africa, especially in eastern and southern Africa, and it is the national bird of Uganda.

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

The Huon astrapia, also known as Rothschild's astrapia, Huon bird-of-paradise, or Lord Rothschild's bird-of-paradise, is a species of bird-of-paradise belonging to the genus Astrapia. Like most of its congeners, A. rothschildi is a rather elusive member of its genus and family.

<i>Drepanornis</i> Genus of birds

Drepanornis is a genus of bird-of-paradise found in forests of New Guinea. They have long decurved sickle-like bills and an overall brown plumage.

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

The Siberian grouse, also known as Siberian spruce grouse, Amur grouse, or Asian spruce grouse, is a short, rotund forest-dwelling grouse. A sedentary, non-migratory bird, it is the only member of the genus Falcipennis. The spruce grouse of North America, which physically looks similar, is now placed in the monotypic genus Canachites.

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

The black-billed sicklebill, also known as the buff-tailed sicklebill, is a species of bird-of-paradise. It, along with its congener, are the only members of the genus Drepanornis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pallas's rosefinch</span> Species of bird

Pallas's rosefinch is a species of bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It is found in China, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Mongolia, and Russia. Birds are occasionally reported from further west and there are records from several European regions, including Britain, but the cage-bird trade makes the origin of some such birds hard to assess. Its natural habitats are boreal forests and boreal shrubland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black-eared wood quail</span> Species of bird

The black-eared wood quail is a bird species in the order Galliformes. Until recently, the species was thought to be part of the family Phasianidae however DNA-DNA hybridization results determined that black-eared wood quail are only distantly related to Old World quail. As a result, black-eared wood quail have been placed in the family Odontophoridae and more specifically, in the category of wood quail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Botha's lark</span> Species of bird

Botha's lark is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African emerald cuckoo</span> Species of bird

The African emerald cuckoo is a species of cuckoo that is native to Africa.

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

The bald parrot or orange-headed parrot is a species of parrot in the family Psittacidae. It is endemic to the east-central Amazon of Brazil. Its natural habitat is tropical moist lowland forests. It is considered near threatened by BirdLife International due to the widespread deforestation of the Amazon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abbott's starling</span> Species of bird

Abbott's starling is a species of starling in the family Sturnidae. It is found in Kenya and Tanzania. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threatened by habitat loss, and its population is estimated at 2500–9999. This species, at 16 to 18 cm long, is the smallest species of starling. It is in the monotypic genus Arizelopsar.

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

The barred rail is a species of rail found across the Philippines, Sulawesi (Indonesia) and Salawati. The species is common, but shy and difficult to see.

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

The melampittas are a family, Melampittidae, of New Guinean birds containing two enigmatic species. The two species are found in two genera, the greater melampitta in the genus Megalampitta and the lesser melampitta in the genus Melampitta. They are little studied and before being established as a family in 2014 their taxonomic relationships with other birds were uncertain, being considered at one time related variously to the pittas, Old World babblers and birds-of-paradise.

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

The Knysna woodpecker is a species of bird in the family Picidae. It is endemic to South Africa, where its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, moist savanna, and subtropical or tropical moist shrubland. It is threatened by habitat loss. It belongs to a species complex that includes the golden-tailed and Mombasa woodpeckers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Himalayan owl</span> Species of owl

The Himalayan owl, also known as the Himalayan wood owl, is an owl of the forests of the Asia, from the Himalayas to Korea and Taiwan. It is sometimes considered a subspecies of the tawny owl, but is separated from that species due to its distinctive call, darker plumage and shorter, barred tail.

<i>Kurrartapu</i> Extinct genus of birds

Kurrartapu johnnguyeni is an extinct species of bird in the Australian magpie and butcherbird family. It was described from Early Miocene material found at Riversleigh in north-western Queensland, Australia. It is the first Tertiary record of a cracticid from Australia. The size of the fossil material indicates that it was similar in size to the living black butcherbird. The generic name is a Kalkatungu language term for the Australian magpie. The specific epithet honours John Nguyen, the father of the senior describer.

<i>Aramus</i> (bird) Genus of bird

Aramus is the sole extant genus of the family Aramidae. The limpkin is the only living member of this group, although other species are known from the fossil record, such as Aramus paludigrus from the Middle Miocene.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 BirdLife International. 2022. Prionodura newtoniana. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2022. Retrieved 26 July 2022 .
  2. Morcombe, M. The field guide to Australian birds. Steve Parish Publishing. 2004.
  3. Animals and plants that could be lost because of climate change – in pictures. The Guardian 30 April 2015.
  4. "Bowerbird | San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants". animals.sandiegozoo.org. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
  5. Frith, Clifford; Frith, Dawn (4 March 2020). Del Hoyo, Josep; Elliott, Andrew; Sargatal, Jordi; Christie, David; De Juana, Eduardo (eds.). "Golden Bowerbird (Amblyornis newtoniana)". Birds of the World. doi:10.2173/bow.golbow1.01. S2CID   216348721.
  6. 1 2 Frith, C. B. and D. W. Frith. (2000). Home range and associated sociobiology and ecology of male Golden Bowerbirds Prionodura newtoniana (Ptilonorhynchidae). Archived 16 December 2018 at the Wayback Machine Memoirs of The Queensland Museum' 45:343-357.
  7. Frith, C. B. and D. W. Frith. (1998). Nesting biology of the golden bowerbird Prionodura newtoniana endemic to Australian upland tropical rainforest. Emu 98 245-68.
  8. Frith, Clifford; Frith, Dawn (4 March 2020). Del Hoyo, Josep; Elliott, Andrew; Sargatal, Jordi; Christie, David; De Juana, Eduardo (eds.). "Golden Bowerbird (Amblyornis newtoniana)". Birds of the World. doi:10.2173/bow.golbow1.01. S2CID   216348721.
  9. Frith, Clifford; Frith, Dawn (4 March 2020). Del Hoyo, Josep; Elliott, Andrew; Sargatal, Jordi; Christie, David; De Juana, Eduardo (eds.). "Golden Bowerbird (Amblyornis newtoniana)". Birds of the World. doi:10.2173/bow.golbow1.01. S2CID   216348721.
  10. Frith, Clifford; Frith, Dawn (4 March 2020). Del Hoyo, Josep; Elliott, Andrew; Sargatal, Jordi; Christie, David; De Juana, Eduardo (eds.). "Golden Bowerbird (Amblyornis newtoniana)". Birds of the World. doi:10.2173/bow.golbow1.01. S2CID   216348721.