Bronze munia

Lonchura cucullata

Photo by Warwick Tarboton (Warwick Tarboton)

Common name:
bronze munia (en); bico-de-chumbo-bronzeado (pt); capucin nonnette (fr); capuchino bronceado (es); kleinelsterchen (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Estrildidae

Range:
This species is found in sub-Saharan Africa, from Senegal east to Ethiopia and south to Angola, eastern Botswana and eastern South Africa. There is also an introduced population in Puerto Rico.

Size:
These birds are 9-10 cm long and weigh 10-12 g.

Habitat:
The bronze munia is found in tropical forests and savannas, dry scrublands, dry grasslands, inland wetlands such as marshes and swamps, and also in pastures and arable land.

Diet:
They forage on the ground or in low vegetation, mainly taking grass seeds and cultivated cereals such as rice. They also take some insects, such as termites and ants, and occasionally nectar.

Breeding:
Bronze munias can breed all year round. The nest is built by both sexes, consisting of a domed structure made of grasses and lined with feather and soft plant fibres, placed in a small tree 2-3 m above the ground. It is usually located near wasp on ant nests. The female lays 4-8 eggs which are incubated by both parents for 12-14 days. The chicks fledge 17-21 days after hatching but only become fully independent 3 weeks later. Each pair can raise multiple broods per year.

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

Dusky lory

Pseudeos fuscata

Photo by Greg Hume (Wikipedia)

Common name:
dusky lory (en); lóri-sombrio (pt); lori sombre (fr); lori sombrío (es); weißbürzellori (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Psittaciformes
Family Psittacidae

Range:
This species is found throughout the island of New Guinea and in the nearby islands of Sulawata and Yapen.

Size:
These birds are 24-27 cm long and weigh 140-190 g.

Habitat:
The dusky lory is found in a wide range of habitats including rainforests, mangroves, moist savannas, scrublands, second growths, plantations, rural gardens and even urban areas. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 2.400 m.

Diet:
They feed on seeds, fruits, buds, nectar, pollen and unripe grain.

Breeding:
Dusky lories breed in August-November. They nest in a hole high up on a tree, where the female lays 2-3 white eggs. The eggs are incubated for 24 days and the chicks fledge 10 weeks after hatching.

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

Hawfinch

Coccothraustes coccothraustes

Photo by Eduardo Balogh (Trek Nature)

Common name:
hawfinch (en); bico-grossudo (pt); gros-bec casse-noyaux (fr); picogordo común (es); kernbeißer (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Fringillidae

Range:
This species is found throughout most of Europe, from the Iberian Peninsula north to Britain and southern Scandinavia and east into Turkey and Russia, along the Caucasus and southern Russia into northern Kazakhstan, northern Mongolia and north-eastern China. There are also population in Iran, between Uzbekistan and western China, and in northern Africa from Morocco to Tunisia. The populations in Europe are mostly resident, but the most Asian population migrate to winter around the Mediterranean, and in south-eastern China, Korea and Japan.

Size:
These birds are 16,5-18 cm long and have a wingspan of 29-33 cm. They weigh 48-62 g.

Habitat:
The hawfinch is mostly found in temperate forests, mainly oak and other deciduous trees but also mixed and coniferous forests. They also use rural gardens as well as urban parks and gardens.

Diet:
They feed mainly on seeds, being able to crack open seeds and large as cherry pits and almonds with their strong beak. They also take buds, shoots of various tree and scrubs. During the breeding season also caterpillars.

Breeding:
Hawfinches breed in March-July. They can either nest in individual pairs or often in small colonies. Each nest is a bulky structure made of dry twigs, with an inner cup made of roots grasses, twigs, dry moss, and lichens. It is usually placed in a large tree. The female lays 4-6 whitish eggs with dark brown blotches, which she incubates alone for 11-14 days while the male brings her food. The chicks fledge 10-14 days after hatching. Each pair usually raises a single clutch per year, but in very favourable years they may raise a second clutch.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has an extremely large breeding range and a global population estimated at 14,7-50,4 million individuals. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats and data for part of Europe show a stable trend over the last 3 decades.

Sacred kingfisher

Todiramphus sanctus

Photo by Chris Wynne (Flickr)

Common name:
sacred kingfisher (en); guarda-rios-sagrado (pt); martin-chasseur sacré (fr); alción sagrado (es); götzenliest (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Coraciiformes
Family Alcedinidae

Range:
This species breeds throughout most of mainland Australia, as well as in New Zealand and in western Melanesia as fas east as Fiji. The populations in southern Australia migrate north to winter in Papua-New Guinea and throughout Indonesia.

Size:
These birds are19-23 cm long and weigh 30-60 g.

Habitat:
The sacred kingfisher is mosty found in tropical forests, such as in Eucalyptus woodlands and rainforests, but also in other types of open forest, Acacia scrublands, Melaleuca swamps, grasslands with scattered trees, mangroves, coastal lakes and lagoons, both sandy and rocky coastlines, rural gardens, arable land, plantations and urban parks.

Diet:
They hunt by pouncing on their prey from a perch, taking a wide range of prey including
a wide range of insects and other invertebrates, such as spiders, centipedes, worms and crustaceans, but also small vertebrates including fishes, tadpoles and frogs, lizards, snakes, birds and mice.

Breeding:
Sacred kingfishers are monogamous and pair bonds possibly last several years. They breed in September-March and nest in a tree hollow or in a tunnel excavated by both sexes in a bank, cliff or even a termite mound. the female lays 3-7 eggs which are incubated by both parents for 16-21 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 24-29 days after hatching, but continue to receive food from the parents for another 7-10 days. Each pair usually raises 2 broods per season, but they may not breed during drought years.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and although there are no reliable population estimated the population is suspected to be increasing owing to opening up of forest areas and road building which has provided an increase in suitable nesting sites.

Seychelles magpie-robin

Copsychus sechellarum

Photo by Philip Perry (Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:
Seychelles magpie-robin (en); pisco-das-Seychelles (pt); shama de Seychelles (fr); shama de Seychelles (es); Seychellendajal (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Muscicapidae

Range:
This species is endemic to the Seychelles archipelago and was originally present in at least 8 islands, but by the 1960s it became restricted to the island of Frégate. Since then the species has been reintroduced to the islands of Aride, Cousin, Cousine and Denis.

Size:
These birds are 18-25 cm long and weigh 60-80 g.

Habitat:
The Seychelles magpie-robin was originally found in mature coastal rainforest but today uses mature woodlands on central plateaus, plantations and vegetable gardens. They prefer areas with a tall, closed canopy with sparse understorey and ground vegetation but abundant leaf litter.

Diet:
They forage on the ground, among the forest leaf litter, mainly taking soil invertebrates, particularly cockroaches but also other insects, worms, centipedes and millipedes. They also take fruits, fish dropped by tree-nesting terns, skinks and geckos, eggs and human food scraps.

Breeding:
These birds can breed all year round, especially in periods with higher rainfall. The female builds the nest alone, consisting of a simple cup made of dry grasses and coconut fibres, placed in the crown of a coconut tree or on a hole in a large tree. The female lays a single eggs which she incubates alone for 17-22 days while the male guards the nest from predators. The chick is fed by both parents and fledges 18-20 days after hatching, becoming fully independent about 11 weeks later. They reach sexual maturity at 1 years of age and each pair raises a single chick per year.

Conservation:
IUCN status - EN (Endangered)
This species has an extremely small breeding range and the global population is estimated at just 120 individuals. By 1965 only 12-15 Seychelles magpie-robins survived on the island of Frégate having declined mainly due to predation by introduced cats and, to a lesser extent, predation by introduced rats and habitat destruction. Cats were eradicated from Frégate in the 1980s and since the 1990s individuals have been translocated to several predator-free islands, leading to a small recovery in numbers. Further threats include changes in agricultural practices and introduction of exotic plants, as well as future sea level rise.

Thick-billed white-eye

Heleia crassirostris

Photo by Oleg Chernyshov (Flickr)

Common name:
thick-billed white-eye (en); olho-branco-de-bico-grosso (pt); zostérops à bec fort (fr); anteojitos picogordo (es); nacktaugen-brillenvogel (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Zosteropidae

Range:
This species is endemic to Indonesia, only being found in the islands of Flores and Sumbawa.

Size:
These birds are 13-13,5 cm long.

Habitat:
The thick-billed white-eye is mostly found in lowland rainforests, but also uses mountain rainforests, dry tropical forests and moist tropical scrublands.

Diet:
Although not much is known about these birds, they most likely eat fruits and insects.

Breeding:
Nothing is know about the reproduction of this species.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a relatively large breeding range and is reported to be generally uncommon and locally moderately common. The population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat destruction and fragmentation.

Buff-banded rail

Gallirallus philippensis

Photo by Toby Hudson (Wikipedia)

Common name:
buff-banded rail (en); frango-d'água-de-colar (pt); râle tiklin (fr); rascón filipino (es); bindenralle (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Gruiformes
Family Rallidae

Range:
This species is found from the Philippines and eastern Indonesia, through New Guinea and into Melanesia and western Polynesia as far east as Samoa and the island of Niue. Also in eastern and south-western Australia and northern New Zealand.

Size:
These birds are 25-33 cm long and weigh 130 g.

Habitat:
The buff-banded rail is found in dense reedbeds and other vegetation bordering different types of wetlands such as marshes, swamps, lakes, saltpans, rivers, estuaries, lagoons, mangroves, saltmarshes and mudflats. They also use grasslands and crops and artifical wetlands such as sewage ponds and drainage channels.

Diet:
They are omnivorous, taking various crustaceans, molluscs, insects and frogs, as well as seeds, fallen fruits and other vegetable matter. They also consume carrion and refuse frequently.

Breeding:
Buff-banded rails can breed all year round, varying among different parts of their range. the nest in an unlined cup made of grasses and reeds, placed among dense vegetation such as long grasses, reeds, rushes, scrubs, crops or trees. The female lays 4-8 eggs which are incubated by both parents for 18-19 days. The chicks can leave the nest within 24 hours of hatching and are soon able to feed themselves, but remain with both parents until they are able to fly, about 2 months after hatching. Each pair can raise 1-2 broods per year.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as widespread in Australia. The overall population trend is stable, although some populations have unknown trends.