Louisiade Fantail
Rhipidura louisiadensis
Small, active songbird with long, pale-tipped tail and warm brownish-orange on the forehead, rump, and tail base. Grayish brown above and pale below overall, with a white throat and black-speckled breast. Frequently cocks and fans tail. Endemic to the D’Entrecasteaux and Louisiade Arcipelagos, off southeastern New Guinea, where inhabits wooded areas, particularly on small offshore islets. Listen for high-pitched, tinkling song. Formerly grouped with other closely related species under “Rufous Fantail.”
Taxonomy
The Louisiade fantail was formally described in 1899 by the German orthithologist Ernst Hartert based on specimens collected by Albert Stewart Meek on Rossel Island within the Louisiade Archipelago to the southeast of New Guinea. Hartert placed it with the fantails in the genus Rhipidura and coined the binomial name Rhipidura louisiadensis. The Louisiade fantail was formerly considered to be a subspecies of the rufous fantail (renamed the Australian rufous fantail) (Rhipidura rufifrons) but is now treated as a separate species mainly based on the genetic differences. The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.
- Scientific name
- Rhipidura louisiadensis
- Authority
- Hartert, EJO, 1899
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Rhipiduridae
- Genus
- Rhipidura
Photos
Distribution
Other Birds
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Upcher's Warbler
Hippolais languida
A medium-sized, gray-brown warbler that looks very similar to other species. Note the rather stout bill and broad dark tail. Smaller and browner than Olive-tree Warbler and larger than Eastern Olivaceous Warbler. Wing panel is not as prominent as that of Olive-tree Warbler. Breeds on scrubby hillsides and river valleys; occasionally in flatter lowlands. During non-breeding season, found in a variety of wooded or brushy habitats. Sings from prominent perches—a repetitive, rapid mix of musical and scratchy phrases. Call is a harsh "chak."
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