Vogelkop lophorina

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Vogelkop lophorina
Vogelkop Lophorina male display 0A2A8815.jpg
Male Greater Lophorina displaying
Vogelkop Lophorina female 0A2A8909.jpg
Female
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Paradisaeidae
Genus: Lophorina
Species:
L. superba
Binomial name
Lophorina superba
(Pennant, 1781)
Synonyms
  • Paradisea superba Pennant, 1781

The Vogelkop lophorina (Lophorina superba), formerly part of the superb bird-of-paradise complex, is a species of passerine bird in the bird-of-paradise family Paradisaeidae. It is found in montane northwest New Guinea.

Contents

Taxonomy

The Vogelkop lophorina was given the binomial name Paradisea superba in 1781 in a book which has the German naturalist Johann Reinhold Forster on the title page. The binomial name is accompanied by a cite to a hand coloured plate engraved by François-Nicolas Martinet that had been included in Edme-Louis Daubenton's Planches Enluminées D'Histoire Naturelle. [2] [3] The authorship of the text is disputed. The book originated as a project by the Welsh naturalist Thomas Pennant and it is uncertain how much was contributed by Forster and how much by Pennant. [4] [5] The specimen depicted in the plate had been acquired in 1772 by French naturalist Pierre Sonnerat when it had been gifted to him on the small island of Gebe. The island lies between North Maluku and New Guinea. On his return to Paris he presented his specimens to the Cabinet du Roi. [6] [7]

The Vogelkop lophorina was formerly the nominate subspecies of the "superb bird-of-paradise" species complex. [8] [9] [7] In 2017 the Swedish ornithologist Martin Irestedt and collaborators suggested that the superb bird-of-paradise should be split into three species. They also proposed a neotype from the Kobowre Mountains in New Guinea for the no longer extant type specimen for Paradisea superba. The original type specimen for superba had been assumed to come from the Bird's Head Peninsula (known as Vogelkop in Dutch and Indonesian). [10] Although, the split was generally supported by other ornithologists, the designation of the neotype and the resulting assignment of subspecies were strongly disputed. [7] [11] [12] [13] The taxonomy adopted here rejects the designation of the neotype but splits the superb bird-of-paradise into three species. [14]

Two subspecies are recognised: [14]

Description

It is a small, approximately 26 cm (about 10 inches) long, (passerine) bird. The male is black with an iridescent green crown, blue-green breast cover, and a long velvety black erectile cape covering his back. The female is a reddish-brown bird with brownish-barred buff below. The young is similar to the female. The Vogelkop lophorina is a dimorphic species. [15]

Distribution and habitat

The Vogelkop lophorina is distributed throughout the rainforests of New Guinea. It inhabits most commonly in rain forests or forest edges of Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. [16] They can also be found inhabiting mountainous habitats of the forests in New Guinea.

The Vogelkop lophorina is also usually found on top of the trees that reside in the rain forests. [17]

Feeding habits

The Vogelkop lophorina travels across the trees in the forest to catch its prey, which can vary depending on seasonal availability of food. [16] The Vogelkop lophorina has not only been known to eat fruits and insects, but also has been spotted preying on larger animals such as frogs, reptiles, and other small birds. [17] They can sometimes be seen foraging for food on the grounds of the forest for insects. Male Superba are considered to be territorial, as they defend land as small as 1.2 ha. Within that land, they forage for fruits and insects. [18] [19]

Predators

Known predators of the superb bird-of-paradise include birds of prey and snakes. [17]

Courtship display

An open-winged Vogelkop lophorina Cape presentation display of superb birds-of-paradise.jpg
An open-winged Vogelkop lophorina

The species has an unusually low population of females, and competition among males for mates is intensely fierce. This has led the species to have one of the most elaborate courtship displays in the avian world. There are two main stages of courtship display. The first display, known as the initial display activity, involves a series of relatively simple behaviours. The initial display is then followed by a more elaborate courtship show, known as the high-intensity display. [20] After carefully and meticulously preparing a "dance floor" (even scrubbing the dirt or branch smooth with leaves), the male first attracts a female with a loud call. After the curious female approaches, his folded black feather cape and blue-green chest feathers shield spring upward and spread widely and symmetrically around his head, instantly transforming the frontal view of the male bird into a spectacular ellipse-shaped creature that rhythmically snaps his tail feathers against each other, similar to how snapping fingers work, while hopping in frantic circles around the female. The average female rejects 15-20 potential suitors before consenting to mate. The show that males put on to attract females can be a long process that takes up many hours in a day. [21] These species are polygynous and usually will mate with more than one female. [15]

Breeding and chick behavior

The Vogelkop lophorina forms their nest on top of trees using soft material that they find around the forest such as leaves. When reproducing, they usually produce from 1-3 eggs within a nest. It takes about 16–22 days for the eggs to hatch and for the chicks to be born. After that, chicks will be able to live on their own within 16–30 days, leaving their nest and becoming independent. [19] Male superb birds-of-paradise tend to take about two years longer for them to mature compared to the females. Also, it will take about 4–7 years for males to develop their feathers for their courtship displays. [17]

Status

Although heavily hunted for its plumes it is evaluated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. [1] It is listed on Appendix II of CITES.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bird-of-paradise</span> Family of birds of the order Passeriformes

The birds-of-paradise are members of the family Paradisaeidae of the order Passeriformes. The majority of species are found in eastern Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and eastern Australia. The family has 45 species in 17 genera. The members of this family are perhaps best known for the plumage of the males of the species, the majority of which are sexually dimorphic. The males of these species tend to have very long, elaborate feathers extending from the beak, wings, tail, or head. For the most part, they are confined to dense rainforest habitats. The diet of all species is dominated by fruit and to a lesser extent arthropods. The birds-of-paradise have a variety of breeding systems, ranging from monogamy to lek-type polygamy.

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

The bronze parotia, also known as the Foja parotia, Berlepsch's parotia or Berlepsch's six-wired bird-of-paradise, is a species of bird-of-paradise, in the family Paradisaeidae. It resembles and is often considered to be a subspecies of Carola's parotia, but a high majority of authorities support its specific status.

<i>Paradisaea</i> Genus of birds

The genus Paradisaea consists of six species of birds-of-paradise. The genus is found on the island of New Guinea as well as the nearby islands groups of the Aru Islands, D'Entrecasteaux Islands and Raja Ampat Islands. The species inhabit a range of forest types from sea level to mid-montane forests. Several species have highly restricted distributions, and all species have disjunct distributions. A 2009 study examining the mitochondrial DNA of the family found that the Paradisaea birds-of-paradise were in a clade with the genus Cicinnurus. It showed that the blue bird-of-paradise was a sister taxon to all the other species in this genus.

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

The Arfak astrapia is a species of astrapia, a group of birds found in the birds-of-paradise family Paradiseidae.

<i>Astrapia</i> Genus of birds

Astrapia is a genus of birds-of-paradise. The genus contains five species, all endemic to New Guinea. The males have highly iridescent plumage and remarkably long tails. Females are duller and have shorter tails.

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

The black sicklebill is a large member of the birds of paradise family, Paradisaeidae. This species is found throughout most of central New Guinea and the Vogelkop region to the northwest in montane forests at altitudes from 1,800 to 2,150 m.

<i>Epimachus</i> Genus of birds

Epimachus is a genus of birds-of-paradise (Paradisaeidae) that includes two species, found in the highland forests of New Guinea. They are the largest members of the family. The common name "sicklebill" refers to their long, decurved, sickle-shaped bill.

<i>Lophorina</i> Genus of birds

Lophorina is a genus of birds in the birds-of-paradise family Paradisaeidae that are endemic to New Guinea, formerly containing a single species, but as of 2017, containing three species.

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

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

The greater lophorina, formerly a subspecies of the superb bird-of-paradise, is a species of passerine bird in the bird-of-paradise family Paradisaeidae. It is found in the central and northeast montane regions of New Guinea.

<i>Parotia</i> Genus of birds

The parotias are a genus, Parotia, of passerine birds in the bird-of-paradise family Paradisaeidae. They are endemic to New Guinea. They are also known as six-plumed birds of paradise, due to their six head quills. These birds were featured prominently in the BBC series Planet Earth.

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

The paradise riflebird is a passerine bird of the family Paradisaeidae. It is one of four riflebird species in the genus Ptiloris. It is found in subtropical, temperate rainforests in eastern Australia. The species is sexually dimorphic; the male is black with iridescent blue-green patches, while the female is gray-brown and white.

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

Lawes's parotia, is a medium-sized passerine of the bird-of-paradise family, Paradisaeidae. It is distributed and endemic to mountain forests of southeast and eastern Papua New Guinea. Occasionally, the eastern parotia is considered a subspecies of P. lawesii. The species is similar to the western parotia.

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

The magnificent riflebird is a species of passerine bird in the birds-of-paradise family Paradisaeidae.

<i>Ptiloris</i> Genus of birds

The genus Ptiloris consists of four allopatric species of birds in the family Paradisaeidae. These birds of paradise are commonly known as riflebirds, so named for the likeness of their black velvety plumage to the uniform of the Rifle Brigade. Alternatively, the bird's cry is similar to a rifle being fired and hitting its target but a call like this is not commonly reported. They are distributed in the rainforests of New Guinea and Eastern Australia.

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

The lesser melampitta is a medium-sized enigmatic terrestrial songbird of mountain forests of New Guinea. It is the only species in the genus Melampitta. It is now classified in the family Melampittidae, but in some other sources it is variously considered close to or in the Orthonychidae (logrunners), Paradisaeidae, Corcoracidae, Cnemophilidae (satinbirds) or Monarchidae.

Sharpe's lobe-billed parotia, also known as Sharpe's lobe-billed riflebird, is a bird in the family Paradisaeidae that Erwin Stresemann proposed is an intergeneric hybrid between a long-tailed paradigalla and western parotia, an identity confirmed by DNA analysis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wilhelmina's bird-of-paradise</span> Hybrid bird

Wilhelmina's bird-of-paradise, also known as Wilhelmina's riflebird, is a bird in the family Paradisaeidae that Erwin Stresemann proposed is an intergeneric hybrid between a greater lophorina and magnificent bird-of-paradise, an identity since confirmed by DNA analysis.

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

The lesser lophorina, also known as lesser superb bird-of-paradise or rasping bird-of-paradise, is a species of passerine bird in the bird-of-paradise family Paradisaeidae.

References

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