Oriental White-eye
Encyclopedia
The Oriental White-eye, Zosterops palpebrosus, is a small passerine
bird
in the white-eye
family
. It is a resident breeder in open woodland in tropical Asia
east from India
to China
and Indonesia
. They forage in small groups, feeding on nectar and small insects. They are easily identified by the distinctive white eye-ring and overall yellowish upperparts. Several populations of this widespread species are named subspecies and some have distinctive variations in the extent and shades of yellows in their plumage.
complex that includes Zosterops japonicus, Zosterops meyeni and possibly others. The taxonomy of the group is still unclear with some island populations being distinctive while some subspecies are not well supported. The population from Flores, Indonesia for instance is found closer to the Pale White-eye
. The family itself is now questioned since they are nested along with the Stachyris
babblers.
About eleven subspecies are well recognized. These include the nominate form (type locality Bengal, India) which is found from Oman and Arabia, Afghanistan, northern India and extends into China and northern Myanmar. The population in the Western Ghats
and hills of southern India is placed in nilgiriensis while salimalii of the Eastern Ghats hills (Shevaroy, Chitteri, Seshachalam, Nallamalai) is sometimes subsumed into the nominate race. The population of the plains of India, Laccadives and Sri Lanka are sometimes placed in egregius (= egregia) but is restricted by other works to the population in Sri Lanka. The populations in southern Myanmar, Thailand and Laos are placed in siamensis. The Nicobar Islands form is nicobaricus and is sometimes also used for the population on the Andaman Islands which are however distinctive and a distinct unnamed population. The populations from southern Thailand to western Cambodia are placed in williamsoni. Other Southeast Asian island forms include auriventer (=aureiventer), buxtoni, melanurus and unicus.
Race occidentis (now often subsumed into the nominate race) of the Western Himalayas has the upper side dark green and the flanks are tinged in brown. The form salimalii has a shorter bill and is brighter yellow-green above. Some authors consider the nominate race to be restricted to Sikkim, Bhutan, Assam and Yunnan and consider the peninsular race as occidentis (or amabilis if the form from Kathiawar described by Koelz
is considered valid).
In Sri Lanka
, race egregia is smaller and has a brighter back and throat than the endemic
Sri Lanka White-eye
, Zosterops ceylonensis found in the central hills.
The English
and scientific names refer to the conspicuous ring of white feathers round the eyes, zosterops being Greek
for 'girdle-eye'.
area. and on islands they may lead a more insectivorous life. They are somewhat rare only in the drier desert regions of western India.
A feral population was detected in San Diego, California in the 1980s and subsequently eradicated.
These white-eyes are sociable, forming flocks which only separate on the approach of the breeding season. They are highly arboreal and only rarely descend to the ground. The breeding season is February to September but April is the peak breeding season and the compact cup nest is a placed like a hammock on the fork of a branch. The nest is made of cobwebs, lichens and plant fibre. The nest is built in about 4 days and the two pale blue eggs are laid within a couple of days of each other. The eggs hatch in about 10 days. Both sexes take care of brooding the chicks which fledge in about 10 days. Though mainly insectivorous, the Oriental White-eye will also eat nectar and fruits of various kinds.
They call frequently as they forage and the usual contact call is a soft nasal cheer. They pollinate flower when they visit them for flower insects (such as thrips
) and possibly nectar (questioned) that form their diet. The forehead is sometimes coloured by pollen leading to mistaken identifications. They have been observed bathing in dew accumulated on leaves.
When nesting, they may mob palm squirrels
but being small birds they are usually on the defensive. Their predators include bats (esp. Megaderma lyra
) and birds such as the White-throated Kingfisher
. Endoparasitic Haemosporidia of the genus Haemoproteus
and Dorisa have been isolated from the species although these rarely cause death.
Like some other white-eyes, they sometimes steal nest material from the nests of other birds. Cases of interspecific feeding
have been noted with white-eyes feeding the chicks of a Paradise Flycatcher.
Although not strong fliers, they are capable of dispersing in winds and storms to new areas including offshore islands. A feral population of this species established itself in California during the 1980s requiring their capture and destruction. They were captured by luring them using call playback and live decoys into mistnets.
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
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 white-eye
White-eye
White-eye can refer to:*White-eye , a large family of birds.*White-eye , a species of fish.*White-eye mutation, a mutation in Drosophila melanogaster linked to the X chromosome, found by reciprocal cross breeding experiments in 1906.*A lioness member of the Marsh Pride of lions that have featured...
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...
. It is a resident breeder in open woodland in tropical Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
east from 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...
to 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...
and 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...
. They forage in small groups, feeding on nectar and small insects. They are easily identified by the distinctive white eye-ring and overall yellowish upperparts. Several populations of this widespread species are named subspecies and some have distinctive variations in the extent and shades of yellows in their plumage.
Description
This bird is small (about 8–9 cm long) with yellowish olive upper parts, a white eye ring, yellow throat and vent. The belly is whitish grey but may have yellow in some subspecies. The sexes look similar. The species is widespread and is part of a superspeciesSuperspecies
A superspecies is a group of at least two more or less distinctive species with approximately parapatric distributions. Not all species complexes, whether cryptices or ring species are superspecies, and vice versa, but many are...
complex that includes Zosterops japonicus, Zosterops meyeni and possibly others. The taxonomy of the group is still unclear with some island populations being distinctive while some subspecies are not well supported. The population from Flores, Indonesia for instance is found closer to the Pale White-eye
Pale White-eye
The Ashy-bellied White-eye, Zosterops citrinellus, is a species of bird in the Zosteropidae family found in Australia and Indonesia. It is sometimes called the Pale White-eye or Pale-bellied White-eye, but should not be confused with the Pale-bellied White-eye .Its natural habitats are subtropical...
. The family itself is now questioned since they are nested along with the Stachyris
Stachyris
Stachyris is a genus of bird in the Timaliidae family.It has been found to be polyphyletic and is in the process of being dismantled. At the moment the genus contains the following species:*Stachyris group...
babblers.
About eleven subspecies are well recognized. These include the nominate form (type locality Bengal, India) which is found from Oman and Arabia, Afghanistan, northern India and extends into China and northern Myanmar. The population in 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...
and hills of southern India is placed in nilgiriensis while salimalii of the Eastern Ghats hills (Shevaroy, Chitteri, Seshachalam, Nallamalai) is sometimes subsumed into the nominate race. The population of the plains of India, Laccadives and Sri Lanka are sometimes placed in egregius (= egregia) but is restricted by other works to the population in Sri Lanka. The populations in southern Myanmar, Thailand and Laos are placed in siamensis. The Nicobar Islands form is nicobaricus and is sometimes also used for the population on the Andaman Islands which are however distinctive and a distinct unnamed population. The populations from southern Thailand to western Cambodia are placed in williamsoni. Other Southeast Asian island forms include auriventer (=aureiventer), buxtoni, melanurus and unicus.
Race occidentis (now often subsumed into the nominate race) of the Western Himalayas has the upper side dark green and the flanks are tinged in brown. The form salimalii has a shorter bill and is brighter yellow-green above. Some authors consider the nominate race to be restricted to Sikkim, Bhutan, Assam and Yunnan and consider the peninsular race as occidentis (or amabilis if the form from Kathiawar described by Koelz
Walter Norman Koelz
Walter Norman Koelz was an American zoologist and museum collector.Walter Koelz's parents were immigrants from the Black Forest region of Germany, and his father was a village blacksmith in Waterloo. Walter Koelz studied zoology and received the degree of Doctor of Philosophy from the University...
is considered valid).
In Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
, race egregia is smaller and has a brighter back and throat than the endemic
Endemism in birds
An endemic bird area is a region of the world that contains two or more restricted-range species, while a "secondary area" contains one or more restricted-range species. Both terms were devised by Birdlife International....
Sri Lanka White-eye
Sri Lanka White-eye
The Sri Lanka White-eye, Zosterops ceylonensis, is a small passerine bird in the white-eye family. It is a resident breeder in forests, gardens and plantations which is endemic to Sri Lanka, mainly in the highlands.-Description:...
, Zosterops ceylonensis found in the central hills.
The English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and scientific names refer to the conspicuous ring of white feathers round the eyes, zosterops being Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
for 'girdle-eye'.
Distribution and habitat
The species is found in a wide range of habitats from scrub to moist forest. They sometimes occur on mangrove areas such as in the KarachiKarachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
area. and on islands they may lead a more insectivorous life. They are somewhat rare only in the drier desert regions of western India.
A feral population was detected in San Diego, California in the 1980s and subsequently eradicated.
Behaviour and ecology
They call frequently as they forage and the usual contact call is a soft nasal cheer. They pollinate flower when they visit them for flower insects (such as thrips
Thrips
Thrips are tiny, slender insects with fringed wings . Other common names for thrips include thunderflies, thunderbugs, storm flies, thunderblights, and corn lice...
) and possibly nectar (questioned) that form their diet. The forehead is sometimes coloured by pollen leading to mistaken identifications. They have been observed bathing in dew accumulated on leaves.
When nesting, they may mob palm squirrels
Funambulus
Funambulus is a genus of rodent in the Sciuridae family.It contains the following species:* Genus Funambulus** Subgenus Funambulus*** Layard's Palm Squirrel *** Indian Palm Squirrel...
but being small birds they are usually on the defensive. Their predators include bats (esp. Megaderma lyra
Megaderma Lyra
The Greater False Vampire Bat is a carnivorous bat, just as the South American Spectral Bat. However, it lives in Asia, along with other bats of the genus Megaderma, which are also known as "false vampires".- Description :...
) and birds such as the White-throated Kingfisher
White-throated Kingfisher
The White-throated Kingfisher also known as the White-breasted Kingfisher or Smyrna Kingfisher, is a tree kingfisher, widely distributed in Eurasia from Bulgaria, Turkey, east through South Asia to the Philippines. This kingfisher is a resident over much of its range, although some populations...
. Endoparasitic Haemosporidia of the genus Haemoproteus
Haemoproteus
Haemoproteus is a genus of protozoa that are parasitic in birds, reptiles and amphibians. Its name is derived from Greek: Haima - blood and Proteus - a sea god who had the power of assuming different shapes. The name Haemoproteus was first used in the description of Haemoproteus columbae in the...
and Dorisa have been isolated from the species although these rarely cause death.
Like some other white-eyes, they sometimes steal nest material from the nests of other birds. Cases of interspecific feeding
Interspecific feeding
Interspecific feeding refers to behaviour reported in wild animals, particularly birds where adults of one species feed the young of another species. This usually excludes the case of birds feeding brood parasites. The behaviour has been of theoretical interest since it appears to be provide little...
have been noted with white-eyes feeding the chicks of a Paradise Flycatcher.
Although not strong fliers, they are capable of dispersing in winds and storms to new areas including offshore islands. A feral population of this species established itself in California during the 1980s requiring their capture and destruction. They were captured by luring them using call playback and live decoys into mistnets.
External links
- Oriental White-eye videos, photos & sounds on the Internet Bird Collection.