Bornean Treepie
Dendrocitta cinerascens
Long-tailed corvid of Borneo’s hilly and montane forests; the only treepie in its range. Note stout black bill, black wings with white patch, and warm buffy brown underparts and face. Social and noisy; often encountered in flocks as individuals keep in contact with one another via an assortment of squawks, rasps, and clinking metallic notes. Can be fairly tame, allowing close approach, especially around trails and campsites.
Identification
It is a fairly large bird, 40 centimetres in length, including a long graduated tail, broad rounded wings and short weak legs. The underparts are pinkish-brown. The head is also pinkish-brown with a pale silver crown and a dark stripe over the eye and across the forehead. The back is greyish and the rump is pale. The wings are black with a white patch and the tail is grey with black tips to the feathers. The bill and legs are grey-black and the eyes are reddish. The Sumatran treepie differs in having a pale brown back, a dark brown head with a white nape and a thinner bill.<p>The Bornean treepie is a noisy bird with a variety of loud, explosive calls including a bell-like whistle and various grunting and chattering calls. It is able to mimic the calls of other birds.
Taxonomy
Genus: Dendrocitta; Family: Corvidae; Order: Passeriformes.
- Scientific name
- Dendrocitta cinerascens
- Authority
- Sharpe, 1879
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Corvidae
- Genus
- Dendrocitta
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: stable.
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Emerald Tanager
Tangara florida
Well-named tanager, mostly emerald-green with trapezoidal black cheek patch, back streaking and wing markings. Small and active, usually found in pairs following mixed feeding flocks in foothill forests and edges. Feeds on fruit. Sexes alike.
Arrowhead Piculet
Picumnus minutissimus
Common piculet of coastal forests. Note short-tailed profile, large feet, and cone-shaped bill. Found in mangroves, gardens, abandoned plantations, and disturbed areas. Creeps quietly through vine tangles and bores into dead twigs at lower and middle levels. Similar to Golden-spangled and White-barred Piculets, but Arrowhead has chevron-shaped spots (not barring) on the breast and belly, and is strictly confined to coastal habitats.
Tanimbar Oriole
Oriolus decipiens
A dull brown oriole with a lighter head and a dark feathered face patch. Singles and pairs inhabit middle to upper levels of forest, woodlands, mangroves, and cultivated areas in lowlands and foothills. Confined to the Tanimbar Islands. Considerably smaller than Tanimbar Friarbird, with a more rounded head shape, a straighter bill with a slightly thicker tip, and no naked facial skin. Ringing call composed of flutey phrases, “we-we-weOW” and “churWOOW,” with first chur notes being rasping.
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