Broad-tailed Grassbird
Encyclopedia
The Broad-tailed Grassbird (Schoenicola platyurus) is a species of Old World warbler
in the Locustellidae family. It is endemic to the Western Ghats
of India
with the possibility of occurrence in Sri Lanka. A small, mostly brown bird, it has a broad rounded and graduated tail. It is found only on the higher altitude grassy hills where it usually skulks, except during the breeding season when males fly up into the air to sing in their display. The species is believed to be a resident although it is possible that they make local movements.
colour is black and visible in singing males but is brown in females. In the non-breeding season, it is a skulker moving rapidly between grass and reeds but sometimes perches in the open.
who found the bird at the base of the Gudalur ghat at the foothills of the Nilgiris. The bill is short strong and culmen is slightly curved in the genus and there are two rictal bristles. The tarsus is somewhat long for the proportions. The populations north and south of the Palghat gap are said to differ in plumage shade, the northern form being larger and paler and greyer above with the flanks sandy-brown. The southern form is dark rufous brown above and more whitish below with bright buff on the breast and flanks. This plumage variation was earlier believed to be seasonal. Molecular phylogeny studies place the genus in the warbler subfamily Megalurinae (along with Megalurus
, Chaetornis and Graminicola).
of southern India mainly south of Karnataka but with some records from Lonavla and Nasik. A specimen was collected by S. A. Hussain
at the Point Calimere
that suggests that the bird may be involved in local movements or migrations possibly into Sri Lanka. Suggestions that it may occur in Sri Lanka are as yet not well supported, there is an old specimen (collected by H. Cumming who has been considered unreliable and doubtfully identified by Colonel Legge) and two unconfirmed sight records from Gammaduwa, Matale Hills and Waitalawa, Rangala Hills. The species has not been reported from the Biligirirangan Hills
.
Old World warbler
The "Old World Warblers" is the name used to describe a large group of birds formerly grouped together in the bird family Sylviidae. The family held over 400 species in over 70 genera, and were the source of much taxonomic confusion. Two families were split out initially, the cisticolas into...
in the Locustellidae family. It is endemic to the Western Ghats
Western Ghats
The Western Ghats, Western Ghauts or the Sahyādri is a mountain range along the western side of India. It runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain along the Arabian Sea. The Western Ghats block rainfall to the Deccan...
of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
with the possibility of occurrence in Sri Lanka. A small, mostly brown bird, it has a broad rounded and graduated tail. It is found only on the higher altitude grassy hills where it usually skulks, except during the breeding season when males fly up into the air to sing in their display. The species is believed to be a resident although it is possible that they make local movements.
Description
The uniform brown upperparts, broad and long graduated tail of the bird is distinctive. The species has a buff supercilium and the brown tail has thin dark bars. The underside of the tail is very dark and the feathers are tipped with white. Males and females are indistinguishable in plumage. The call of the male during breeding is a lark-like and repeated trill that is accompanied by fanned tail and a fluttering flight. Other calls include a chack and a zink note. The gapeGape
In bird anatomy, the gape is the interior of the open mouth of a bird and the gape flange is the region where the two mandibles join together, at the base of the beak...
colour is black and visible in singing males but is brown in females. In the non-breeding season, it is a skulker moving rapidly between grass and reeds but sometimes perches in the open.
Taxonomy and systematics
The species has in former times included the African Schoenicola brevirostris which was originally called Catriscus apicalis and later as Schoenicola platyura brevirostris. The Indian species was first described by JerdonThomas C. Jerdon
Thomas Caverhill Jerdon was a British physician, zoologist and botanist. He is best remembered for his pioneering works on the ornithology of India...
who found the bird at the base of the Gudalur ghat at the foothills of the Nilgiris. The bill is short strong and culmen is slightly curved in the genus and there are two rictal bristles. The tarsus is somewhat long for the proportions. The populations north and south of the Palghat gap are said to differ in plumage shade, the northern form being larger and paler and greyer above with the flanks sandy-brown. The southern form is dark rufous brown above and more whitish below with bright buff on the breast and flanks. This plumage variation was earlier believed to be seasonal. Molecular phylogeny studies place the genus in the warbler subfamily Megalurinae (along with Megalurus
Megalurus
Megalurus is a genus of passerine bird in the family Locustellidae. The genus was once placed in the Old World warbler "wastebin" family Sylviidae. The genus contains six species also known as the typical grassbirds...
, Chaetornis and Graminicola).
Distribution
The species is restricted to grassy moist highlands, principally in the Western GhatsWestern Ghats
The Western Ghats, Western Ghauts or the Sahyādri is a mountain range along the western side of India. It runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain along the Arabian Sea. The Western Ghats block rainfall to the Deccan...
of southern India mainly south of Karnataka but with some records from Lonavla and Nasik. A specimen was collected by S. A. Hussain
S. A. Hussain
Syed Abdulla Hussain was an Indian ornithologist. He is best known for the work he undertook at the Bombay Natural History Society along with Salim Ali...
at the Point Calimere
Point Calimere
Point Calimere, also called Cape Calimere, , is a low headland on the Coromandel Coast, in the Nagapattinam district of the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is the apex of the Cauvery River delta, and marks a nearly right-angle turn in the coastline...
that suggests that the bird may be involved in local movements or migrations possibly into Sri Lanka. Suggestions that it may occur in Sri Lanka are as yet not well supported, there is an old specimen (collected by H. Cumming who has been considered unreliable and doubtfully identified by Colonel Legge) and two unconfirmed sight records from Gammaduwa, Matale Hills and Waitalawa, Rangala Hills. The species has not been reported from the Biligirirangan Hills
Biligirirangan Hills
The Biligiriranga Hills, commonly called B R Hills, is a hill range situated in south-eastern Karnataka, at its border with Tamil Nadu in South India. The area is called Biligiriranga Swamy Temple Wildlife Sanctuary or simply BRT Wildlife Sanctuary. It is a protected reserve under the Wildlife...
.