| Hooded mannikin | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Estrildidae |
| Genus: | Lonchura |
| Species: | L. spectabilis |
| Binomial name | |
| Lonchura spectabilis (Sclater, PL, 1879) | |
| Subspecies | |
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The hooded mannikin or hooded munia (Lonchura spectabilis), also known as the New Britain mannikin or Sclater's mannikin, is a species of estrildid finch found in New Britain and New Guinea.
The hooded mannikin is a small munia. It is whitish below, brown above and has a golden to orange rump. It is unlikely to be confused with other birds in its range. The juvenile is similar in appearance to the much larger in size juvenile great-billed mannikin L. grandis.
The hooded mannikin has eight recognized forms with only five subspecies that are recognized as follows:
The hooded mannikin is a bird of foothills and mid-montane grassland. It is particularly fond of land that has been cleared by man.
The hooded mannikin is usually found in flocks of up to 30 or 40 individuals (Meyer 1930). The species is so unwary of man that it could be stalked and caught by hand (Diamond 1967). A bonded pair will always stay close to each other. It has been seen that the male will stay alert for danger, while his mate feeds or bathes. When the female files off, the male will follow immediately.
Both sexes have peep or seep call. However, the loud call note of both sexes is different. The female will have a double-noted sileep or tsilip. The male will have a clear single note seep or tseep.
The song consists of entirely of a series high-pitched weee notes. After several wees the male may produce up to 20 pee notes, one after another. There is a soft, more complex subsong, uttered by a male in social situation or when alone.
It is observed that the hooded mannikin feeds on seeds of the introduced grass Rottboellia exaltata' as large as rice grains. They habitually feed by clinging to the stems of the growing grasses and plucking seeds from the inflorescences.
According to the Kalam native, Hooded mannikins are very fond of the algae that forms a scum on stagnant pools and puddles. The local will shoot them at these sites when they are preoccupied with their feeding. They also say that
...most people will eat (hooded munias) but some adult men will not, and neither on the whole will the young unmarried or newly-married men and women... because the munias has big families, and newly-married couple don't want to have a whole lot of children very fast.
An unpaired male in healthy condition will sing advertisement songs directed at particularly nothing. He will begin singing with his head level, and bill opening and closing and a slight hint of bobbing. But soon his body will become motionless.
However, when a female is near-by, the male may preface his display by flying about with a bit of nesting material. (Goodwin 1982) He will lower himself and edges along the perch and twists towards her. He will begin to sing with body upright, head pointed towards the bird. The head is held level or slightly downward, the throat is pumping and the weee song becomes pulsating. The flanks and belly feathers are fluffed out. In the final stage of the display, the head is stretched up fully, the bill is held wide open without any movement of the mandibles. And the head is turned from side to side. Then he edges towards her maybe with little hops with the intention to mount. There is no noticeable movement and the song is continual high-pitched trill. This is when the high extended peeeeeee part of the song is uttered.
The breeding season is in October, at the time the taro is setting its new shoots. The female may lay five to six eggs. If you find a nest with droppings in it, you will know that a whole family are using it for a roost, and it is known as a Young men's house.
The nest is a flattish ovoid of grasses, staw and finer stems and fibres. It is usually placed in grasses or in a bush. The location of the site undoubtedly influences the shape and the size of the nest, as with most munias.
The bronze mannikin or bronze munia is a small passerine bird of the Afrotropics. This very social estrildid finch is an uncommon to locally abundant bird in much of Africa south of the Sahara Desert, where it is resident, nomadic or irruptive in mesic savanna or forest margin habitats. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 8,100,000 km2. It is the smallest and most widespread of four munia species on the African mainland, the other being black-and-white, red-backed and magpie mannikin. It co-occurs with the Madagascar mannikin on the Comoro Islands, and was introduced to Puerto Rico. Especially in the West Africa, it is considered a pest in grain and rice fields. It is locally trapped for the pet bird trade.
The chestnut munia or black-headed munia is a small passerine. It was formerly considered conspecific with the closely related tricoloured munia, but is now widely recognized as a separate species. This estrildid finch is a resident breeding bird in Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Burma, Nepal, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam and Hawaii. It also has been introduced to all the Greater Antilles and Martinique in the Caribbean.
The slaty spinetail or slaty castlebuilder,, is a passerine bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found from Honduras south to Peru.
The African firefinch, also called the blue-billed firefinch, is a common species of estrildid finch found in many parts of Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 5,400,000 km2 (2,100,000 sq mi).
The grey-banded mannikin, or grey-banded munia, is a species of estrildid finch known to be found in Anggi Gigi, Tamrau Mountains, and Arfak Mountains in the Vogelkop Peninsula in north-western Papua, Indonesia. This species inhabits mid-mountain wet grassland and marshland. It also can be found on abandoned agricultural plots near human settlements.
The chestnut-breasted mannikin, also known as the chestnut-breasted munia or bully bird, is a small brown-backed munia with a black face and greyish crown and nape. It has a broad ferruginous breast bar above a white belly. The species is found in Australia, New Caledonia, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. This species has also been introduced to French Polynesia.
The eastern (pale) chanting goshawk, or Somali chanting goshawk, is a bird of prey of East Africa.
The tricoloured munia is an estrildid finch, native to Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and southern China. The species has also been introduced to the Caribbean, in Trinidad, Jamaica, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and Venezuela. This species, like the chestnut munia has been known as the black-headed munia. Immature birds have pale brown upperparts, lack the dark head found in adults, and have uniform buff underparts that can be confused with immatures of other munias such as the scaly-breasted munia.
The black-crested coquette is a species of hummingbird in the "coquettes", tribe Lesbiini of subfamily Lesbiinae. It is found in Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua.
The moustached kingfisher, also called Bougainville moustached kingfisher, is a species of bird in the family Alcedinidae. It is endemic to Bougainville Island in Papua New Guinea. An estimated 250–1,000 mature individuals are left.
The cordilleran canastero is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru.
The pearled treerunner is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, and possibly Argentina.
The grey-throated leaftosser is a Near Threatened species of bird in the subfamily Sclerurinae, the leaftossers and miners, of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela.
The ruddy spinetail is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela, and possibly Guyana.
The pale-tailed canastero, is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is endemic to Peru.
The Talamanca hummingbird or admirable hummingbird is a species of hummingbird in the "mountain gems", tribe Lampornithini in subfamily Trochilinae. It is found in Costa Rica and Panama.
The blue-throated hillstar is a hummingbird found only in a small portion of the southwestern Andes in Ecuador. It was discovered in 2017.
The Meratus blue flycatcher is a species of bird in the Old World flycatcher family, Muscicapidae. The species was described in 2021 by the Indonesian ornithologist Mohammed Irham and his colleagues, based on genetic, morphological, and vocal differences with other Cyornis flycatchers. It is endemic to the Meratus Mountains of Indonesian Borneo, where it has been recorded only from Mount Besar. It is most common at elevations between 900 and 1,300 m and inhabits montane rainforest, secondary forest, and rubber plantations. It is sexually dimorphic like other species in its genus; males have blue upperparts, iridescent blue patches on the forehead and shoulders, and orange-and-white underparts, while females have gray-brown heads and upperparts. They have a length of 15.7–16.0 cm (6.2–6.3 in); males weigh 18.5–19.75 g (0.653–0.697 oz) and females weigh 15.75–20.0 g (0.556–0.705 oz).
