Wattled brushturkey

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Wattled Brushturkey
Wattled Brush-turkey (Aepypodius arfakianus) (7937162662).jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Galliformes
Family: Megapodiidae
Genus: Aepypodius
Species:
A. arfakianus
Binomial name
Aepypodius arfakianus
(Salvadori, 1877)
Aepypodius arfakianus distribution map.png
Range of A. arfakianus
Synonyms [2]

Talegallus arfakianus, Talegallus pyrrhopygius, Aepypodius pyrrhopygius

Contents

The wattled brushturkey (Aepypodius arfakianus) is a species of bird in the family Megapodiidae found year-round in New Guinea. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest.

Taxonomy

The wattled brush-turkey was first formally described from collected chick specimens by Italian ornithologist Tommaso Salvadori in 1877 under the name Talegalla arfakianus. [3] In 1881, French zoologist Émile Oustalet first described its adult specimens and named them as Talegallus (Aepypodius) pyrrhopygius, unaware that they represented the same species. [4] The difference in plumage between the young and adults led to the temporary separation until 1893, when a comparison of specimens confirmed that both names referred to the same taxon. Following this revision, the species was placed in the genus Aepypodius as Aepypodius arfakianus. [5] [6]

The wattled brush-turkey belongs to the Megapode family (Megapodiidae) within the order Galliformes. [6] It is closely related to the Waigeo brushturkey and can be told apart from other brushturkeys of the Talegalla genus by its lack of wattles on the side of the neck. [5] [7]

The genus name is derived from the Greek words αἰπύς (aipus), meaning "steep" or "high," and ποδός (podos), meaning "foot," alluding to its strong legs and preference for highly elevated habitats. [7] The specific epithet arfakianus refers to the Arfak Mountains of northwestern New Guinea, where the species was first described. [3] [7]

Subspecies

There are two recognized subspecies:

ImageScientific nameDistributionNotes
Aepypodius pyrrhopygius.png A. a. arfakianus

(Salvadori,1877)

Mountains of New Guinea and Yapen, Indonesia. Nominate subspecies.
Aepypodius arfakianus -Artis Zoo, Amsterdam, Netherlands-8a.jpg

Artis Zoo, Amsterdam, Netherlands

A. a. misoliensis

(Ripley, 1957) [8]

Restricted to Misool, Indonesia.Slightly smaller, with a blue comb.

Description

It is a comparatively large for megapodes with some noticeable sexual dimorphism. Adults are on average, 46 cm long with a weight between 1.2 and 1.6 kg. [9] Females have a dull grey bare facial skin, whereas the males are pale-blue. Moreover, the red wattles on the head and chest is enlarged in the male, whilst it is reduced for females. Overall, they are similar to other brushturkeys but the wattled brushturkey has a vertically flattened tail with maroon rump and darker legs. [10]

Behaviour and ecology

These birds have an incredibly wide range, making them resilient against human impacts, with a breeding range of approximately 685,000 km2. [1]

They are very shy birds and locating them is difficult. These omnivorous birds often forage on the ground floor, scraping leaves to uncover fallen fruit, seeds and invertebrates. [10]

Vocalisation

References

  1. 1 2 BirdLife International (2016). "Aepypodius arfakianus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016 e.T22678555A92778438. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22678555A92778438.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. ↑ Schlegel, Hermann, ed. (1908). Notes from the Leyden Museum. Vol. 29. E. J. Brill.
  3. 1 2 Salvadori, Tommaso. Doria, Giacomo; Gestro, Raffaello (eds.). "Intorno alle specie del genere Talegallus". Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Genova (in Italian). 9. Genova: Tipografia del R. Istituto Sordo-Muti: 332–333.
  4. ↑ Oustalet, Émile. Milne-Edwards, Henri; Milne-Edwards, Alphonse (eds.). "Monographie des oiseaux de la famille des Mégapodiidés". Annales des Sciences Naturelles: Zoologie et Paléontologie. 6 (in French). 11. Paris: G. Masson: 27, 40–43.
  5. 1 2 Ogilvie-Grant, William Robert (1893). Catalogue of the Birds in the British Museum. Vol. 22. London: Order of the Trustees. pp. 469–471.
  6. 1 2 Schlegel, Hermann, ed. (1908). Notes from the Leyden Museum. Vol. 29. E. J. Brill.
  7. 1 2 3 Jones, Darryl N.; Dekker, René W. R. J.; Roselaar, Cees S. (1995). The megapodes: Megapodiidae. Bird families of the world. Oxford [England] ; New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0-19-854651-1.
  8. ↑ Ripley, Sidney Dillon (March 28, 1957). "New birds from the western Papuan islands". Postilla (31). New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press.
  9. ↑ "Wattled Brushturkey Aepypodius arfakianus - Talégalle des Arfak".
  10. 1 2 "Wattled Brushturkey".


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