Vinous-throated Parrotbill
Encyclopedia
The Vinous-throated Parrotbill (Paradoxornis webbianus) is a species of bird
in the Timaliidae family. It is found in China
, Japan
, North Korea
, South Korea
, Mongolia
, Russia
, Taiwan
, and Vietnam
. Its natural habitat
is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.
and placed in the genus Suthora, where it sat with other small browner parrotbills. Later parrotbills were merged into two genera, Conostoma and Paradoxornis; with this species being placed in Paradoxornis. Recent DNA studies have shown that the genus Paradoxornis is paraphyletic, and that it should be split. It is suggested that the Vinous-throated Parrotbill should be placed in the genus Sinoparadoxornis. The Vinous-throated Parrotbill is very closely related to the Ashy-throated Parrotbill
, and hybrids have been reported between the two species in Vietnam and China, as well as in Italy where both species have become established
.
The specific name webianus commemorates the English botanist Philip Barker Webb
. The species is sometimes referred to as Webb's Parrotbill.
to southern Manchuria
, and occupies a wide range of habitats across its range. It is generally found in somewhat open wooded habitats, including scrub, woodland of early successional to late mature secondary stages, forest edges, thickets and bamboo stands. It also occurs in hedges, reeds and marshes. They also will adapt to human modified habitats such as tea plantation
s and plant nurseries. In China it is found in lower montane areas, in Sichuan
it is replaced at 1000 m (3,280.8 ft) above sea level by the Ashy-throated Parrotbill, whereas in Taiwan, where it is the only species of parrotbill, it occurs from sea level to 3100 m (10,170.6 ft) and occupies the widest niche of any bird on that island.
. It measures between 11 to 12.5 cm (4.3 to 4.9 in) in length. The weight varies slightly by sex, with males weighing between 8.5 to 11 g (0.299828677893452 to 0.388013583156232 oz) and the females weighing 7 to 12 cm (2.8 to 4.7 in). The tail is graduated and like other parrotbills the bill is short and has the nostrils concealed by feather bristles. The plumage
is similar for both sexes, which in the nominate is warm brown on the upperparts, dark brown on the wings (tinged with chestnut on the flight feather
s). The upper breast and throat are pinkish-cream with brown streaks on the throat. The flanks are similar to the upperparts but slightly buffy, and the belly is cream-buff merging into the breast. The crown and forehead is rufescent brown, with a pale grey iris
and the bill
is either slate grey or brown with a paler or yellow tip.
s, the Vinous-throated Parrotbill is a highly social species, usually encountered in groups. These flocks
vary in size through the year, being at their smallest during the breeding season and increasing to as many as 140 individual birds in the winter.The members of winter flocks in Taiwan were described by a study as having four categories of member; core members, which never left the flock; regular members, which generally stayed in the flock but visited or briefly joined other flocks; floaters, which moved around between flocks; and peripheral members, which were only seen for less than two months and were assumed to be visitors from other areas. The ranges of large winter flocks can overlap with that of other flocks and flocks passing close together retain their cohesion.
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 Timaliidae family. It is found in 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...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
, South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
, Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, 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 –...
. 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...
is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.
Taxonomy and systematics
The Vinous-throated Parrotbill was described in 1852 by John GouldJohn Gould
John Gould was an English ornithologist and bird artist. The Gould League in Australia was named after him. His identification of the birds now nicknamed "Darwin's finches" played a role in the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection...
and placed in the genus Suthora, where it sat with other small browner parrotbills. Later parrotbills were merged into two genera, Conostoma and Paradoxornis; with this species being placed in Paradoxornis. Recent DNA studies have shown that the genus Paradoxornis is paraphyletic, and that it should be split. It is suggested that the Vinous-throated Parrotbill should be placed in the genus Sinoparadoxornis. The Vinous-throated Parrotbill is very closely related to the Ashy-throated Parrotbill
Ashy-throated Parrotbill
The Ashy-throated Parrotbill, Paradoxornis alphonsianus, is a songbird. In old sources, it may be called Alphonse's Crow-tit; though superficially resembling a tit it is not a member of the Paridae...
, and hybrids have been reported between the two species in Vietnam and China, as well as in Italy where both species have become established
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
.
The specific name webianus commemorates the English botanist Philip Barker Webb
Philip Barker Webb
Philip Barker Webb was an English botanist.Webb, who was born to a wealthy aristocratic family studied languages, botany, and geology at Harrow and Oxford. He collected plants in Italy, Spain and Portugal, and was the first person to collect in the Tetuan Mountains of Morocco...
. The species is sometimes referred to as Webb's Parrotbill.
Habitat and movements
The Vinous-throated Parrotbill occurs from northern VietnamVietnam
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 –...
to southern Manchuria
Manchuria
Manchuria is a historical name given to a large geographic region in northeast Asia. Depending on the definition of its extent, Manchuria usually falls entirely within the People's Republic of China, or is sometimes divided between China and Russia. The region is commonly referred to as Northeast...
, and occupies a wide range of habitats across its range. It is generally found in somewhat open wooded habitats, including scrub, woodland of early successional to late mature secondary stages, forest edges, thickets and bamboo stands. It also occurs in hedges, reeds and marshes. They also will adapt to human modified habitats such as tea 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 plant nurseries. In China it is found in lower montane areas, in Sichuan
Sichuan
' , known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan is a province in Southwest China with its capital in Chengdu...
it is replaced at 1000 m (3,280.8 ft) above sea level by the Ashy-throated Parrotbill, whereas in Taiwan, where it is the only species of parrotbill, it occurs from sea level to 3100 m (10,170.6 ft) and occupies the widest niche of any bird on that island.
Description
The Vinous-throated Parrotbill is a relatively small and long-tailed parrotbillParrotbill
The parrotbills are a group of peculiar birds native to East and Southeast Asia, though feral populations are known from elsewhere. They are generally small, long-tailed birds which inhabit reedbeds and similar habitat. They feed mainly on seeds, e.g. of grasses, to which their bill, as the name...
. It measures between 11 to 12.5 cm (4.3 to 4.9 in) in length. The weight varies slightly by sex, with males weighing between 8.5 to 11 g (0.299828677893452 to 0.388013583156232 oz) and the females weighing 7 to 12 cm (2.8 to 4.7 in). The tail is graduated and like other parrotbills the bill is short and has the nostrils concealed by feather bristles. The plumage
Plumage
Plumage refers both to the layer of feathers that cover a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage vary between species and subspecies and can also vary between different age classes, sexes, and season. Within species there can also be a...
is similar for both sexes, which in the nominate is warm brown on the upperparts, dark brown on the wings (tinged with chestnut on the flight feather
Flight feather
Flight feathers are the long, stiff, asymmetrically shaped, but symmetrically paired feathers on the wings or tail of a bird; those on the wings are called remiges while those on the tail are called rectrices . Their primary function is to aid in the generation of both thrust and lift, thereby...
s). The upper breast and throat are pinkish-cream with brown streaks on the throat. The flanks are similar to the upperparts but slightly buffy, and the belly is cream-buff merging into the breast. The crown and forehead is rufescent brown, with a pale grey iris
Iris (anatomy)
The iris is a thin, circular structure in the eye, responsible for controlling the diameter and size of the pupils and thus the amount of light reaching the retina. "Eye color" is the color of the iris, which can be green, blue, or brown. In some cases it can be hazel , grey, violet, or even pink...
and the bill
Beak
The beak, bill or rostrum is an external anatomical structure of birds which is used for eating and for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship and feeding young...
is either slate grey or brown with a paler or yellow tip.
Behaviour
Like other parrotbills and indeed related babblerBabbler
Babbler may refer to:* Old World babbler, a large family of mostly Old World passerine birds* Australo-Papuan babbler, passerine birds endemic to Australia-New Guinea* The Babbler, the journal of BirdLife International in Indochina...
s, the Vinous-throated Parrotbill is a highly social species, usually encountered in groups. These flocks
Flock (birds)
A flock is a group of birds conducting flocking behavior in flight, or while foraging. The term is akin to the herd amongst mammals. The benefits of aggregating in flocks are varied and flocks will form explicitly for specific purposes...
vary in size through the year, being at their smallest during the breeding season and increasing to as many as 140 individual birds in the winter.The members of winter flocks in Taiwan were described by a study as having four categories of member; core members, which never left the flock; regular members, which generally stayed in the flock but visited or briefly joined other flocks; floaters, which moved around between flocks; and peripheral members, which were only seen for less than two months and were assumed to be visitors from other areas. The ranges of large winter flocks can overlap with that of other flocks and flocks passing close together retain their cohesion.