Photo © by dandsblair
Arfak Mountains, New Guinea, 30 September, 2022
- Ailuroedus arfakianus
Identification
29cm.
- Emerald green plumage, paler below, dark green chest
- Heavy whitish spotting on head, underparts and mantle
- Whitish head with blackish crown with fine pale spots
- Black spotted throat
- Clear white patch behind black ear-coverts
- Long tail, greater coverts and secondaries finely tipped white
- Whitish bill
- Red eye
Sexes similar, females are slightly smaller
Similar Species
Green Catbird can appear similar but has a more or less uniform green head. White-eared Catbird is smaller, has an unmarked brown crown and a distinctive white ear-patch.
Distribution
Mountains of Huon Peninsula, northeast New Guinea
Taxonomy
=Subspecies
Two subspecies recognized[1]:
- A. a. misoliensis on Misool Island (west Papuan islands)
- A. a. arfakianus in western New Guinea (Arfak Mountains of Vogelkop Peninsula)
Formerly included in Spotted Catbird.
Habitat
Tropical rainforest.
Behaviour
Feeds mostly on fruits. Takes also some flowers, stems, sap and animals (mostly arthropods).
Known to cache fruit in niches for later. Forages singly, in pairs, family groups or mixed-species flocks with other fruit-eating birds.
Breeding season August to January. They form long-standing monogamous pairs. They make a bowl-shaped nest of sticks and leaves about 2-10m above the ground. 1-3 plain cream coloured eggs are laid. Incubation is 19-25 days, and nestlings fledge at about 18-22 days.
A resident species.
Vocalisations
The name Catbird derives from its distinctive call, like meowing heard mainly at dawn and dusk.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, S. M. Billerman, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2022. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2022. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Gill, F and D Donsker (Eds). 2016. IOC World Bird Names (version 6.2). Available at http://www.worldbirdnames.org/.
- Del Hoyo, J, A Elliott, and D Christie, eds. 2009. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 14: Bush-shrikes to Old World Sparrows. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8496553507
- Simpson, K and N Day. 1998. Field Guide to the Birds of Australia. London: Christopher Helm. ISBN 0-7136-4877-5
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Arfak Catbird. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 26 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Arfak_Catbird
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
