Blue-rumped Pitta

Photo by James Eaton
Cat Tien NP, Vietnam, March 2008

Hydrornis soror

Identification

• Rufous-lilac on forehead and forecrown becoming bright blue on hindcrown and nape
• Rufous-lilac on side of head
• Orange-rufous posterior superciliary stripe, black postocular stripe
• Bright green upperparts
• Bright blue rump
• Green tail
• Dusky brown wing, green edged
• Orange-rufous underparts, often narrow broken black upper breastband
• Dark brown to sepia eye
• Pale pinkish-horn bill

Females are duller all over with less blue on nape. Juveniles are dark brown above, have buffish streaks on crown, buffish spotted upperparts, plain dirty cinnamon below, paler buffish-pink on throat and often some black spots on upper breast.

Distribution

Found in southern China, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand.
Fairly common to scarce in its range.

Taxonomy

There are 5 subspecies:

• H. s. tonkinensis in southern China (Guangxi) and northern Vietnam (Tonkin)
• H. s. petersi in northern Vietnam and Laos
• H. s. douglasi on Hainan, China
• H. s. soror in southeast Laos and Vietnam
• H. s. flynnstonei in southeast Thailand and southwest Cambodia.

Formerly placed in genus Pitta.

Habitat

Wide range of habitats: moist riverine primary evergreen forest, secondary forest, logged forest, mixed forest with bamboo or on craggy limestone ground.

Behaviour

Skulking and secretive.
Feeds on snails, probably insects and earthworms also taken. Uses rocks and stones for smashing snail shells.
Breeding recorded in June in Vietnam. The domed nest is made of dead leaves, dry rattan leaves, stripes of palm leaves and black rootlets. It's placed low in a tree or palm. Lays 3 eggs.
Most probably a sedentary species.

References

1. Clements, JF. 2010. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2010. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/Clements%206.5.xls/view
2. Dickinson, EC, ed. 2003. The Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World. 3rd ed., with updates to October 2008 (Corrigenda 8). Princeton: Princeton Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0691117010
3. Gill, F and D Donsker (Eds). 2010. IOC World Bird Names (version 2.7). Available at http://www.worldbirdnames.org/.
4. Del Hoyo, J, A Elliot, and D Christie, eds. 2003. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 8: Broadbills to Tapaculos. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8487334504

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Blue-rumped Pitta. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 24 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Blue-rumped_Pitta

External Links

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