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Paradise kingfisher
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Paradise kingfisher
The paradise kingfishers (genus Tanysiptera) are a group of tree kingfishers endemic to New Guinea — with the exception of two species also present in the Moluccas and Queensland.
The genus was erected by the Irish zoologist Nicholas Aylward Vigors in 1825. The type species is the common paradise kingfisher. The name Tanysiptera is from classical Greek tanusipteros meaning "long-feathered". The birds in the genus have distinctive long tail streamers.
The centre of paradise kingfishers is New Guinea: Several species occur on this 786,000 km2 large island. In addition, there are several island endemisms that occur on islands of the Moluccas and the Louisiade Archipelago. Most paradise kingfishers are resident birds. The buff-breasted paradise kingfisher, which also occurs in the extreme northeast of Australia, moves to New Guinea in the winter half-year. The common paradise kingfisher has the biggest spread among the paradisiacis birds. It occurs in 15 subspecies on New Guinea and islands of the Moluccas and the Louisiade Archipelago. On New Guinea itself, several subspecies of the common paradise kingfisher live there. The remaining subspecies are limited in their spread to individual islands or island groups. The red-breasted paradise kingfisher and the brown-headed paradise kingfisher only occur on New Guinea. The little paradise kingfisher has its residence on the Aru Islands Regency and in the outermost south of New Guinea. It is assumed that the little paradise kingfisher comes from the common paradise kingfisher and developed on the Aru Islands Regency to an independent species. From this place it settled in New Guinea, where today the distribution area of the two species overlaps. These two species do not produce any natural hybrids. The Kofiau paradise kingfisher is also closely related to the common paradise kingfisher, which only occurs on Kofiau.
Most species of paradise-kingfishers are commonly observed in their natural habitat within the interior forests of New Guinea. However, the species itself has been known to be attracted to rivers and coasts and they demonstrate an ability to fly over large bodies of water, which is observed in the Buff-Breasted paradise kingfisher that migrates to Queensland, Australia during breeding season. An aspect found within the species is the syndactyly in the feet, where the third and fourth toes of the bird are fused. There are several arguments as to what benefits syndactyly proposes; one is that syndactyl feet may provide more strength for perching on branches. This may aid the birds when hunting for prey within their rainforest environment. Others claim nest in termite mounds, syndactyly aids paradise-kingfishers in excavating nest cavities for their young. Finally, there are arguments that syndactyly has no benefit to the birds at all. The plumage of juvenile paradise-kingfishers differs from that of adults until they undergo a partial molt in which only the flight feathers are retained, then becoming similar in appearance to that of adults. In buff-breasted paradise-kingfishers, adults wear colorful plumage, have bright beaks, and sport long tails accounting for nearly half the length of the birds. Juveniles have duller plumage, dark-colored bills, and lack the long tail streamers of adults.
Most paradise-kingfishers are extremely territorial, with most birds living in territorial pairs but choosing to forage alone. Some studies also claim that this territoriality is attributed to the defence of resources within the area. Upon observation of the breeding habits of the buff-breasted paradise-kingfisher, it found that they to actively defend their territory at the vocalisation of other intruder birds and chases involving two to four males were common, to the extent of males causing damage on each other such as broken wings. Paradise kingfishers are classified as hole-nesters and use their webbed feet to excavate nest holes in termite mounds. Most species chose arboreal termite mounds located on the sides of trees about 3–4.5m from the ground and those that are still actively inhabited by termites. This is because studies show that live termitariums are stronger when inhabited and become fragile after the insects leave, making them more susceptible to predators.
The paradise kingfisher species is also known to have a wide array of vocalisation. Territorial calls often consisted of rhythmic syllables that were ascending in nature and made in the middle to upper forest levels. Studies observing the species witnessed common vocalisation when the bird approaches the nest, in reassurance to their partner and to sound off an alarm when another predator is within their territory. Young kingfishers demonstrate loud vocalisation around two weeks old, especially during feeding time when expecting the parents return. The different species of birds tend to be most vocal during breeding season however majority expend a great deal of time and energy tunnelling out their nests in the chosen termite mounds up to two weeks at length.
Paradise-kingfishers are known to have long-term bonds with each other and practice social monogamy. Most birds return to the same territory with the same partner during the breeding season, unless their partner had died in which case, they replaced them and were found in a new territory. Most species in the region are breeding residents except for the buff-breasted paradise-kingfisher that nests in Australia but has been known to migrate to New Guinea, where most of them have populations. The paradise kingfisher species also demonstrates social cooperation, though this has only been observed within the buff breasted species of the genus. During the breeding season, it is common to observe an additional male joining the breeding pair to help protect the territory and care for nestlings. The exact reason for this is unknown; however, one argument states that there may be benefits involved the additional male, as it gives them access to possible future partners in the form of the nestlings or the breeding female.
Paradise-kingfishers nest in active terrestrial termite mounds, typically found at the base of trees within the rainforests in which the birds are located. The preference of active termite mounds has been hypothesised to be because abandoned termite mounds become weak and fragile over time, thus making the nest unsuitable for the birds as it is easier for natural predators to infiltrate. Furthermore, during breeding season, adult kingfishers locate new nests different from that of the previous year, once abandoning the nest after breeding season ends, termites in active termitariums work towards repairing the nesting hole left by the birds to raise the young. The nest of the paradise kingfisher is created by the pair of birds flying repeatedly at the termitarium of choice, striking it with their beaks until they manage to puncture a hole into the hard surface. From there, the birds are able to excavate a space within the termitarium using their feet and create an egg chamber "about 13 cm in diameter". These egg chambers are located at the end of a tunnel within the termite nests. Buff-breasted paradise-kingfishers have been found to create nests located on ground level. Due to the nature of the nests, most paradise-kingfishers have a specific odour to their nests due to the lack of sanitation that occurs within these units. The clutch of a paradise kingfisher consists of around one to three eggs and the young stay within the nest until old enough to leave. Both paradise-kingfisher parents are known to care for the young, incubating and feeding the chicks for 25 days until time to fledge.
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Paradise kingfisher
The paradise kingfishers (genus Tanysiptera) are a group of tree kingfishers endemic to New Guinea — with the exception of two species also present in the Moluccas and Queensland.
The genus was erected by the Irish zoologist Nicholas Aylward Vigors in 1825. The type species is the common paradise kingfisher. The name Tanysiptera is from classical Greek tanusipteros meaning "long-feathered". The birds in the genus have distinctive long tail streamers.
The centre of paradise kingfishers is New Guinea: Several species occur on this 786,000 km2 large island. In addition, there are several island endemisms that occur on islands of the Moluccas and the Louisiade Archipelago. Most paradise kingfishers are resident birds. The buff-breasted paradise kingfisher, which also occurs in the extreme northeast of Australia, moves to New Guinea in the winter half-year. The common paradise kingfisher has the biggest spread among the paradisiacis birds. It occurs in 15 subspecies on New Guinea and islands of the Moluccas and the Louisiade Archipelago. On New Guinea itself, several subspecies of the common paradise kingfisher live there. The remaining subspecies are limited in their spread to individual islands or island groups. The red-breasted paradise kingfisher and the brown-headed paradise kingfisher only occur on New Guinea. The little paradise kingfisher has its residence on the Aru Islands Regency and in the outermost south of New Guinea. It is assumed that the little paradise kingfisher comes from the common paradise kingfisher and developed on the Aru Islands Regency to an independent species. From this place it settled in New Guinea, where today the distribution area of the two species overlaps. These two species do not produce any natural hybrids. The Kofiau paradise kingfisher is also closely related to the common paradise kingfisher, which only occurs on Kofiau.
Most species of paradise-kingfishers are commonly observed in their natural habitat within the interior forests of New Guinea. However, the species itself has been known to be attracted to rivers and coasts and they demonstrate an ability to fly over large bodies of water, which is observed in the Buff-Breasted paradise kingfisher that migrates to Queensland, Australia during breeding season. An aspect found within the species is the syndactyly in the feet, where the third and fourth toes of the bird are fused. There are several arguments as to what benefits syndactyly proposes; one is that syndactyl feet may provide more strength for perching on branches. This may aid the birds when hunting for prey within their rainforest environment. Others claim nest in termite mounds, syndactyly aids paradise-kingfishers in excavating nest cavities for their young. Finally, there are arguments that syndactyly has no benefit to the birds at all. The plumage of juvenile paradise-kingfishers differs from that of adults until they undergo a partial molt in which only the flight feathers are retained, then becoming similar in appearance to that of adults. In buff-breasted paradise-kingfishers, adults wear colorful plumage, have bright beaks, and sport long tails accounting for nearly half the length of the birds. Juveniles have duller plumage, dark-colored bills, and lack the long tail streamers of adults.
Most paradise-kingfishers are extremely territorial, with most birds living in territorial pairs but choosing to forage alone. Some studies also claim that this territoriality is attributed to the defence of resources within the area. Upon observation of the breeding habits of the buff-breasted paradise-kingfisher, it found that they to actively defend their territory at the vocalisation of other intruder birds and chases involving two to four males were common, to the extent of males causing damage on each other such as broken wings. Paradise kingfishers are classified as hole-nesters and use their webbed feet to excavate nest holes in termite mounds. Most species chose arboreal termite mounds located on the sides of trees about 3–4.5m from the ground and those that are still actively inhabited by termites. This is because studies show that live termitariums are stronger when inhabited and become fragile after the insects leave, making them more susceptible to predators.
The paradise kingfisher species is also known to have a wide array of vocalisation. Territorial calls often consisted of rhythmic syllables that were ascending in nature and made in the middle to upper forest levels. Studies observing the species witnessed common vocalisation when the bird approaches the nest, in reassurance to their partner and to sound off an alarm when another predator is within their territory. Young kingfishers demonstrate loud vocalisation around two weeks old, especially during feeding time when expecting the parents return. The different species of birds tend to be most vocal during breeding season however majority expend a great deal of time and energy tunnelling out their nests in the chosen termite mounds up to two weeks at length.
Paradise-kingfishers are known to have long-term bonds with each other and practice social monogamy. Most birds return to the same territory with the same partner during the breeding season, unless their partner had died in which case, they replaced them and were found in a new territory. Most species in the region are breeding residents except for the buff-breasted paradise-kingfisher that nests in Australia but has been known to migrate to New Guinea, where most of them have populations. The paradise kingfisher species also demonstrates social cooperation, though this has only been observed within the buff breasted species of the genus. During the breeding season, it is common to observe an additional male joining the breeding pair to help protect the territory and care for nestlings. The exact reason for this is unknown; however, one argument states that there may be benefits involved the additional male, as it gives them access to possible future partners in the form of the nestlings or the breeding female.
Paradise-kingfishers nest in active terrestrial termite mounds, typically found at the base of trees within the rainforests in which the birds are located. The preference of active termite mounds has been hypothesised to be because abandoned termite mounds become weak and fragile over time, thus making the nest unsuitable for the birds as it is easier for natural predators to infiltrate. Furthermore, during breeding season, adult kingfishers locate new nests different from that of the previous year, once abandoning the nest after breeding season ends, termites in active termitariums work towards repairing the nesting hole left by the birds to raise the young. The nest of the paradise kingfisher is created by the pair of birds flying repeatedly at the termitarium of choice, striking it with their beaks until they manage to puncture a hole into the hard surface. From there, the birds are able to excavate a space within the termitarium using their feet and create an egg chamber "about 13 cm in diameter". These egg chambers are located at the end of a tunnel within the termite nests. Buff-breasted paradise-kingfishers have been found to create nests located on ground level. Due to the nature of the nests, most paradise-kingfishers have a specific odour to their nests due to the lack of sanitation that occurs within these units. The clutch of a paradise kingfisher consists of around one to three eggs and the young stay within the nest until old enough to leave. Both paradise-kingfisher parents are known to care for the young, incubating and feeding the chicks for 25 days until time to fledge.
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