Wallacean Whistler
Pachycephala arctitorquis
A thick-billed, sparrow-sized songbird. Male has a black hood, a white throat, pale gray upperparts, and a white underside. Female is rufous-brown above and whitish underneath, with dark chest streaking. Juvenile resembles a pale-billed female. Found in varied wooded habitats and forest, where pairs or single birds frequent the understory and subcanopy. Male distinguished from male Golden and Yellow-throated Whistlers by gray back and white underside. Female separated from female Golden and Yellow-throated Whistlers and from Fawn-breasted Whistler by streaked breast and strongly rufous-toned upperparts. Song is a series of strident whistles, including “choo” and “chwee” notes, sometimes in a jumbled series.
Identification
The Wallacean whistler (Pachycephala arctitorquis) is a species of bird in the family Pachycephalidae. It is native to the eastern Lesser Sunda Islands. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical mangrove forests.
Taxonomy
Genus: Pachycephala; Family: Pachycephalidae; Order: Passeriformes.
- Scientific name
- Pachycephala arctitorquis
- Authority
- Sclater, PL, 1883
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Pachycephalidae
- Genus
- Pachycephala
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: stable.
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
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