Alternative names: Silky Crow; Brown-winged Bird-of-paradise
Includes: Morotai Paradise-crow, Halmahera Paradise-crow, Obi Paradise-crow
- Lycocorax pyrrhopterus
Identification
42cm.
- Slightly glossy blackish dusky-brown head
- Paler and greyer with dull blue-grey gloss or sheen mantle to uppertail-coverts
- Brown upperwing: brown flight feathers are striking in flight
- Obiensis and morotensis with white patch at concealed bases of primaries
- Glossy blackish-brown tail
- Underparts as mantle but paler and with blue-green gloss
Sexes are similar but the female is slightly smaller than the male. Juveniles are more brownish.
Distribution
Moluccan Islands (locally known as Maluku islands) in Indonesia.
Locally common restricted-range species.
Taxonomy
This is not a true Crow but a member of the Bird-of-Paradise family Paradisaeidae.
Reference [3] suggests that all 3 subspecies might better be treated as separate species: morotensis ("Morotai Paradise-crow", L. morotensis), pyrrhopterus ("Halmahera Paradise-crow", L. pyrrhopterus), and obiensis (Obi Paradise-crow, L. obiensis).
Subspecies
Clements recognises 3 subspecies [1], which may be elevated to separate species:
- L. p. morotensis: "Morotai Paradise-crow". Morotai and Rau (Northern Moluccas)
- L. p. pyrrhopterus: "Halmahera Paradise-crow". Bacan, Kasiruta and Halmahera (Northern Moluccas)
- L. p. obiensis: "Obi Paradise-crow". Obi and Bisa (Northern Moluccas)
Habitat
Lowland, hill and montane forest. Also in fairl open agricultural land with some trees and scrub. Occurs from sea-level up to 1700m (on Bacan).
Behaviour
The diet consists mainly of fruits and some arthropods.
Forages usually alone or in twos, sometimes in smaller groups or with Pigeons.
Breeding season from December to early June. It is one of the few monogamous birds-of-paradise. The nest is an open bowl-shaped structure made of curled vine stems, tendrils, dead leaves and/or moss. It's placed 4 - 15m above the ground in a tree fork. Lays 1 egg.
No informations about movements.
References
- Clements, JF. 2009. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2009. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.
- 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
- Eaton, J.A.. van Balen, B. Brickle, N.W., B Rheindk F.E. (2021). Birds of the Indonesian Archipelago, Greater Sundas and Wallacea. Lynx Edicions. Barcelona. Second Edition
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2023) Paradise-crow. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 17 August 2023 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Paradise-crow
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.
