From Opus

Alternative Name: Common Goldenback

Photo by Dr Manjeet Singh
Kuala Selangor Nature Park, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, November 2005

Dinopium javanense

[edit] Identification

Size - 30cm (12in)
Golden mantle and wings, red lower back and rump, white face with two black malar strips and largely black hindneck with white sides of neck together with whitish underparts marked with blackish scales, distinctive. Throat and face tinged rufous or buff. Has three toes. Brown iris.
Male: Crown and pointed crest red
Female: Crown and crest black with whitish spots from forehead to the tip of the crest.

Female
jweeyh
Singapore, July 2007

[edit] Similar Species

Difficult to separate from Greater Flameback (Goldenback) from lateral view, especially at a distance. Best separated by colour of iris and hindneck pattern.

[edit] Distribution

Asia: found from India to Indochina; Greater Sundas; Philippines.

[edit] Taxonomy

[edit] Subspecies

There are 5 subspecies^[1]:

• D. j. malabaricum:

• In wet woodlands of western India

• D. j. intermedium:

• In Bangladesh and Assam to Burma, south-western China and Indochina

• D. j. javanense:

• From Peninsular Thailand to Sumatra, Riau Archaepelago, western Java and Borneo

• D. j. exsul:

• On Eastern Java and Bali

• D. j. raveni:

• On Eraban Island and adjacent north-eastern Borneo

Spot-throated Flameback was formerly included in this species.

[edit] Habitat

Mangroves, forest edges, peat swamp forests, coastal scrub and plantations.

[edit] Behaviour

Usually seen in pairs, largely on tree trunks and stems probing soft bark for insects and grubs. Very social, regularly call out to each other.

[edit] Vocalisation

Voice: a sharp churrrr and klek-klek in flight.

[edit] References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2012. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to October 2012. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/downloadable-clements-checklist
2. Gill, F and D Donsker (Eds). 2012. IOC World Bird Names (version 3.2). Available at http://www.worldbirdnames.org/.
3. Birdforum thread discussing taxonomy of several species including this one

• List of references

[edit] External Links