Western quail-thrush

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Western quail-thrush
Emu volume 9 plate 17.jpg
Nest photographed by Whitlock, East Murchison 1909
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Cinclosomatidae
Genus: Cinclosoma
Species:
C. marginatum
Binomial name
Cinclosoma marginatum
Sharpe, 1883
Synonyms
  • Cinclosoma castaneothorax marginatum

Western quail-thrush (Cinclosoma marginatum) is a species of bird in the family Cinclosomatidae. [2] It is found in arid inland habitat in south-central Western Australia. It typically resides in dry woodland shrub with low understory on a stony ground. The climatic zones it is most commonly found in are semi-arid or arid. [3]

Contents

Taxonomy

The species was first described by Richard Bowdler Sharpe in 1883, the author distinguishing this species from the quail-thrush Cinclosoma castaneothorax of eastern Australia. John Gould had previously noted the color variation of this western population and included these in an accompanying illustration. [4] Systematic revisions in 2008 (Christidis & Boles) and the 1990s (Sibley & Monroe) recognised the taxon with subspecific status, Cinclosoma castaneothorax marginatum, and reinstated by authorities as a species in 2016 (del Hoyo and Collar). [5]

The common names for this species include western quail-thrush and chestnut-breasted quail-thrush. [6]

Description

A species of Cinclosoma , passerine birds of Australia. It is smaller in size and slighter in build than Cinclosoma castanotum , which is found in other parts of Western Australia. [6] Their breast and flanks are a cinnamon-rufous shade, a paler and different coloration from its counterparts. The crown and back are a solid chestnut color. The female's flanks are a duller orange shade, occasionally without the dark border. In males, the crown may be a dark grey shade. The throat and lower part of the breast are black, and the male displays a chestnut band between these. Instead, females have more of a grey center breast-band in between the black throat and lower breast. Female's coloring is duller compared to the males. Due to the less vibrant colors, there is less contrast throughout the female bird's body. The chin and throat of female western quail-thrushes have a pale buffish color. The feathers of the underparts of the tail are white with a brownish color towards the base, the black margins are most evident when the bird is in flight. There is also white coloring and spotting on the wings. The legs of both males and females vary from a grey to a grey-black shade. Young, juvenile western quail-thrushes have coloring like the females but have a more mottled appearance. Both female and male western quail-thrushes vary from 21 to 25 centimeters in size and on average weigh 65 grams. [4] [6] [7]

Due to the rare sighting of western quail-thrushes, their classification has been a debated topic. They were constantly difficult to spot in the field. The species was previously thought to be a subspecies to the chestnut-breasted quail-thrush and the cinnamon quail-thrush, but now it has full species status. [8]

Behavior

Western quail-thrushes' songs contain a series of five to eleven whistles that increase in pace at the same pitch. Around the end of their song, notes may sound longer than others and are then followed by one or more short high-pitched notes.

Western quail-thrushes are mainly winter breeders with their breeding season ranging from January to September. Consequently, they lay their eggs around March to September. They are not endangered and are common over most of their area. Western quail-thrushes do not breed at all during the drought. Because these quail-thrushes live in areas where evaporation occurs more than precipitation, they will breed most times after it has rained. Western quail-thrushes build nests that resemble a green bowl of grass, connected with leaves and twigs. The nests have a diameter of around 15 cm across and 5 cm deep, typically placed under a shrub or tree. Two eggs, rarely three, are laid, colored in white and blotched with lavender and chestnut-brown spots. The egg is incubated by both the male and female, but the female specifically broods and feeds the baby birds. Western quail-thrushes do not migrate and will most likely stay in their habitats. [7]

Diet

Western quail-thrushes eat arthropods, which are invertebrate animals such as spiders and insects. To find food, they forage on the ground and walk slowly, pecking with their bill on the ground and searching for seeds. As they forage and eat, western quail-thrushes hold their larger, previously found items under one foot as they peck their catch to dismember it. [7]

Related Research Articles

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Psophodidae is a family of passerine birds native to Australia and nearby areas. It has a complicated taxonomic history and different authors vary in which birds they include in the family. In the strictest sense, it includes only the five or six species of whipbirds and wedgebills, but some authors also include the quail-thrushes (Cinclosoma), eight species of ground-dwelling birds found in Australia and New Guinea, and the jewel-babblers (Ptilorrhoa), three or four species found in rainforest in New Guinea. Others place them in their own family, the Cinclosomatidae. The Malaysian rail-babbler was formerly sometimes placed in this family, which would then be called Eupetidae.

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

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

A quail-thrush is a bird of the genus Cinclosoma, which contains eight species. Quail-thrushes are in a different family from either quails or thrushes, but bear some superficial resemblance to them. The genus is found in Australia and New Guinea in a variety of habitats ranging from rainforest to deserts. The genus is closely related to the jewel-babblers of New Guinea. Seven species were recognised in 2007. A molecular study published in 2015 by Gaynor Dolman and Leo Joseph resulted in the splitting of the chestnut-backed quail-thrush into the chestnut quail-thrush of eastern Australia and the copperback quail-thrush in the west.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chestnut-breasted quail-thrush</span> Species of bird

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chestnut quail-thrush</span> Species of bird

The chestnut quail-thrush is a native Australian bird of the family Cinclosomatidae. These scrub birds are endemic to Australia and found in all states - barring Tasmania. They are relatively uncommon and are isolated to the semi-arid and arid fringes of the Australian interior.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinnamon quail-thrush</span> Species of bird

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spotted quail-thrush</span> Species of bird

The spotted quail-thrush is a species of bird in the family Cinclosomatidae. It is endemic to Australia.

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

The jewel-babblers are the bird genus Ptilorrhoa in the family Cinclosomatidae. The genus contains four species that are endemic to New Guinea. The genus was once considered to contain the rail-babbler, but that species is now considered to belong to its own family. The genus is closely related to the better known quail-thrushes (Cinclosoma) of New Guinea and Australia. Together with a number of other genera they comprise the family Cinclosomatidae, although the validity of this family as a whole has been questioned.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nullarbor quail-thrush</span> Species of bird

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Copperback quail-thrush</span> Species of bird

The copperback quail-thrush is a species of bird in the family Cinclosomatidae. It was split from the chestnut quail-thrush in 2015. It is endemic to Australia. Its natural habitat is Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinclosomatidae</span> Family of birds

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References

  1. BirdLife International (2016). "Cinclosoma marginatum". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T103693208A104070028. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T103693208A104070028.en . Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  2. Toon, Alicia; Austin, Jeremy J.; Dolman, Gaynor; Pedler, Lynn; Joseph, Leo (2012). "Evolution of arid zone birds in Australia: Leapfrog distribution patterns and mesic-arid connections in quail-thrush (Cinclosoma, Cinclosomatidae)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 62 (1): 286–95. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2011.09.026. PMID   22040766.
  3. International), BirdLife International (BirdLife (2016-10-01). "IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Cinclosoma marginatum". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
  4. 1 2 Sharpe, Richard Bowdler (1883). "Catalogue of the Birds in the British Museum". Bulletin of the British Museum. 7: 336.
  5. "Western Quail-thrush (Cinclosoma marginatum) - BirdLife species factsheet". datazone.birdlife.org.
  6. 1 2 3 Nevill, Simon (2013). Birds of Western Australia : field guide. Perth, Western Australia. pp. 342–344. ISBN   9780958536721.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. 1 2 3 del Hoyo, Josep; Collar, Nigel (February 20, 2018). "Western quail-thrush". Birds of the World. doi:10.2173/bow.chbqut1.01. S2CID   242223864.
  8. "Western Quail-thrush - Australian Birds - photographs by Graeme Chapman". www.graemechapman.com.au. Retrieved 2021-10-18.