Polynesian Starling
Aplonis tabuensis
A small to medium-sized starling, dark above and pale below with long buffy or gray streaks. Note the distinctive pale or white wing panel. Usually has a pale eye, but eye is dark in eastern Fiji and south Tonga. Common in all habitats. Samoan Starling is much larger and more uniformly dark, lacking a pale wing panel. Rusty-winged Starling is paler above with a dark eye and no pale wing panel. Polynesian’s most common call is a high-pitched repetitive “twee-wee.”
Taxonomy
The Polynesian starling was formally described in 1788 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the shrikes in the genus Lanius and coined the binomial name Lanius tabuensis. The specific epithet is from the toponym Tongatapu, one of the main islands of Tonga. Gmelin based his account on the "Tabuan shrike" that had been described in 1781 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his book A General Synopsis of Birds. Latham had examined a specimen from "Tongo Taboo" (Tongatapu) that was held by the Leverian Museum in London. The Polynesian starling is now placed in the genus Aplonis that was introduced in 1836 by John Gould.<p>Twelve subspecies are recognised:
- Scientific name
- Aplonis tabuensis
- Authority
- (Gmelin, JF, 1788)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Sturnidae
- Genus
- Aplonis
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- unknown
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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Falco femoralis
This long-winged, long-tailed falcon is widespread through Central and South America. Once common in dry grasslands of the U.S., this species is now being reintroduced into areas of south Texas. Adults are gray above with black-and-white face pattern, white breast, black band across mid-belly, and orange lower belly. Long, dark tail has thin white bands. Immatures similar to adults but have streaked breast and paler lower belly. Combination of plumage details and shape is distinctive. Hunts for flying insects and birds. Usually seen singly or in pairs.
Long-tailed Duck
Clangula hyemalis
Diving duck that favors saltwater in winter and Arctic tundra pools in summer. Males are distinctive with black, white, gray, and brown patterns and long pointed tail. Male plumage changes dramatically from winter to summer. Females and immature males are brownish overall with whiter face and large dark cheek patch. Dives frequently to feed mainly on invertebrates.
Rufous-bellied Antwren
Isleria guttata
Tiny resident of tall rainforest. Wary and can be difficult to see well; note distinctive sputtering alarm call, tiny size, plain face, and large white (male) or buffy (female) wing spots. Generally found in pairs near treefall gaps and other places with dense understory; does not follow mixed-species flocks. Forages in low vegetation, rarely venturing more than a meter or two above the ground. Song of male is somewhat similar to Common Scale-backed Antbird, but has thinner quality and does not rise in pitch.
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