Rail-babbler

Eupetes macrocerus

(Photo from Astronomy to Zoology)

Common name:
rail-babbler (en); tordo-de-cauda-comprida (pt); eupète à longue queue (fr); zordala colilarga (es); rallenflöter (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Cinclosomatidae

Range:
This species has two disjunct subspecies, E.m. macrocerus is found in southern Thailand, peninsular Malaysia and Sumatra, while E.m. borneensis is only found in the island of Borneo.

Size:
These birds are 28-30 cm long and weigh 66-72 g.

Habitat:
The rail-babbler is mostly found in tall, primary rainforests, also using swamp forests, logged forests with closed canopy and heath forests. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 1.060 m.

Diet:
They forage on the ground, taking insects such as cicadas and beetles, as well as spiders.

Breeding:
Rail-babblers breed in January-June. The nest is a shallow cup made of plant fibres, placed on the forest floor on top of accumulated dead leaves. There the female lays 2 eggs. There is no available information regarding the incubation and fledging periods.

Conservation:
IUCN status - NT (Near-Threatened)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as scarce to fairly common over much of its range, although locally numerous. Although precise data on population trends are lacking, a moderately rapid and on-going decline is likely to be occurring as a result of habitat loss and degradation across its range.

Spotted quail-thrush

Cinclosoma punctatum

Photo by Patrick Ingremeau (Oiseaux)

Common name:
spotted quail-thrush (en); tordo-codorniz-malhado (pt); cinclosome pointillé (fr); zordala manchada (es); fleckenflöter (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Cinclosomatidae

Range:
This species is endemic to eastern Australia, being found from central Queensland to Victoria and Tasmania.

Size:
These birds are 24-30 cm long and have a wingspan of 32-40 cm. They weigh 85-145 g.

Habitat:
The spotted quail-thrush is found in dry forests and savannas, namely sclerophyll woodlands dominated by Eucalyptus trees with sparse understorey vegetation, and sometimes also in heathlands.

Diet:
They are omnivorous, taking insects such as beetles and grasshoppers, but also the seeds
of grasses, sedges, legumes and other plants. They are also know to eat small vertebrates.

Breeding:
Spotted quail-thrushes breed in August-November. The nest is a cup made of grass, leaves, bark, roots and twigs, placed on the ground, often in a shallow depression, in the shelter of a log or large stone, or at the base of a fern, shrub, tree or tussock of grass. There the female lays 2-5 stone coloured eggs with darker blotches, which she incubates alone for about 14 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge around 14 days after hatching, but continue to receive food from the parents for a few more weeks. Each pair may raise 2-3 broods per season.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a large breeding range and is reported to be local and generally scarce. This population is estimated to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat loss and degradation, but it is not considered threatened at present.

Eastern whipbird

Psophodes olivaceus

(Photo from Flickr)

Common name:

eastern whipbird (en); pássaro-chicote-oriental (pt); psophode à tête noire (fr); zordala crestada oriental (es); schwarzkopf-wippflöter (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Cinclosomatidae

Range:

This Australian endemic is found from northern Queensland to Victoria along the coastal band of eastern Australia.

Size:

The eastern whipbird in 26-30 cm long and weighs 47-72 g.

Habitat:

These secretive birds are found in dense vegetation near the ground, in wet habitats including rainforests, wet eucalypt forests and dense scrub near watercourses.

Diet:

Eastern whipbirds hunt insects and other invertebrates from leaf litter on the forest floor.

Breeding:

These monogamous birds breed in July-December. The female builds a cup nest of sticks and bark, which is lined with finer grasses, and placed in dense vegetation near the ground. There she lays 2-3 pale blue eggs with blackish splotches, which she incubates alone for 18 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 12 days after hatching, but continue to be tended by their parents for the next 6 weeks. Each pair raises 1-2 clutches per season.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)

Although the global population size has not been quantified, this species is reported to be locally common over its large breeding range. This population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat destruction.