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[[Image:Filtered Img13036 a - Copy .JPG|thumb|350px|right|Subspecies ''L. p. fretensis''<br />Photo by {{user|jweeyh|jweeyh}}<br />[[Singapore]], June 2017]] | [[Image:Filtered Img13036 a - Copy .JPG|thumb|350px|right|Subspecies ''L. p. fretensis''<br />Photo by {{user|jweeyh|jweeyh}}<br />[[Singapore]], June 2017]] | ||
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==External Links== | ==External Links== | ||
Revision as of 23:06, 22 August 2017
Also known as: Nutmeg Mannikin, Spice Finch, Spotted Munia
- Lonchura punctulata
Identification
Photo by Alok Tewari
Dist. Gurgaon, Haryana, India, Jan-2015
12 cm (4¾ in)
Adult: both sexes identical with cinnamon-brown back and head, at least sometimes with darker face and throat. The breast and the rest of the underside is mostly white with each feather showing narrow borders and stripes in brown producing a scaly pattern. There seems to be variation (individual? geographic?) as to whether the scaly effect comes on gradually or at an abrubt line at the base of the throat (See the images in the gallery using the link below).
Juvenile is slightly lighter than the adult on the back, while the underside is buffy, gradually lighter towards undertail coverts and lacking in the scaly effect.
Bill is black in both adult and juveniles.
Distribution
The natural distribution is from Nepal through India and Sri Lanka and east from there through China and the far east to Philippines and Indonesia. In addition, this species is common in the pet trade, and has generally established populations that spreads from wherever escapes have happened. They are therefore present along the east coast of Australia, the Caribbean and the USA, just to mention a few of the locations where they have been introduced.
Taxonomy
Twelve subspecies share the original range. Birds in the pet trade are unlikely to come from any single subspecies, so introduced populations likely represent a mixture; even so, birds in Australia and the Caribbean do not look identical.
Subspecies
There are 12 subspecies[1]:
- L. p. punctulata: Nepal to Sikkim, India and Sri Lanka
- L. p. subundulata: North-eastern India (Assam) to Bhutan and western Myanmar
- L. p. yunnanensis: North-eastern Myanmar and south-western China
- L. p. topela: Southern China to northern Thailand, Indochina, Hainan and Taiwan
- L. p. cabanisi: Philippines (Luzon, Mindoro, Panay, Cebu, Calauit and Palawan)
- L. p. fretensis: Southern Thailand and Malay Peninsula to Sumatra and adjacent islands
- L. p. nisoria: Java, Bali, Lombok and Sumbawa
- L. p. sumbae: Sumba (Lesser Sundas)
- L. p. blasii: Flores, Timor, Tanimbar Islands and adjacent Lesser Sundas
- L. p. particeps: Sulawesi
- L. p. baweana: Bawean Island (Java Sea)
- L. p. holmesi: Southeast Borneo (Kalimantan)
Habitat
Lowland open areas with seeding grass. Has been observed at heights around 900m (3000 ft) on the approach to the Himalayas in Himachal Pradesh.
Behaviour
Normally occur in flocks.
Diet
Their main diet consists of grass seeds and rice grains.
Breeding
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Nesting can occur at any time of the year if conditions are favourable, and the nest is normally found at moderate height in a tree.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved June 2017)
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Scaly-breasted Munia. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 25 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Scaly-breasted_Munia
External Links
