Little Spiderhunter
Encyclopedia
The Little Spiderhunter (Arachnothera longirostra) is a species of long-billed nectar feeding bird
in the Nectariniidae family found in the moist forests of South and Southeast Asia. Unlike typical sunbirds, males and females are very similar in plumage. They are usually seen in ones or twos and frequently make a tzeck call and are most often found near flowering plants where they obtain nectar.
, Bhutan
, Brunei
, Cambodia
, China
, India
, Indonesia
, Laos
, Malaysia, Myanmar
, Nepal
, the Philippines
, Thailand
, and Vietnam
. Within India, there are disjunct populations in the Eastern Ghats from Lamasinghi, Vishakapatnam and parts of Orissa) and the Western Ghats apart from the main distribution in north-east India that extends into Southeast Asia. A record from the Nicobar Islands is considered doubtful.
Its natural habitat
s are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest
s, subtropical or tropical mangrove forests, and subtropical or tropical moist montane
s. It is usually found below the canopy. They are also found in gardens, attracted especially by flowers that yield nectar.
The breeding season in northeastern India is March to September but mainly May to August. In southern India it breeds from December to August. Two eggs are the usual clutch. The nest is a compact cup attached under a leaf of banana or similar broad leaved plant. The nest is suspended from the underside of the leaf using 150 or so "pop-rivets" of cobwebs and vegetable fibre, a unique method of using spider silk for animal architecture.
It is suspected that Hodgson's Hawk-cuckoo
and Violet Cuckoo
are brood parasite
s on this species in India.
A species of haemosporidia Leucocytozoon has been noted in specimens from Malaysia.
, the men would wait until they heard the sit call of one of these spiderhunters.
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
in the Nectariniidae family found in the moist forests of South and Southeast Asia. Unlike typical sunbirds, males and females are very similar in plumage. They are usually seen in ones or twos and frequently make a tzeck call and are most often found near flowering plants where they obtain nectar.
Description
The distinctive long beak set it apart from other sunbirds. The sexes are alike except for a paler base to lower mandible in the female. Male has all black beak. They are found close to their favourite nectar bearing trees, often species of wild Musaceae or flowers in gardens. They have a buzzy zick-zick call that is made regularly when disturbed or when foraging. The song is series of rapid chipping notes and these can go on for long periods.Taxonomy
The genus name Arachnothera means "spider hunter" and the species epithet refers to the long beak. About thirteen geographic races are recognized. The nominate race longirostra (Latham, 1790) is found in southwestern India, central and northeastern India, foothills of the Himalayas and into Thailand and Yunnan. Race sordida La Touche, 1921 is found in southern China and northeastern Thailand. Race pallida Delacour, 1932 is found in southeastern Thailand and C & S Indochina. Several island forms are noted:- cinireicollis (Vieillot, 1819) - south of the Isthmus of Kra to Sumatra and satellite islands
- zarhina Oberholser, 1912 - Banyak Is, off W Sumatra.
- niasensis van Oort, 1910 - Nias I, off W Sumatra.
- rothschildi van Oort, 1910 - N Natuna Is.
- atita Oberholser, 1932 - S Natuna Is.
- buettikoferi van Oort, 1910 - Borneo.
- prillwitzi Hartert, 1901 - Java (including Madura I) and Bali
- dilutior Sharpe, 1876 - Palawan, in W Philippine Is.
- flammifera Tweeddale, 1878 - E & S Philippines (Samar, Biliran, Leyte, Bohol, Dinagat, Mindanao).
- randi Salomonsen, 1953 - Basilan (off W Mindanao).
Distribution and habitat
The species is found in BangladeshBangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, Bhutan
Bhutan
Bhutan , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China...
, Brunei
Brunei
Brunei , officially the State of Brunei Darussalam or the Nation of Brunei, the Abode of Peace , is a sovereign state located on the north coast of the island of Borneo, in Southeast Asia...
, Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, 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...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
, Malaysia, Myanmar
Myanmar
Burma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
, Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, and Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. Within India, there are disjunct populations in the Eastern Ghats from Lamasinghi, Vishakapatnam and parts of Orissa) and the Western Ghats apart from the main distribution in north-east India that extends into Southeast Asia. A record from the Nicobar Islands is considered doubtful.
Its natural habitat
Habitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
s are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
s, subtropical or tropical mangrove forests, and subtropical or tropical moist montane
Montane
In biogeography, montane is the highland area located below the subalpine zone. Montane regions generally have cooler temperatures and often have higher rainfall than the adjacent lowland regions, and are frequently home to distinct communities of plants and animals.The term "montane" means "of the...
s. It is usually found below the canopy. They are also found in gardens, attracted especially by flowers that yield nectar.
Behaviour and ecology
They have been noted as good pollinators of wild banana species and several species of the ginger family and often visit Loranthus sp. (= Dendrophthoe sp.), Indian silk cotton tree and Indian coral tree for nectar. They are often seen in plantations in forest areas. Although they are more often seen in secondary forests or in clearings and appear to be tolerant of human activities, they have become extinct in some forest fragments. In Singapore they have gone locally extinct within the botanical garden.The breeding season in northeastern India is March to September but mainly May to August. In southern India it breeds from December to August. Two eggs are the usual clutch. The nest is a compact cup attached under a leaf of banana or similar broad leaved plant. The nest is suspended from the underside of the leaf using 150 or so "pop-rivets" of cobwebs and vegetable fibre, a unique method of using spider silk for animal architecture.
It is suspected that Hodgson's Hawk-cuckoo
Hodgson's Hawk-cuckoo
The Hodgson's Hawk-Cuckoo, Cuculus fugax is a species of cuckoo found in south, east and southeast Asia.Hodgson's Hawk-Cuckoo is a brood parasite. The chick evicts bona fide residents of the parasitized nest, thus becoming the sole occupant. Under normal circumstances, this would reduce the...
and Violet Cuckoo
Violet Cuckoo
The Violet Cuckoo is a species of cuckoo in the Cuculidae family.It is found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam....
are brood parasite
Brood parasite
Brood parasites are organisms that use the strategy of brood parasitism, a kind of kleptoparasitism found among birds, fish or insects, involving the manipulation and use of host individuals either of the same or different species to raise the young of the brood-parasite...
s on this species in India.
A species of haemosporidia Leucocytozoon has been noted in specimens from Malaysia.
In culture
In Sarawak, the Kayan, Kenyah and Punan people consider it a bird of good omen and when they are out collecting camphorCamphor
Camphor is a waxy, white or transparent solid with a strong, aromatic odor. It is a terpenoid with the chemical formula C10H16O. It is found in wood of the camphor laurel , a large evergreen tree found in Asia and also of Dryobalanops aromatica, a giant of the Bornean forests...
, the men would wait until they heard the sit call of one of these spiderhunters.
Other references
- Rahman, M. A. 2006. Patterns of morphological variation in the little spiderhunter (Arachnothera longirostra) in Taman Negara, Peninsular Malaysia and Thale Ban National Park, Thailand. In: Othman, S., Yatim, S. H., Elagupillay, S., Md. Nor, S., Ahmad, N., and Mohd Sah, S. H (eds.), Pp: 207-214, Management and Status of Resources in Protected Areas for Peninsular Malaysia. Department of Wildlife and National Parks, Kuala Lumpur. ISBN 983-43010-0-6.
- Khan,AR (1977): Territoriality among Sunbirds and Spiderhunter. Newsletter for BirdwatchersNewsletter for BirdwatchersNewsletter for Birdwatchers is an Indian periodical of ornithology and birdwatching founded in 1960 by Zafar Futehally, who edited it until 2003. It was initially mimeographed and distributed to a small number of subscribers each month. The editorial board in its early years included Salim Ali,...
. 17(1), 5-6. - Law,SC (1945): Note on the occurrence of some hitherto unrecorded birds in central and South Bengal. Ibis 87(3), 405-408.