Brown-headed Paradise-Kingfisher
Tanysiptera danae
A long-tailed kingfisher of lowland and foothill forest. Brown head and back, orange underparts and rump, deep blue shoulder and long tail with narrow white tips. Sits quietly in the mid-story, occasionally pumping the tail and flicking it right up when startled. Similar to Buff-breasted Paradise-Kingfisher, but Brown-headed has a brown rather than black and blue head and lacks the white stripe down the back. Song, a rising and falling (or just falling) and accelerating series of notes ending in a trill “weeep weep wewewewweewe……..”
Identification
The brown-headed kingfisher is 23 cm (9.1 in) in length excluding the streamers which are up to 9 cm (3.5 in). They weigh between 37 and 50 grams. The sexes are alike. The head, mantle and scapulars are a warm rufous-brown. The rump, breast and belly are pink-red. The flight feathers are black and the greater coverts are bright blue. The tail is dark purplish blue, the bill is red and the legs and feet are pink or orange.
Taxonomy
The first formal description of the brown-headed paradise kingfisher was by the English ornithologist Richard Bowdler Sharpe in 1880 from specimens collected near Milne Bay in southeastern New Guinea. He coined the current binomial name Tanysiptera danae. The genus Tanysiptera had been introduced by the Irish zoologist Nicholas Aylward Vigors in 1825. The name Tanysiptera is from classical Greek tanusipteros meaning "long-feathered". The specific epithet danae is from Greek mythology; Danaë was the daughter of Acrisius, King of Argos. The species is monotypic.
- Scientific name
- Tanysiptera danae
- Authority
- Sharpe, 1880
- Order
- Coraciiformes
- Family
- Alcedinidae
- Genus
- Tanysiptera
Range and habitat
The brown-headed paradise kingfisher is distributed in deep forest areas in the far east of New Guinea. It mainly inhabits the forests of foothills and occurs mainly in dense primary forests. Its altitude ranges from 300 to 1000 vertical metres. The common paradise kingfisher also occurs in its distribution area. Usually the brown-headed paradise kingfisher is represented at higher altitudes than the common paradise kingfisher. However, in the region around Popondetta, the capital of the province Oro of Papua New Guinea in the southeast of the island, both species occur at altitudes of 150 meters. The brown-headed paradise kingfisher is to be observed here even more frequently than the common paradise kingfisher.
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Other Birds
Gough Moorhen
Gallinula comeri
A medium-sized dark moorhen restricted to the Tristan da Cunha islands. Similar to Common Moorhen, which is a vagrant to the Tristan group, but stouter, with a black neck and underparts, no white on the flanks, and mostly red legs blotched with yellow (not all yellow as in Common). Juvenile has yellow legs but is flightless. Native to Gough Island and introduced on Tristan Island. Fairly common but somewhat secretive on both islands, preferring tussock grass and thickets below 500 meters of elevation. Calls include an electric rapid “cher-cher-chuk” and a soft “ek” in contact.
Amur Paradise-Flycatcher
Terpsiphone incei
Adult male comes in two morphs, rufous and white; both have a black hood, white underparts, black head, short crest, and bright blue eyerings, but they differ in the color of the upperparts. Breeding males have a long tail twice the length of the body. Female and immature male similar but tail much shorter, and plumage duller overall. Female and young male similar to Japanese Paradise-Flycatcher but brighter rufous above, with a sharper demarcation between the black chest and white belly. Also compare with Blyth’s Paradise-Flycatcher where their ranges overlap. Breeds in broadleaf lowland and hill forests; also in more open habitats in migration and in winter. Song a series of descending fluty whistles; call a staccato, nasal chatter.
Fawn-breasted Wren
Cantorchilus guarayanus
A rather nondescript medium-sized wren. Mostly brown above and rusty below, with a white eyebrow and pied streaked cheeks. Skulks in the undergrowth of seasonally flooded forest and second growth, often near water. The similar Buff-breasted Wren has less strongly marked cheeks and a more complex song. Where the two overlap, Fawn-breasted is more likely to be found in wetter habitats.
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