New Zealand fantail

Last updated

New Zealand fantail
The New Zealand fantail (Rhipidura fuliginosa) (26323434203).jpg
New Zealand fantail
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Rhipiduridae
Genus: Rhipidura
Species:
R. fuliginosa
Binomial name
Rhipidura fuliginosa
(Sparrman, 1787)

The New Zealand fantail (Rhipidura fuliginosa) is a small insectivorous bird, the only species of fantail in New Zealand. It has four subspecies: R. f. fuliginosa in the South Island, R. f. placabilis in the North Island, R. f. penita in the Chatham Islands, and the now-extinct R. f. cervina formerly on Lord Howe Island. It is also known by its Māori names, pīwakawaka, tīwakawaka or piwaiwaka, and the Chatham Island subspecies by the Moriori name tchitake; [2] the common pied morph is also known as pied fantail (not to be confused with the Malaysian or Philippine pied fantails), and the uncommon dark morph is also known as black fantail (not to be confused with the black fantail of New Guinea). The species has been considered by many to be conspecific (the same) as the grey fantail (Rhipidura albiscapa) of Australia and New Caledonia; [3] however, due to significant differences in its calls, many authorities now treat it as a separate species. [4]

Contents

Taxonomy

The New Zealand fantail was formally described and illustrated in 1787 by the Swedish naturalist Anders Sparrman. He placed it with the flycatchers in the genus Muscicapa and coined the binomial name Muscicapa fuliginosa. [5] [6] The specific epithet is from Late Latin fuliginosus meaning "sooty". [7] The New Zealand fantail is now one of 51 fantails placed in the genus Rhipidura that was introduced in 1827 by the naturalists Nicholas Vigors and Thomas Horsfield. [8] The New Zealand fantail has sometimes been treated as conspecific with the grey fantail (Rhipidura albiscapa) (Gould, 1840) from Australia, the Solomon Islands and New Caledonia. [9]

Four subspecies are recognised: [8]

Description

Bird with tail fanned out showing how it got its name New Zealand Fantail or Piwakawaka 04.jpg
Bird with tail fanned out showing how it got its name

This fantail is mid to dark grey or grey-brown above, yellowish/orange below, with a dark band across the chest below a white throat, white markings over the eye, and (depending on the race) either white-edged or entirely white outer tail feathers. It grows to 16 cm (6.3 in) in length, of which half is the tail, which, as the name implies, is often displayed fanned out. This reveals that the outer tail feathers are light and the centre ones are dark. Some subspecies are found in a darker plumage, notably the "black fantail" morph seen in 4% of South Island birds and less than 1% of North Island birds (it is completely absent from the Chatham Islands). [10] The black morph lacks the white areas and so is dark all over apart from a white spot behind the eye. Fantails are also famous worldwide for their fan-shaped tail.

Juveniles are similar to the adults but have a browner body and indistinct body markings.

Behaviour

During waking hours the bird is almost never still. It flits from perch to perch, sometimes on the ground but mostly on the twigs of a tree or any other convenient object, looking out for flying insects. The birds are not shy, and will often flit within a few metres of people, especially in forested areas and suburban gardens. In doing so, it is able to catch any small flying insects that may have been disturbed by human activities such as walking or digging. Under cold temperatures a flock of fantails will huddle to stay warm. [11] Due to the constant movement of fantails, people who fidget a lot are sometimes called a fantail's tail. [12]

The bird's call is an almost metallic cheek, either as a single sound or (more often) repeated as a chattering.

Breeding

Adult male territorial song of the South Island fantail

The New Zealand fantail is a seasonal breeder, nesting from August to March in the North Island, September to January in the South Island and October to January on the Chatham Islands. They usually raise two or more broods per season. The birds form compact, cup-shaped nests, usually in the forks of trees, made from moss, bark and fibre, and often completed with spider's web. Both sexes build the nest. The clutch size is usually three to four cream eggs which are spotted grey and brown. The incubation period is around two weeks, and incubation and feeding duties are shared by both adults. Nest building and incubation of the second brood may occur while the fledged young of the first brood are still being fed. Young males may begin breeding two months after fledging. The nests of the New Zealand fantail are occasionally [13] parasitised by the two species of cuckoo in New Zealand. [10]

Approximately 45% of 81 nesting attempts that were monitored in urban Wellington successfully fledged chicks: one in four nests being abandoned or deserted and just over one in four suffering predation. [14] Nests built on thin branches were more likely to escape predation from ship rats than those built on thick branches. [14]

In mythology

In Māori mythology, the pīwakawaka is a messenger, bringing death or news of death from the gods to the people. [15] The bulbous eyes and erratic flying behaviour of the bird is attributed to it being squeezed by Māui for not revealing the whereabouts of his ancestress Mahuika, the fire deity. [16] Tiwakawaka is also the name of one of the first Māori settlers to New Zealand. [16]

Related Research Articles

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

The willie wagtail, scientific name Rhipidura leucophrys, is a passerine bird native to Australia, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, the Bismarck Archipelago, and Eastern Indonesia. It is a common and familiar bird throughout much of its range, living in most habitats apart from thick forest. Measuring 19–21.5 cm in length, the willie wagtail is contrastingly coloured with almost entirely black upperparts and white underparts; the male and female have similar plumage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fantail</span> Genus of birds

Fantails are small insectivorous songbirds of the genus Rhipidura in the family Rhipiduridae, native to Australasia, Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. Most of the species are about 15 to 18 cm long, specialist aerial feeders, and named as "fantails", but the Australian willie wagtail is a little larger, and, though still an expert hunter of insects on the wing, concentrates equally on terrestrial prey.

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

The grey fantail is a small insectivorous bird. There is no sexual dimorphism. It is a common fantail found in Australia, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and New Caledonia. The species is considered by many to be conspecific with the New Zealand fantail ; however, differences in its calls lead some authorities to treat it as a separate species. The studies of grey fantail in 1999 by Richard Schodde and Ian Mason recommended that Tasmanian grey fantail was formally classified as R. albiscapa and New Zealand fantails populations as R. fuliginosa

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grey currawong</span> Large passerine bird native to southern Australia and Tasmania

The grey currawong is a large passerine bird native to southern Australia, including Tasmania. One of three currawong species in the genus Strepera, it is closely related to the butcherbirds and Australian magpie of the family Artamidae. It is a large crow-like bird, around 48 cm (19 in) long on average; with yellow irises, a heavy bill, dark plumage with white undertail and wing patches. The male and female are similar in appearance. Six subspecies are recognised and are distinguished by overall plumage colour, which ranges from slate-grey for the nominate from New South Wales and eastern Victoria and subspecies plumbea from Western Australia, to sooty black for the clinking currawong of Tasmania and subspecies halmaturina from Kangaroo Island. All grey currawongs have a loud distinctive ringing or clinking call.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black currawong</span> Large passerine bird endemic to Tasmania and Bass Strait islands

The black currawong, also known locally as the black jay, is a large passerine bird endemic to Tasmania and the nearby islands within the Bass Strait. One of three currawong species in the genus Strepera, it is closely related to the butcherbirds and Australian magpie within the family Artamidae. It is a large crow-like bird, around 50 cm (20 in) long on average, with yellow irises, a heavy bill, and black plumage with white wing patches. The male and female are similar in appearance. Three subspecies are recognised, one of which, Strepera fuliginosa colei of King Island, is vulnerable to extinction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pied currawong</span> Medium-sized black passerine bird native to eastern Australia and Lord Howe Island

The pied currawong is a black passerine bird native to eastern Australia and Lord Howe Island. One of three currawong species in the genus Strepera, it is closely related to the butcherbirds and Australian magpie of the family Artamidae. Six subspecies are recognised. It is a robust crowlike bird averaging around 48 cm (19 in) in length, black or sooty grey-black in plumage with white undertail and wing patches, yellow irises, and a heavy bill. The male and female are similar in appearance. Known for its melodious calls, the species' name currawong is believed to be of indigenous origin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little pied cormorant</span> Species of bird

The little pied cormorant, little shag or kawaupaka is a common Australasian waterbird, found around the coasts, islands, estuaries, and inland waters of Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Timor-Leste, and Indonesia, and around the islands of the south-western Pacific and the subantarctic. It is a small short-billed cormorant usually black above and white below with a yellow bill and small crest, although a mostly black white-throated form predominates in New Zealand. Three subspecies are recognised. Until recently most authorities referred to this species as Phalacrocorax melanoleucos.

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

The weka, also known as the Māori hen or woodhen is a flightless bird species of the rail family. It is endemic to New Zealand. It is the only extant member of the genus Gallirallus. Four subspecies are recognized but only two (northern/southern) are supported by genetic evidence.

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

The white-throated fantail is a small passerine bird. It is found in forest, scrub and cultivation across tropical southern Asia from the Himalayas, India and Bangladesh east to Indonesia. The white-spotted fantail until recently was considered a subspecies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian rufous fantail</span> Species of bird

The Australian rufous fantail is a small passerine bird, most commonly known also as the black-breasted rufous-fantail or rufous-fronted fantail, which can be found in Australia.

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

The shining bronze cuckoo is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae, found in Australia, Indonesia, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu. It was previously also known as Chalcites lucidus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-bellied thicket fantail</span> Species of bird

The white-bellied thicket fantail is a species of bird in the family Rhipiduridae. This species is one of 47 in the genus Rhipidura. It is found in New Guinea. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical mangrove forests.

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

The Samoan fantail is a species of bird in the family Rhipiduridae. It is endemic to Samoa and is found in Upolu and Savaiʻi islands.

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

The white-spotted fantail or spot-breasted fantail is a small passerine bird. It is found in forest, scrub and cultivation in southern and central India. It was formerly considered a subspecies of the white-throated fantail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lord Howe fantail</span> Extinct subspecies of bird

The Lord Howe fantail, also known as the Lord Howe Island fantail or fawn-breasted fantail, was a small bird in the fantail family, Rhipiduridae. It is an extinct subspecies of the New Zealand fantail. It was endemic to Lord Howe Island in the Tasman Sea, part of New South Wales, Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lord Howe currawong</span> Subspecies of bird

The Lord Howe currawong, Lord Howe Island currawong or Lord Howe pied currawong, is a large and mainly black passerine bird in the family Artamidae. It is endemic to Lord Howe Island in the Tasman Sea, part of New South Wales, Australia, and is a threatened subspecies of the pied currawong.

There are three species of bird called pied fantail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fantail Falls</span> Waterfall in Haast Pass, New Zealand

Fantail Falls is a waterfall in Mount Aspiring National Park, Westland District, New Zealand.

References

  1. ↑ Butchart, S.; Symes, A. (2016). "Rhipidura fuliginosa". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016. IUCN. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22735745A94093611.en . Retrieved 24 September 2021.
  2. ↑ , THE MORIORI PEOPLE OF THE CHATHAM ISLANDS: THEIR TRADITIONS AND HISTORY by Alexander Shand.
  3. ↑ Bird Life International, Grey Fantail, Grey Fantail entry on the Birdlife International Database including explanation as to why grey and New Zealand fantails are not considered to be separate species.
  4. ↑ Christidis, Les; Boles, Walter (2008). Systematics and taxonomy of Australian Birds. Collingwood, Vic: CSIRO Publishing. pp. 195–196. ISBN   978-0-643-06511-6.
  5. ↑ Sparrman, Andreas (1787). Museum Carlsonianum, in quo novas et selectas aves, coloribus ad vivum brevique descriptione illustratas, suasu et sumtibus generosissimi possessoris (in Latin). Vol. 2. Holmiae: Ex Typographia Regia. Plate 47.
  6. ↑ Mayr, Ernst; Cottrell, G. William, eds. (1986). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 11. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 546.
  7. ↑ Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 165. ISBN   978-1-4081-2501-4.
  8. 1 2 Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2023). "Orioles, drongos, fantails". IOC World Bird List Version 13.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  9. ↑ Higgins, P.J.; Peter, J.M.; Cowling, S.J., eds. (2006). "Rhipidura fuliginosa Grey Wagtail" (PDF). Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds. Vol. 7, Boatbill to starlings, Part 7 A, Boatbill to larks. Melbourne, Victoria: Oxford University Press. pp. 174–213. ISBN   978-0-19-553996-7.
  10. 1 2 Boles, W.E. (2006). Family Rhipiduridae (fantails). Pp 200–244 in: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. & Christie, D.A. eds (2006) Handbook of the Birds of the World . Vol. 11. Old World Flycatchers to Old World Warblers. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. ISBN   978-84-96553-06-4
  11. ↑ Powesland, R.G. (2002). "Communal roosting by South Island fantails ( Rhipidura fuliginosa fuliginosa)" (PDF). Notornis. 49. The Ornithological Society of New Zealand: 125–126.
  12. ↑ "Birds associated with death". Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand . 24 September 2007. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  13. ↑ Moon, G. & Lockley, R. (1982) New Zealand’s Birds, a photographic guide. Heinemann Publishers. Auckland, New Zealand
  14. 1 2 Fea, Nyree; Hartley, Stephen (8 November 2018). "The balancing act of nest survival: survival of a small endemic bird in the face of ship rat predation and other risk factors". Avian Conservation and Ecology. 13 (2). doi: 10.5751/ACE-01284-130211 . ISSN   1712-6568.
  15. ↑ "Fantail/pīwakawaka". www.doc.govt.nz. New Zealand Department of Conservation.
  16. 1 2 Birds, New Zealand. "New Zealand Birds – Birds – Māori myth – Rhipidura fulginosa, fantail, Piwakawaka, Tiwakawaka". www.nzbirds.com.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.