Mielero Alafuego

Identificación

The crescent honeyeater measures 14–17 centimetres (5.5–6.7 in) in length with a wingspan of 16–23 centimetres (6.3–9.1 in), and it weighs about 16 grams (0.56 oz). It is sexually dimorphic with the female a paler version of the male. The male is mostly dark grey, with clear yellow wing-patches; a broad black crescent, outlined in white, down the sides of the breast; and a white streak above the eye. The top of the tail is black with yellow edges to the feathers forming distinctive yellow panels on the sides of the tail. White tips on the undertail are usually only visible in flight. The underparts are pale brownish-grey fading to white. The female is duller, more olive-brown than grey, with duller yellow wing-patches and faded crescent-shaped markings. Both sexes have dark grey legs and feet, deep ruby eyes and a long, downcurved black bill. The gape is also black. Young birds are similar to the adults, though not as strongly marked, and have dark grey bills, duller brown eyes, and yellow gapes. Male nestlings can be distinguished by their more extensive yellow wing-patches from seven days old. Moulting patterns of the species are poorly known; crescent honeyeaters appear to replace their primary flight feathers between October and January.<p>While both subspecies have the same general appearance, the female of halmaturinus has paler plumage than the nominate race, and both male and female have a smaller wing and tail and longer bill. The halmaturinus population on Kangaroo Island has a significantly shorter wing and longer bill than the Mount Lofty population, although this size variation of an insular form is at odds with Allen's and Bergmann's rules.<p>The crescent honeyeater has a range of musical calls and songs. One study recorded chatter alarm calls similar to the New Holland honeyeater, a number of harsh monosyllabic or tri-syllabic contact calls, and complex and diverse songs. The most common contact call is a loud, carrying "e-gypt", while the alarm call is a sharp and rapid "chip-chip-chip". The male also has a melodic song which is heard throughout the year, at any time of the day. The structure of the song is complex and diverse, and includes both a descending whistle and a musical two-note call. The male's song is performed from an exposed perch or within the tree canopy, and it engages in mating displays (song flights) during the breeding season. When the female is on the nest and the male nearby, they utter low soft notes identified as "whisper song".

Taxonomía

The crescent honeyeater was originally described by ornithologist John Latham in 1801 as Certhia pyrrhoptera, because of an assumed relationship with the treecreepers Certhia. It was later named Certhia australasiana by George Shaw in 1812, Melithreptus melanoleucus by Louis Pierre Vieillot in 1817, and Meliphaga inornata by John Gould in 1838. The generic term comes from the French phylidonyre, which combines the names for a honeyeater and a sunbird (previously thought to belong to the same family). The specific epithet is derived from the Ancient Greek stems pyrrhos meaning 'fire' and pteron meaning 'wing', in reference to the yellow wing patches. Some guidebooks have the binomial name written as Phylidonyris pyrrhoptera; however, a review in 2001 ruled that the genus name was masculine, hence pyrrhopterus is the correct specific name. Two subspecies are recognised: the nominate form P. p. pyrrhopterus over most of its range; and P. p. halmaturinus, which is restricted to Kangaroo Island and the Mount Lofty Ranges.<p>A 2004 molecular study showed its close relatives to be the New Holland honeyeater and the white-cheeked honeyeater, the three forming the now small genus Phylidonyris. A 2017 genetic study using both mitochondrial and nuclear DNA found the white-streaked honeyeater to also lie within the clade. The ancestor of the crescent honeyeater diverged from the lineage giving rise to the white-streaked, New Holland and white-cheeked honeyeaters around 7.5 million years ago. DNA analysis has shown honeyeaters to be related to the Pardalotidae (pardalotes), Acanthizidae (Australian warblers, scrubwrens, thornbills, etc.), and Maluridae (Australian fairy-wrens) in the large superfamily Meliphagoidea.<p>"Crescent honeyeater" has been designated as the official common name for the species by the International Ornithologists' Union (IOC). Other common names include chinawing, Egypt and horseshoe honeyeater. Gould called it the Tasmanian honeyeater.

Nombre científico

Phylidonyris pyrrhopterus

Autoridad

(Latham, 1801)

Orden

Passeriformes

Familia

Melifágidos

Género

Phylidonyris

Distribución y hábitat

There are records of scattered populations of the crescent honeyeater on the Central Tablelands, the Mid North Coast, and in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, and it is widespread in the areas of New South Wales south of Dharug National Park and east of Bathurst. In Victoria it is widespread across an area from the NSW border south west to Wallan with scattered populations recorded further west. It is widespread in Tasmania, except in the northeastern part of the state where it is more sparsely distributed. It is restricted to sclerophyll forest in eastern South Australia, where isolated populations have been recorded in the Mount Lofty Ranges and on Kangaroo Island. Local influxes have occurred outside its normal range in response to changes in habitat. Recorded population densities range from 0.3 birds per hectare (0.12/acre) near Orbost, to 8.7 pairs per hectare (3.5/acre) in Boola Boola State Forest, also in Victoria.<p>While the crescent honeyeater occupies a wide variety of habitats including coastal heath, rainforest, wet sclerophyll forest, mountain forest, alpine woodland, damp gullies and thick tea-tree scrub, they all demonstrate its preference for dense vegetation. It has been frequently recorded in wet sclerophyll forest dominated by eucalypts and with a thick mid-story and understory of shrubs such as blackwood, silver wattle, Cassinia, Prostanthera, and Correa. At higher altitudes it occurs in alpine heathlands and in woodlands of stunted eucalypt or conifers.<p>The movements of the crescent honeyeater within its range are incompletely known. There is widespread evidence of seasonal migration to lower altitudes in cooler months, yet a proportion of the population remains sedentary. Autumn and winter migration to the lowland coastal areas is seen in southern Tasmania, where it is not unusual to see it in urban parks and gardens, as well as in Gippsland, and the New South Wales Central and South Coast. In the Sydney region, some birds appear to move down from the Blue Mountains to Sydney for the cooler months, yet others remain in either location for the whole year. It is only seen in alpine and subalpine areas of the Snowy Mountains in warmer snow-free months (mainly October to April). Other populations of crescent honeyeaters follow a more nomadic pattern of following food sources; this has been recorded in the Blue Mountains and parts of Victoria.

Migración

Migración vertical

Comportamiento

Patrón migratorio: Migración vertical.

Conservación

Tendencia poblacional: estable.

Tendencia poblacional

estable