Seasonal movements in small sunbird (Nectarinia minima) and emerald dove (Chalcophaps indica)

2 Pages·1996·1.3 MB·

by  V Santharam

296 JOURNAL BOMBAYNATURALHIST. SOCIETY, Vol. 93(1996)
NESTS OF THICKBILLED FLOWERPECKER
16.
In his “birds of kerala”, Dr. Salim Ali One of the nests was at an height of2 m from
mentions that there is no specific nesting data on the the ground, on a bush while an exceptional nest was
Thickbilled Flowerpecker (Dicaeum agile) in Kerala. about 18 m from the ground, on a Terminalia tree.
This species is common in the Peechi-Vazhani Three others were placed at heights ranging from
Wildlife Sanctuary (Trichur district) and I had the 3.5-11 m the known range, according to the
opportunity to locate five nests of this species. handbook. The nests were located in fairly disturbed
The nests were seen between the months forests and in Teak-Bombax plantations.
December to March. The majority (four out of five)
of the nests were seen in the months of February to Acknowledgement
March. One nest, that was first seen under
construction on 3 1 December 1 991 had a young one These observations were made during the
sitting outside it on 1 February 1992, suggesting that course of my research on the ecology of
the period of incubation and fledging is less than a woodpeckers, supported by WCS/The New York
month. Zoological Society, NY, U.S.A.
The nests were pouch-shaped and suspended
fromthin branches or twigs. They were constructed January 24, 1995 V. SANTHARAM
with vegetable matters (fibres) and were well 68, I Floor, Santhome High Road,
camouflaged. Madras-600 28.
SEASONAL MOVEMENTS IN SMALL SUNBIRD (NECTARINIA MINIMA) AND
17.
EMERALD DOVE CHALCOPHAPS INDICA)
(
The lower altitudes of the Peechi-Vazhani becomes scarce at the foothills of Peechi and
Wildlife Sanctuary (Trichur—district, Kerala) have gradually disappears. It then makes its appearance
four species of sunbirds Purple Nectarinia again towards the end of the dry season, in early
(
asiatica), Purplerumped (V. zeylonica), May, after the first few summer showers and a few
N
Maroonbreasted lotenia Small (N. minima) and weeks before the onset of the monsoon (in early
( . ),
the Little Spiderhunter Araclmothera longirostris). June).
(
Of these, all but the Small Sunbird are permanent Elsewhere, in the upper reaches and stret-
residents though the Spiderhunter is the least ches bordering the semi-evergreen forest, I have
common and patchily distributed. The sightings seen the Small Sunbird in February-March, the
of the Small Sunbirds at Peechi (foothills) sugges- peak of the dry season. During the months the
ted a pattern indicating the bird has regular sea- bird visits the Peechi foothills, it is quite com-
sonal movements that are perhaps linked with the mon. Incidentally, in the other months, the
rains. Purple and Purplerumped sunbirds are the
My
sightings of the Small Sunbird have been commonest.
just before and after the southwest monsoon. In Another bird that appears to show some
the monsoon months ofAugust and September, it is seasonal movements is the Emerald Dove. It is
quite common. It can then be seen not only in the quite common in the environs of Peechi in the
forest areas but also in the campuses like the months of August-October. It does not dis-
Veterinary College Campus at Mannuthy, on the appear totally in the dry months like the Small
outskirts ofTrichur town. After September, the bird Sunbird, though its numbers are definitely lower
MISCELLANEOUS NOTES 297
than during the wet season. I have not seen its Acknowledgements
nests or any signs of its breeding in my study
These observations were made during the
areas.
course of my research on the ecology of
Seasonal movements in nectar-and fruit eat-
woodpeckers, supported by WCS/The New York
ing birds have been recorded in literature. It may
Zoological Society, N.Y., U.S.A.
be interesting to investigate such movements in
order to understand the habitat requirements of January 3 995 V. SANTHARAM
1 , 1
these specialized species for conservation plann- 68, I Floor Santhome High Road,
ing. Madras 600 028.
VARIATIONS IN OLIVEBACKED SUNBIRDS NECTARINIA JUGULARIS
18.
(LINNAEUS) OF ANDAMAN, CAR, CENTRAL AND GREAT NICOBAR ISLAND
While cataloguing the sunbirds in the BNHS Andaman towards Tavoi, Myanmar. Narcondam
Collection (Catalogue Part 37), I had noticed the birds are slightly, but consistently larger in their wing
mm
differences among birds within the same race ofthe and tail measurements: male wing 56-60 (53-
mm
speciesNectariniajugularis, collected from different 55 in Andaman birds), tail 33-34 (30-31 in
islands of the Andamans and Nicobars. I critically Andaman). The pectoral tufts are brighter in the
studied the 32 specimens ofN.jugularisinnumerable Andaman birds. In the absence of any other major
times, arranging them island-wise, and each time difference, Narcondam birds are grouped with the
noticed the variations among them. The 25 Andaman birds under the same subspecies.
subspecies of N. jugularis, listed in the checklist of
the birds of the world (A complete checklist of the Nectarinia jugularis klossi (Richmond)
Birds ofthe World, Richard Howard and Alick Moore (Great Nicobar)
1980, Oxford University Press) are distributed
mainly on the islands of south and southeast Asia, There are two groups of specimens of this
from the Andamans, Malaysia, Singapore, Sumatra, subspecies, one from Campbell Bay in Great Nicobar
Java, Borneo, Philippines, Sula Is., Kei Is., New (n=4) and the other (n=6) from islands to the north,
Guinea to the Solomon Islands east of New Guinea and below Car Nicobar (proselia). There is almost
(The Reader’s Digest Great World Atlas, 1981, p. no difference in wing and tail sizes between these
94-95). Out of the 25 subspecies, 3 are in the Indian two groups, but birds from Great Nicobar have a
list, found in the various islands of Andamans and larger bill (20.5 mm) than those from Trinkut and
Nicobars. Nancowry (16.5 - 18 mm). The pectoral tufts in the
The 19 islands comprising Nicobars are more northern birds are almost as bright as those in
widely dispersed than the 204 in Andamans, hence proselia, whereas in the southern Campbell Bay
chances of geographic isolation or the formation of birds, they are duller. With a larger series of birds it
races are more in the Nicobars. may be possible to separate these two groups into
We
races. do not have access to the topotypes of
Nectarinia jugularis andamanica (Hume) Baker’s blanfordi from Kondol Island, which is
(Andaman group) treated as a synonym ofklossi, but it is possible that
a comparison ofskins from Great Nicobar with those
We have specimens both from Andaman (n=6) from Kondol Island may show reasons for their
and Narcondam (n=6), an island 128 km from separation.