Mauritius Bulbul
Encyclopedia
The Mauritius Bulbul also known as Mauritius Black Bulbul, is a songbird
endemic to Mauritius
. Formerly, it was included in H. borbonicus as subspecies
olivaceus.
This songbird
species
belongs to the bulbul
family
(Pycnonotidae). It is the type species
of the obsolete genus
Ixocincla, which united various more or less closely related bulbuls from the entire Indian Ocean
region.
It can reach a size up to 24 cm. It is characterized by bright yellow-brown eyes, pink legs, and an orange to yellow hued bill. Its plumage is generally greyish contrasted with a black crest. The plumage of the juveniles is pale brown. Their bill is blackish.
(Lantana camara) are favoured. During the southern summer the female lays two pinkish eggs in a nest consisting of straw and roots. The incubation lasts between 14 and 16 days.
In earlier times it was often a dish on festive days. Later on its main threats shifted to replacement of their forest habitat
by tea
(Camellia sinensis) plantation
s and invasive weeds (including L. camara, which the birds themselves help to spread) and predation
by the introduced Crab-eating Macaque
(Macaca fascicularis). In the mid-1970s only 200 pairs remained, but then the decline was stopped. Today it is rare but has a quite stable population; 280 pairs were counted in 1993.
Songbird
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds . Another name that is sometimes seen as scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin oscen, "a songbird"...
endemic to Mauritius
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
. Formerly, it was included in H. borbonicus as subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
olivaceus.
This songbird
Songbird
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds . Another name that is sometimes seen as scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin oscen, "a songbird"...
species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
belongs to the bulbul
Bulbul
Bulbuls are a family, Pycnonotidae, of medium-sized passerine songbirds. Many forest species are known as greenbuls. The family is distributed across most of Africa and into the Middle East, tropical Asia to Indonesia, and north as far as Japan. A few insular species occur on the tropical islands...
family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
(Pycnonotidae). It is the type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
of the obsolete genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Ixocincla, which united various more or less closely related bulbuls from the entire Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
region.
It can reach a size up to 24 cm. It is characterized by bright yellow-brown eyes, pink legs, and an orange to yellow hued bill. Its plumage is generally greyish contrasted with a black crest. The plumage of the juveniles is pale brown. Their bill is blackish.
Ecology and status
Its diet consists of insects, seeds, and fruits. Especially the ripe berries of the non-native Spanish FlagLantana camara
Lantana camara, also known as Spanish Flag or West Indian Lantana, is a species of flowering plant in the verbena family, Verbenaceae, that is native to the American tropics. It has been introduced into other parts of the world as an ornamental plant and is considered an invasive species in many...
(Lantana camara) are favoured. During the southern summer the female lays two pinkish eggs in a nest consisting of straw and roots. The incubation lasts between 14 and 16 days.
In earlier times it was often a dish on festive days. Later on its main threats shifted to replacement of their forest 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...
by tea
Tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...
(Camellia sinensis) plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
s and invasive weeds (including L. camara, which the birds themselves help to spread) and predation
Predation
In ecology, predation describes a biological interaction where a predator feeds on its prey . Predators may or may not kill their prey prior to feeding on them, but the act of predation always results in the death of its prey and the eventual absorption of the prey's tissue through consumption...
by the introduced Crab-eating Macaque
Crab-eating Macaque
The Crab-eating macaque is a cercopithecine primate native to Southeast Asia. It is also called the "long-tailed macaque", and is referred to as the "cynomolgus monkey" in laboratories.-Etymology:...
(Macaca fascicularis). In the mid-1970s only 200 pairs remained, but then the decline was stopped. Today it is rare but has a quite stable population; 280 pairs were counted in 1993.