Purple-throated fruitcrow

Querula purpurata

Photo by Paul Willoughby (Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:
purple-throated fruitcrow (en); anambé-una (pt); coracine noire (fr); frutero gorgirrojo (es); purpurbrustkotinga (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Cotingidae


Range:
This species is found from Nicaragua and Costa Rica to northern Bolivia, the Guyanas and northern Brazil, down to Mato Grosso, Tocantins and Maranhão.


Size:
These birds are 22-30 cm long and weigh 105-115 g.


Habitat:
These birds are found in lowland rainforests, from sea level up to an altitude of 1.000 m.


Diet:
The purple-throated fruitcrow forages on the forest canopy, feeding on insects and fruits.


Breeding:
They form family groups of 3-8 individuals who breed cooperatively. Only one pair breeds, nesting on an untidy cup of small twigs, lined with even smaller twigs. The female lays 1-2 eggs which are incubated by all group members for 24-25 days. The chicks are fed by all group members and fledge 32-33 days after hatching.


Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as fairly common. The population is believed to be declining, due to the rapid deforestation of the Amazon forest, and this decline may be over 10% per decade. Despite this, the population is not considered threatened at present.

White-tailed wheatear

Oenanthe leucopyga

Photo by Marco Valentini (Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:
white-tailed wheatear (en); chasco-de-barrete-branco (pt); traquet á tête blanche (fr); collalba negra de Brehm (es); Saharaschmätzer (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Muscicapidae

Range:
This species is found in North Africa and the Middle East, from Morocco and Mauritania to Sudan and Saudi Arabia.

Size:
These birds are 17-18 cm long and have a wingspan of 27-29 cm. They weigh 23-32 g.

Habitat:
The white-tailed wheatear is mostly found in hot deserts, namely in rocky areas, but also in dry grasslands and scrublands.

Diet:
They mainly feed on insects, which they catch both in flight and on the ground, but they also eat plant material and small reptiles.

Breeding:
White-tailed wheatears breed in February-May. The nest is a cup of dry grasses and twigs, lined with wool and feathers, placed in a hole in rocks, under stones, in banks, or occasionally in the walls of buildings. The female lays 3-5 eggs, which she incubates alone for 14-17 days. The chicks fledge 14-17 days after hatching.



Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as generally abundant in suitable habitat. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Green-cheeked parakeet

Pyrrhura molinae

(Photo from The Gemini Geek)

Common name:
green-cheeked parakeet (en); tiriba-de-cara-suja (pt); conure de Molina (fr); cotorra de Molina (es); Molinasittich (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Psittaciformes
Family Psittacidae


Range:
This South American species is found in west-central and southern Mato Grosso, Brazil, through northern and eastern Bolivia to northwestern Argentina and northern Paraguay.


Size:
These birds are 25-26 cm long and weigh 60-80 g.


Habitat:
The green-cheeked parakeet is found is forests and open woodlands, from sea level up to an altitude of 2.600 m.


Diet:
They feed on various seeds, nuts and fruits.


Breeding:
Green-cheeked parakeets nest in tree cavities. The female lays 4-6 eggs which she incubates alone for 22-25 days while being fed by the male. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 7 weeks after hatching.


Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a large breeding range and is described as common. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Chat tanager

Calyptophilus frugivorus

Photo by José Pantaleón (Flickr)

Common name:
chat tanager (en); saíra-de-Hispaniola (pt); tangara cornichon (fr); chirrí (es); schmätzertangare (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Thraupidae


Range:
This species is endemic to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, being found both in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.


Size:
These birds are 17-20 cm long and weighs around 50 g.


Habitat:
The chat tanager is mostly found in dense understory of moist forests and in scrublands, at altitudes of 750-2.200 m.


Diet:
They mainly feed on invertebrates such as spiders, worms, beetles and grubs.


Breeding:
Chat tanagers breed in May-July. The nest is an open cup made of moss, small herbaceous stems, leaf fragments, lichens, and other plant fibres, placed among dense vegetation, 1-5 m above the ground. The female lays 2 pale blue eggs with brown mottles, which she incubates alone. The chicks are fed by both parents but there is no information regarding the length of the incubation and fledging periods.


Conservation:
IUCN status - VU (Vulnerable)
This species has a small and fragmented breeding range and the global population is estimated at just 1.500-7.000 individuals. The population is suspected to be declining rapidly as a result of ongoing habitat loss through agricultural conversion and logging.

Chucao tapaculo

Scelorchilus rubecula

Photo by Arthur Grosset (Arthur Grosset's Birds)

Common name:
chucao tapaculo (en); tapaculo-de-peito-ruivo (pt); tourco rougegorge (fr); chucao (es); rotkehltapaculo (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Rhinocryptidae


Range:
This South American species is found in central and southern Chile and across the border into neighbouring regions of Argentina.


Size:
These birds are 16-18 cm long and weigh 35-43 g.


Habitat:
The chucao tapaculo is found in temperate forests from sea level up to an altitude f 1.500 m.


Diet:
They are omnivorous, eating invertebrates, fruits and seeds. They are known to eat various insects, including Coleoptera, Hymenoptera, Diptera, Lepidoptera, Hemiptera, Orthoptera, Dermaptera, Psocoptera and Anoplura, spiders, mites, and occasionally also snails, isopods and chilopods, as well as the fruits and seeds of various herbs and grasses.


Breeding:
Chucao tapaculos breed in September-February. The nest is placed in a cavity in a live tree or stump, or within the leaves of epiphytes, up to 2 m above the ground. There the female lays 1-3 white eggs which are incubated for 23 days. The chicks fledge 21 days after hatching.


Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a relatively large breeding range and is described as fairly common. The population trend for this species cannot be determined based on the available information, but the chucao tapaculo is not considered threatened at present.

New Zealand pigeon

Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae

Photo by Pete McGregor (The Ruins of the Moment)

Common name:
New Zealand pigeon (en); pombo-maori (pt); carpophage de Nouvelle-Zélande (fr); paloma maorí (es); Maorifruchttaube (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Columbiformes
Family Columbidae


Range:
This species is endemic to New Zealand, being found in both the North island and the South island, as well as in the Chatham islands.


Size:
These large pigeons are 46-55 cm long and weigh 550-850 g.


Habitat:
The New Zealand pigeon is mostly found in native podocarp forests, but outside the breeding season will also use exotic plantations and gardens.


Diet:
They are mainly frugivorous, eating large native fruits and drupes such as karaka, tawa and taraire, but also leaves, shoots, flowers and buds of native and exotic species in winter and spring, when fruits are not available.


Breeding:
The breeding season of the New Zealand pigeon varies according to the availability of ripe fruits, but is mostly concentrated in October-April. They are monogamous, with pair bonds lasting for more than one season, and nest in a frail platform of twigs placed in a tree. There the female lays a single white egg which is incubated by bth parents for 28-30 days. The chick is fed crop milk by both parents and fledges 30-45 days after hatching.


Conservation:
IUCN status - NT (Near-Threatened)
This species has a relatively large breeding range and is described as not uncommon, but the population is suspected to be declining at a moderately rapid rate, owing to hunting, habitat degradation and introduced predators. The introduction of exotic species is the main threat for this species, namely predators such as brush-tailed possum Trichosurus vulpecula, black rat Rattus rattus, stoat Mustela erminea and cats. The first two also compete for fruits. The New Zealand pigeon is illegally hunted and the loss of forest habitat through burning and clearance for farmland, removal of firewood and browsing by herbivores is also a threat.

White-naped tit

Parus nuchalis

Photo by Arpit Deomurari (Avian Diversity)

Common name:
white-naped tit (en); chapim-d'asa-branca (pt); mésange à ailes blanches (fr); carbonero nuquiblanco (es); weißflügelmeise (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Paridae


Range:
This species is endemic to India, where it occurs in two isolated populations. One in the north-west of the country, in central and southern Rajasthan, Kutch and northern Gujarat, and another in the south, in the Eastern Ghats of southern Andhra Pradesh, northern Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.


Size:
These birds are 12-13 cm long and weigh 13-14,5 g.


Habitat:
The white-naped tit is mostly found in dry thorn-scrub forests, mainly Acacia. They also use deciduous woodlands, gardens and orchards and even river beds and irrigated crops. They occur from sea level up to an altitude of 700 m.


Diet:
They mainly feed on insects and berries, but are also known to eat nectar.


Breeding:
White-naped tits breed in May-October. They nest in tree cavities, often in old woodpecker nests, which they line with plant fibres, down, animal hair and wool. The nest is usually 2-5 m above the ground. The female lays 3-6 eggs, which are incubated for 12 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 12-14 days after hatching, but continue to be fed for at least another 6-7 days.


Conservation:
IUCN status - VU (Vulnerable)
This species has a restricted and fragmented breeding range and the global population is estimated at just 2.500-10.000 individuals. The population is suspected to be declining rapidly as a result of habitat loss and degradation through wood-cutting for fuel wood and illegal charcoal making, clearance for agriculture and settlement construction, and over-grazing. Mining activities and the spread of exotic scrubs such as Prosopis glandulosa and P. chilensis may also have negative impacts on this species.