Cyprus Wheatear
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Cyprus Wheatear | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservation status | ||||||||||||||
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
| Binomial name | ||||||||||||||
| Oenanthe cypriaca (Homeyer, 1884) |
The Cyprus Wheatear or Cyprus Pied Wheatear ( Oenanthe cypriaca) is a small, 14-15 cm long passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae. It was formerly treated as a subspecies of Pied Wheatear but Sluys and van den Berg (1982)[2] argued that the form deserved full species status, on the basis of differences in biometrics and especially song, and the lack of sexual plumage dimorphism in cypriaca.
This migratory insectivorous species was formerly considered a race of Pied Wheatear. It breeds only in Cyprus, and winters in southern Sudan and Ethiopia.
This species closely resembles Pied Wheatear, although it has slightly more black on the tail and back. The sexes are similar in appearance, a fact first documented by Christensen (1974).[3]
The song is distinctive, and very different from that of Pied Wheatear. It consists of a series of high-pitched buzzing bursts.[4]
The song-perches utilised by this species are high for a wheatear, typically being 5 to 10 metres above ground. It often breeds in woodland habitats, unlike other wheatears (Oliver 1990[5] suggested that it occupies the ecological niche used elsewhere in the Western Palearctic by the Common Redstart).
[edit] References
- ^ BirdLife International (2004). Oenanthe cypriaca. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 5 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
- ^ Ronald Sluys, Martin van den Berg (1982 )On the Specific Status of the Cyprus Pied Wheatear Oenanthe cypriaca Ornis Scandinavica, Vol. 13, No. 2, pp. 123-128
- ^ Christensen, Steen (1974) Notes on the plumage of female Cyprus Pied Wheatear Ornis. Scand. 5:47-52
- ^ Bergman, H. H. (1983) Some peculiarities of Cyprus bird voices. Cyprus Ornithological Society (1969) Bird Report 8:41-54
- ^ Oliver, P. J. (1990) Observations on the Cyprus Pied Wheatear Sandgrouse 12:25-30
[edit] Further reading
[edit] Identification
- Small, Brian J. (1994) Separation of Pied Wheatear and Cyprus Pied Wheatear. Dutch Birding 16: 177–185
- Flint, Peter (1995) Separation of Cyprus Pied Wheatear from Pied Wheatear British Birds 88: 230–241
 |
This Cyprus-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 This article about an Old World flycatcher is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
