Millerbird
Encyclopedia
The Millerbird is a species of Old World warbler
in the family
Acrocephalidae
. It had two subspecies, A. f. kingi and A f. familiaris. The latter, the Laysan Millerbird
, became extinct sometime between 1916 and 1923. The former, the critically endangered Nihoa Millerbird
, remains the only race left, inhabiting the small island Nihoa
in Hawaii
. It is the only Old World warbler to have colonised Hawaii, although there is no fossil
evidence that the species ever had a distribution beyond these two islands.
Millerbirds form long-term pair bond
s and defend territories
over a number of years. Territories can be as large as 0.95 hectares (2.3 acre), although 0.19 – is more typical. Breeding occurs variably from January to September depending on food availability.
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 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...
Acrocephalidae
Acrocephalidae
Acrocephalidae is a family of oscine passerine birds, in the superfamily Sylvioidea....
. It had two subspecies, A. f. kingi and A f. familiaris. The latter, the Laysan Millerbird
Laysan Millerbird
The Laysan Millerbird was a subspecies of the Millerbird, similar in appearance to the remaining subspecies, the Nihoa Millerbird. Its dorsal side was brown, and its belly was grayish...
, became extinct sometime between 1916 and 1923. The former, the critically endangered Nihoa Millerbird
Nihoa Millerbird
The Nihoa Millerbird is a subspecies of the Millerbird. It gets its name from its preferred food, the Miller moth. The five-inch long Millerbird has dark, sepia-colored feathers, white belly, and dark beak...
, remains the only race left, inhabiting the small island Nihoa
Nihoa
Nihoa , also known as Bird Island or Moku Manu, is the largest and tallest of ten islands and atolls in the uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands . The island is located at the southern end of the NWHI chain, southeast of Necker Island...
in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. It is the only Old World warbler to have colonised Hawaii, although there is no fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
evidence that the species ever had a distribution beyond these two islands.
Millerbirds form long-term pair bond
Pair bond
In biology, a pair bond is the strong affinity that develops in some species between the males and females in a pair, potentially leading to breeding. Pair-bonding is a term coined in the 1940s that is frequently used in sociobiology and evolutionary psychology circles...
s and defend territories
Territory (animal)
In ethology the term territory refers to any sociographical area that an animal of a particular species consistently defends against conspecifics...
over a number of years. Territories can be as large as 0.95 hectares (2.3 acre), although 0.19 – is more typical. Breeding occurs variably from January to September depending on food availability.