Mountain Kingfisher
Syma megarhyncha
A large kingfisher of foothill and mid-montane forest. Bright orange head and body, blue back and tail, bright yellow bill and black mark on the back of the head. Females also have a black mark on the crown. Almost identical to Yellow-billed Kingfisher, but Mountain Kingfisher is larger, found higher up, and most birds have a dark smudge on top of the bill. Call, an accelerating series of loud notes, first rising slightly, then falling and ending in a trill. Remeniscent of a New World antshrike.
Identification
It is a small kingfisher, with males weighing 52–60 g (1.8–2.1 oz) and females weighing 49–63 g (1.7–2.2 oz). Adults are between 21–24 cm (8.3–9.4 in) in length.<p>Males have a rufous head and underparts and greenish-blue upperparts, along with black loral and nape patches. The tail is dark blue and it has black wing feathers with bluish edges and tips. Females have a black crown and paler underparts. The neck patches are joined at the nape in females, making a bar across the back of the neck. The bill is bright yellow with a dark ridge along the culmen. The iris is dark brown and the feet and legs are dull yellow. Juveniles have a grayish-black bill and mottled-black ear coverts. They also have a larger black area around the eye and dark-tipped feathers on the cheeks and breast.<p>The yellow-billed kingfisher is similar in appearance, but has an all-yellow bill instead and is found at lower altitudes than the mountain kingfisher. It is also larger with a proportionally larger bill.<p>It typically vocalises from the canopy and mid-story. It has a loud whistled trilling call, typically composed of 3–4 descending trills separated by pauses. The song ends with a distinctive trill that drops, rises and drops in pitch. The initial trills are similar to the song of the chestnut-breasted cuckoo, but are longer and richer, and the cuckoo's song is much higher-pitched. The song is also similar to that of the yellow-billed kingfisher, but is deeper than that of the latter.
Taxonomy
The mountain kingfisher was described as Syma megarhycha by Tommaso Salvadori in 1896, on the basis of specimens collected in 1893 in Moroka, New Guinea. The generic name Syma is from the name of a sea nymph in Greek mythology. The specific name come from the Greek megas (great) and rhunkhos (bill). Mountain kingfisher has been designated as the official common name by the International Ornithologists' Union (IOC). The species is also known as the greater yellow-billed kingfisher or mountain yellow-billed kingfisher.<p>It is one of two species in the genus Syma, along with the yellow-billed kingfisher. These two species are closely related and were previously considered conspecific. Hybrids between them have also been recorded.<p>There are two recognised subspecies of the mountain kingfisher:<p>As these two subspecies are poorly defined, some authors have considered lumping the two, which would make the species monotypic.
- Scientific name
- Syma megarhyncha
- Authority
- Salvadori, 1896
- Order
- Coraciiformes
- Family
- Alcedinidae
- Genus
- Syma
Range and habitat
The mountain kingfisher is endemic to the island of New Guinea, and is found in both Western New Guinea and Papua New Guinea. It is common to uncommon through most of the New Guinea Highlands, except for the Bird's Head peninsula. Reports of the species from the Adelbert Mountains and the Foja Mountains are unconfirmed. The species mostly occurs between elevations of 1,200–2,400 m (3,900–7,900 ft), although they have been reported at elevations as low as 700 m (2,300 ft). At lower elevations, the species is replaced by the yellow-billed kingfisher.<p>The mountain kingfisher mainly inhabits primary forest and secondary growth within its range.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
It feeds on small lizards, insects, and larvae. It hunts by perching in middle and upper canopy for long periods of time, before diving to capture prey.Nests are dug into earthen riverbanks and dry timber. On Papua New Guinea, eggs are laid in December. Eggs are laid in clutches of two and are white in color.
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Other Birds
Village Indigobird
Vidua chalybeata
Nest parasite that lays its eggs in the nests of Red-billed and Brown firefinches. Breeding males are glossy black, while females and non-breeding males are streaky and brown on the back and pale below, with a bold facial pattern. The color of the bill is red in southeast Africa and whitish in western, northern, and central Africa. Found in savanna, scrub, farmland, and towns. Mimics the vocalizations of its host firefinches: low rattling series and high-pitched whistled notes. In southeast Africa, can be separated from other indigobirds by its red bill. Very similar to other indigobirds elsewhere on the continent. Breeding males can be separated by their all-black wings that lack a pale brownish panel. The mimicked vocalizations of its host species can also help confirm identification. In non-breeding plumage, similar to non-breeding Pin-tailed Whydah but separated by red legs.
Rufous-backed Sibia
Leioptila annectens
Ebony head and snowy throat, combined with the hazy mixture of bright orange and black on the back, give this bird a distinctly “tortoiseshell” appearance. Appears larger-headed and slightly shorter-tailed than other sibias. Inhabits foothill and montane forests, where it travels in pairs and flocks through the canopy. Unlike other sibias, frequently clambers around on tree trunks and branches like a nuthatch. Listen for its lovely warbled song and buzzy chattering calls.
Brown-rumped Seedeater
Crithagra tristriata
A plain seedeater of the Abyssinian highlands. Note the gray-brown back, the paler underparts, the white eyebrow, and the small white throat. Generally common in a variety of montane habitats including forest edge, woodland, scrub, and gardens. Similar in overall coloration to Reichard’s and Streaky Seedeaters, but easily separated by the plain unstreaked underparts. The simple song consists of repeated scratchy whistles.
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