ThePachycephalidaeare a family of birdspeciesthat includes the whistlers, shrikethrushes, and three of thepitohuis,and is part of the ancientAustralo-Papuanradiation ofsongbirds.The family includes 69 species that are separated into fivegenera.Its members range from small to medium in size, and occupy most of Australasia. Australia andNew Guineaare the centre of their diversity and, in the case of the whistlers, the South Pacific islands as far asTongaandSamoaand parts of Asia as far as India. The exact delimitation of boundaries of the family are uncertain, and one species, thegolden whistler,has been the subject of intense taxonomic scrutiny in recent years, with multiple subspecies and species-level revisions.
| Pachycephalidae | |
|---|---|
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| Rufous whistler(Pachycephala rufiventris) | |
Scientific classification
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Superfamily: | Orioloidea |
| Family: | Pachycephalidae Swainson,1832 |
| Genera and species | |
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See text
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Taxonomy and systematics
editThe family Pachycephalidae was introduced (as the subfamily Pachycephalinae) by the English ornithologistWilliam Swainsonin 1832.[1][2]
The generaPachycare,Hylocitrea,thecrested bellbirdand thecrested shriketitwere previously included in the family Pachycephalidae until moved to the familiesAcanthizidae,HylocitreidaeandOreoicidaeandFalcunculidaerespectively.[3]Some authorities have also placed the genusMohoua,classified in the monotypic family Mohouidae, within the family Pachycephalidae.[4]
The whistler family has five extant genera as follows:[3]
- Coracornis– 2 species
- Melanorectes– black pitohui
- Pachycephala– typical whistlers (53 species)
- Pseudorectes– 2 species
- Colluricincla– 11 species
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| Genus level phylogeny of the family Pachycephalidae based a study by Serina Brady and collaborators published in 2021.[5]The species numbers are from the list maintained byFrank Gill,Pamela C. Rasmussenand David Donsker on behalf of theInternational Ornithologists' Union.[3] |
Description
editThe whistlers are stout birds with strong bills, and the group was once known as the thickheads due to the large rounded heads of many species. Their plumage isrufous,brown, or grey in the majority of species. Nevertheless, a few species, particularly the golden whistler and its close relatives, have bright plumage. One of the more unusual traits of this family is found in the feathers of some of thepitohuis,which have toxins.[6]These toxins are probably a deterrent toparasitesand may also serve to dissuade predators from taking the birds.
Vocalisations
editSeveral species belonging to this family are outstanding songsters: the whistlers produce an astonishing volume for their size, and thelyrebirdsaside, thegrey shrikethrushis often regarded as the finest, most inventive songbird of them all.[citation needed]
Distribution and habitat
editThe whistlers are birds of forests and wooded areas. Most species inhabit rainforest, particularly in the Asian and Papuan parts of their range, but Australian species inhabit a wider range of habitats including woodlands, arid scrubland andmangroveforests. Some species are restricted to a particular ecosystem, whereas others are more catholic and will inhabit a range of habitat types.
Behaviour and ecology
editBreeding
editLittle is known about the breeding biology of most of the family; what is known generally comes from a small number of Australian species and the three New ZealandMohouaspecies. They aremonogamousand generally nest as simple pairs, althoughbreeding groupshave been recorded in some species.
Food and feeding
editThey areinsectivorous,picking insects off leaves, branches, or leaf litter. While insects make up the majority of the diet they will also feed on spiders, worms, centipedes, snails, and small crabs; larger species will also tackle small vertebrates such as frogs, geckos and baby birds. They are generally sedate foragers and do not engage inhawkingto obtain prey, instead beinggleanersand probers. Only a few species migrate, most remaining resident in their tropical environment.[7]
References
edit- ^Bock, Walter J. (1994).History and Nomenclature of Avian Family-Group Names.Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. Vol. 222. New York: American Museum of Natural History. pp. 153, 262.hdl:2246/830.
- ^Swainson, William;Richardson, J.(1831).Fauna Boreali-Americana, or, The Zoology of the Northern Parts of British America.Vol. Part 2. The Birds. London: J. Murray. p. 492.The title page bears the year 1831 but the volume was not published until 1832. See:Dickinson, E.C.;Overstreet, L.K.; Dowsett, R.J.; Bruce, M.D. (2011).Priority! The Dating of Scientific Names in Ornithology: a Directory to the literature and its reviewers.Northampton, UK: Aves Press. p. 150.ISBN978-0-9568611-1-5.
- ^abcGill, Frank;Donsker, David;Rasmussen, Pamela,eds. (August 2024)."Whiteheads, sittellas, Ploughbill, Australo-Papuan bellbirds, Shriketit, whistlers".IOC World Bird List Version 14.2.International Ornithologists' Union.Retrieved21 September2024.
- ^Aidala, Zachary; et al. (June 2013). "Phylogenetic relationships of the genusMohoua,endemic hosts of New Zealand's obligate brood parasitic Long-tailed Cuckoo (Eudynamys taitensis) ".Journal of Ornithology.154(4):1127–1133.Bibcode:2013JOrni.154.1127A.doi:10.1007/s10336-013-0978-8.S2CID10012326.
- ^Brady, S.S.; Moyle, R.G.; Joseph, L.; Andersen, M.J. (2021). "Systematics and biogeography of the whistlers (Aves: Pachycephalidae) inferred from ultraconserved elements and ancestral area reconstruction".Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution.168:107379.doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2021.107379.PMID34965464.S2CID245506895.
- ^Dumbacher JP, Beehler BM, Spande TF, Garraffo HM, Daly JW (1992). "Homobatrachotoxinin the genus Pitohui: chemical defense in birds? ".Science.258(5083):799–801.Bibcode:1992Sci...258..799D.doi:10.1126/science.1439786.PMID1439786.
- ^Garnett, Stephen (1991). Forshaw, Joseph (ed.).Encyclopaedia of Animals: Birds.London: Merehurst Press. p. 201.ISBN1-85391-186-0.
External links
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- Videos, photos and sounds– Internet Bird Collection