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Smithornis | |
---|---|
Grey-headed broadbill (Smithornis sharpei) | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Passeriformes |
Family: | Calyptomenidae |
Genus: | Smithornis Bonaparte, 1850 [1] |
Type species | |
Platyrhynchus capensis [2] A. Smith, 1839 | |
Species | |
see Text |
Smithornis is a genus of birds in the family Calyptomenidae, the broadbills. The genus comprises three species native to Africa.
Before 1914 this genus was classified in the Old World flycatcher family, Muscicapidae, due to certain similarities. [3] [4] Closer examination of the morphology and anatomical features of these birds resulted in their being reclassified in the Eurylaimidae.
It is hypothesized that Smithornis is a monophyletic genus, well separated from other birds in the Eurylaimidae. The differentiation occurred as a result of a division and diversification between Asian and African broadbills. [4]
Image | Scientific name | Common name | Distribution |
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Smithornis capensis | African broadbill | coastal West Africa from Sierra Leone in the west eastwards to the Central African Republic and south to Gabon and the northern Congo | |
Smithornis rufolateralis | Rufous-sided broadbill | Sub-Saharan Africa. | |
Smithornis sharpei | Grey-headed broadbill | Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Nigeria. | |
Smithornis: Sir Andrew Smith (1797–1872), Scottish surgeon, zoologist, ethnologist, explorer in South Africa; Greek : ορνιςornis, ορνιθος ornithos "bird" [5]
The species in genus Smithornis lack the vocal ability that many other birds possess. This is due to the muscular anatomy of the main vocal organ, the syrinx. The muscle A1 is widened into a hammer shape and A2 is seen to be oblique. [4] They lack a pessulus, which divides the tympaniform membranes and produces a song in other species of birds. They also lack intrinsic syringeal muscles which contract to change the song. [6]
Smithornis are known for the rare ability to make sound with their wings. The typical behavior includes a short circular flight off of the perch and back on again, the vibration of the wings producing the sound. [7] This behavior is commonly seen in the early morning and late evening. The behavior may be related to courtship; the male produces the sound while flashing a white patch on its back when females are present. [7] [8] The sound is made by all species of Smithornis; in S. capensis both sexes perform the behavior, but in S. rufolateralis only the male does so. [3]
One observation involved two individual S. capensis in which one individual flicked its wings, making the sound, while another was close by. They then alternated, taking turns performing the behavior. The behavior did not seem to be aggressive and was thought to be a courtship display. [9]
It was previously assumed that the sound was produced by the long outer 9th and 10th major covert feathers. A recent study tested the assumption by using high-speed video and audio recordings, which indicated that coverts 6 and 7 were actually producing the sound. [8]
The manakins are a family, Pipridae, of small suboscine passerine birds. The group contains 55 species distributed through the American tropics. The name is from Middle Dutch mannekijn "little man".
Pittas are a family, Pittidae, of passerine birds found in Asia, Australasia and Africa. There are 44 species of pittas, all similar in general appearance and habits. The pittas are Old World suboscines, and their closest relatives among other birds are in the genera Smithornis and Calyptomena. Initially placed in a single genus, as of 2009 they have been split into three genera: Pitta, Erythropitta and Hydrornis. Pittas are medium-sized by passerine standards, at 15 to 25 cm (5.9–9.8 in) in length, and stocky, with strong, longish legs and long feet. They have very short tails and stout, slightly decurved bills. Many have brightly coloured plumage.
The Eurylaimidae are a family of suboscine passerine birds that occur from the eastern Himalayas to Indonesia and the Philippines. The family previously included the sapayoa from the Neotropics, the asities from Madagascar, and the Calyptomenidae from Africa and Asia, but these are now separated into distinct families.
The asities are a family of birds, Philepittidae, that are endemic to Madagascar. The asities consist of four species in two genera. The Neodrepanis species are known as sunbird-asities and were formerly known as false sunbirds.
The long-tailed broadbill is a species of bird that is found in the Himalayas, extending east through Northeastern India to Southeast Asia. It is the only bird in the genus Psarisomus. The long-tailed broadbill is about 25 cm (10 inches) in length and weighs between 50 and 60 grams. It can be identified by its shrill call.
Bird flight is the primary mode of locomotion used by most bird species in which birds take off and fly. Flight assists birds with feeding, breeding, avoiding predators, and migrating.
Crested arguses are large and spectacular peafowl-like birds in the genus Rheinardia of the pheasant family.
Flight feathers are the long, stiff, asymmetrically shaped, but symmetrically paired pennaceous feathers on the wings or tail of a bird; those on the wings are called remiges, singular remex, while those on the tail are called rectrices, singular rectrix. The primary function of the flight feathers is to aid in the generation of both thrust and lift, thereby enabling flight. The flight feathers of some birds perform additional functions, generally associated with territorial displays, courtship rituals or feeding methods. In some species, these feathers have developed into long showy plumes used in visual courtship displays, while in others they create a sound during display flights. Tiny serrations on the leading edge of their remiges help owls to fly silently, while the extra-stiff rectrices of woodpeckers help them to brace against tree trunks as they hammer on them. Even flightless birds still retain flight feathers, though sometimes in radically modified forms.
Hose's broadbill is a species of bird in the family Calyptomenidae. It was described by the British naturalist Richard Bowdler Sharpe in 1892 and is named after the British zoologist Charles Hose, who collected the holotype of the species. It is 19–21 cm (7.5–8.3 in) long, with females weighing 92 g (3.2 oz) on average and males weighing 102–115 g (3.6–4.1 oz). Males are bright green and have conspicuous black spots on the wings, black markings on the head, blue underparts, black flight feathers, and a large green tuft covering most of the bill. Females have smaller forehead tufts, lime-green underparts with sky blue instead of azure blue on the undertail coverts, and lack black markings on the head, except for a black spot in front of the eye.
Whitehead's broadbill is a species of bird in the family Calyptomenidae. It is endemic to the mountain ranges of north-central Borneo, where it mainly inhabits montane forests and forest edges at elevations of 900–1,700 m (3,000–5,600 ft). It is 24–27 cm (9.4–10.6 in) long, with males weighing 142–171 g (5.0–6.0 oz) and females weighing 150–163 g (5.3–5.7 oz). Males are vivid green and have a black throat patch, black spots on the ear-coverts and back of the neck, and black markings and streaking all over the body. The tails and flight feathers are also blackish. Females are smaller and lack the black markings on the head and underparts. Juveniles look similar to adults but have fewer black markings.
The black-and-red broadbill is a species of bird in the typical broadbill family, Eurylaimidae. It is the only species in the genus Cymbirhynchus. A large, distinctive bird, it has maroon underparts, black upperparts, a maroon neck-band, and white bars on the wings. It also has a large, two-colored, blue-and-yellow bill. The species shows slight sexual dimorphism, with females being smaller than males. No other bird in its range resembles it, though the black-and-yellow broadbill has a similar call.
The banded broadbill is a species of bird in the Eurylaimidae typical broadbill family found in Mainland Southeast Asia and the Greater Sunda Islands. It is sometimes split into two species, one including only the nominate subspecies, E. j. javanicus, and one including all the remaining subspecies. It inhabits a variety of forests, along with forest edge, rubber plantations and Falcataria falcata groves, mainly in lowland areas. A striking, large-bodied bird with a length of 21.5–23.0 cm (8.5–9.1 in), it is unlikely to be mistaken for another species. The broadbill is mostly purplish-red, with yellow-streaked black wings, a bright blue beak, a blackish face and greyish chin and upper breast. Females can be told apart from males by their lack of a black neckband, although these are indistinct in Bornean and Javan males. Despite its conspicuous appearance, the bird is usually hard to see due to its sluggishness and is usually only noticed when it vocalises.
The black-and-yellow broadbill is a species of bird in the typical broadbill family Eurylaimidae. A small, distinctive species, it has a black head, breastband, and upperparts, a white neckband, yellow streaking on the back and wings, and vinous-pink underparts that turn yellow towards the belly. The beak is bright blue, with a green tip to the upper mandible and black edges. It shows some sexual dimorphism, with the black breastband being incomplete in females.
The silver-breasted broadbill is a species of bird in the broadbill family, Eurylaimidae that is found in parts of Southeast Asia. There are seven currently recognised subspecies; the other species in the genus Serilophus, the grey-lored broadbill, was also previously treated as being a subspecies of this species.
The African broadbill, also known as the black-capped broadbill or Delacour's broadbill, is a species of bird in the sub-oscine family Calyptomenidae.
The rufous-sided broadbill is a species of bird in the family Calyptomenidae.
Calyptomenidae is a family of passerine birds found in Africa, the Malay Peninsula and Borneo. There are six species in two genera.
The following is a glossary of common English language terms used in the description of birds—warm-blooded vertebrates of the class Aves and the only living dinosaurs. Birds, who have feathers and the ability to fly, are toothless, have beakedjaws, lay hard-shelled eggs, and have a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight skeleton.
The Vietnamese crested argus is a large and spectacular peafowl-like species of bird in the pheasant family with dark-brown-spotted black and buff plumage, a heavy pink bill, brown irises and blue skin around the eyes. The head has two crests; the hind crest, which extends down the occiput, is erected when alarmed and during intentional behaviors including pair bonding and courtship displays. The male has a broad and greatly elongated tail of twelve feathers. The tail covert of the male is the longest of any bird and is believed to contain the longest feathers to occur in a wild bird; the Reeves's pheasant has tail feathers of similar length but which are considerably narrower. The tail coverts measure up to 1.73 m (5.7 ft) in length, giving the bird a total length of 1.9–2.39 m (6.2–7.8 ft).