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Black-browed babbler (Malacocincla perspicillata) (1 Viewer)

mb1848

mb1848

Well-known member
Just curious ...
mb1848 said:
Known only from one specimen collected by Schwaner 1843 and named in MS by Temminck.
https://www.xeno-canto.org/forum/topic/39672 possibly refound?
OD:
https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/141467#page/407/mode/1up .
I think there is at least one more specimen possibly a juvenile, the bill is small.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/...849)_-_Muscicapidae_-_bird_skin_specimen.jpeg .

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/...849)_-_Muscicapidae_-_bird_skin_specimen.jpeg .
Click to expand...
Though, sorry Mark, I cannot follow, maybe I'm stupid; but where is the second specimen (of Malacocincla perspicillata)? Or where would/could we find it? Simply; how come you " ... think there is at least one more specimen possibly a juvenile ..." ?

The two latter links doesn't take us, at least not me, to any (Black-browed) Babbler, but to specimens of the far better-known Grey-chested Jungle Flycatcher "Rhinomyias umbratilis (Strickland, 1849)", collected by "Schwaner" 1843 (on the label).

Or did you only meant that there's other specimens, on top of the perspicillata one, collected by Schwaner, in that certain year?

To me, simply following the "Zoekresultaten voor Malacocincla perspicillata", it looks like there's only one single specimen (No. RMNH.AVES.89412) ... [at least in the collections of Naturalis Biodiversity Center, here (or/alt. here, in an animated, all-around, circling view)].

Either way; a sensational rediscovery by "Panji Gusti Akbar" :t: (if verified and agreed upon, of course)!

Björn

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Birding ASIA 34 December 2020:
NEWSFLASH Missing for 170 years—the rediscovery of Black-browed Babbler Malacocincla perspicillata on Borneo
PANJI GUSTI AKBAR, TEGUH WILLY NUGROHO, MUHAMMAD SURANTO, MUHAMMAD RIZKY FAUZAN,
DODDY FERDIANSYAH, JOKO SAID TRISIYANTO & DING LI YONG

Some info e.g. here
 
I see authors keep a secrecy over the exact place of discovery. I wonder if anybody knows now why it is apparently so rare and localized?
 
There is a follow up paper with more detail in the next Forktail/Journal of Asian Ornithology (summer 2021), which will include (approximate) locality, habitat etc.
 
jurek said:
I see authors keep a secrecy over the exact place of discovery. I wonder if anybody knows now why it is apparently so rare and localized?
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Here is an explanation on the Xeno-canto website:

Why are recordings of certain species restricted?​


Some species are under extreme pressure due to trapping or harassment. The open availability of high-quality recordings of these species can make the problems even worse. For this reason, streaming and downloading of these recordings is disabled. Recordists are still free to share them on xeno-canto, but they will have to approve access to these recordings.
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Frequently Asked Questions :: xeno-canto

www.xeno-canto.org www.xeno-canto.org

Another reason is the destruction of habitat. Most habitat of the possible type locality has been vanished.

I hope James Eaton will recognize the rediscovery in the upcoming edition of Birds of Indonesia. And he should fix the error in the leg description.
 
jurek said:
I see authors keep a secrecy over the exact place of discovery. I wonder if anybody knows now why it is apparently so rare and localized?
Click to expand...
If I had to guess, I'd speculate that it's a naturally rare species restricted to some nasty habitat like peat swamp forest that doesn't get visited by birders very often, in a part of Borneo that also gets very little attention. Look at how relatively infrequently Grey-breasted Babbler gets seen, even though it's a quite widespread Sundaic species.
 
I think that many people will be relieved that it was rediscovered by a couple of locals who seem to have given greater ethical consideration to the discovery than researchers from some 'prestigious' institutions. I also think that Jan Wilczur deserves great credit for having depicted the bird with a dark eye and darker bill than the specimen in his illustration of this species in the HBW (Vol 12 plate 10).
 
Melanie said:
Here is an explanation on the Xeno-canto website:



Frequently Asked Questions :: xeno-canto

www.xeno-canto.org www.xeno-canto.org

Another reason is the destruction of habitat. Most habitat of the possible type locality has been vanished.

I hope James Eaton will recognize the rediscovery in the upcoming edition of Birds of Indonesia. And he should fix the error in the leg description.
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Melanie,

We were able to add a little information (including a slightly revised illustration) as I was fortunate enough to be aware of the rediscovery at the time. As publishing dates were so close, we decided against including a greater level of detail out of respect to the finders and authors.
The species account is actually one we made available for preview, please scroll through the images at https://www.lynxeds.com/product/birds-of-the-indonesian-archipelago-2/

Duncan - indeed, it's in a relatively unique habitat in an area that has remained unexplored ornithologically since it was collected. I've birded very close to the area but at the wrong elevation and possibly habitat-wise too, frustratingly!

A wonderful discovery, and about time too! Great work by the Indonesians involved, so pleased they were the ones who rediscovered it.

James
 
James Eaton said:
Melanie,

We were able to add a little information (including a slightly revised illustration) as I was fortunate enough to be aware of the rediscovery at the time. As publishing dates were so close, we decided against including a greater level of detail out of respect to the finders and authors.
The species account is actually one we made available for preview, please scroll through the images at https://www.lynxeds.com/product/birds-of-the-indonesian-archipelago-2/

Duncan - indeed, it's in a relatively unique habitat in an area that has remained unexplored ornithologically since it was collected. I've birded very close to the area but at the wrong elevation and possibly habitat-wise too, frustratingly!

A wonderful discovery, and about time too! Great work by the Indonesians involved, so pleased they were the ones who rediscovered it.

James
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Thanks James - so, it's in rugged karst slope forest. My favourite! Any ideas about that stonking great bill: a specialist snail-eater, perhaps?
 
That happened in version 6.8, September 2013. Comments in the spreadsheet:

"Black-browed Babbler is transferred from the genus Malacocincla to Turdinus, following Moyle et al. (2012); the scientific name for this species changes from Malacocincla perspicillata to Turdinus perspicillatus."

The referenced paper is "Phylogeny and biolgeography of the core Babblers (Aves: Timaliidae)" from Systematic Biology 61: 631-651.
 
AlexJB497 said:
There is a follow up paper with more detail in the next Forktail/Journal of Asian Ornithology (summer 2021), which will include (approximate) locality, habitat etc.
Click to expand...
Akbar, Nugroho, Suranto, Fauzan, Ferdiansyah, Trisiyanto & Ding Li Yong. No longer an enigma: rediscovery of Black-browed Babbler Malacocincla perspicillata in Kalimantan, Indonesia. Journal of Asian Ornithology [Forktail], No 37, (2021): 1–5.

[pdf there]
 
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