Broadbill
Encyclopedia
The broadbills are a family of small passerine
bird
s, Eurylaimidae. The Smithornis and Pseudocalyptomena species occur in sub-Saharan Africa
; the rest extend from the eastern Himalayas
to Sumatra
and Borneo
. The family possibly also includes the Sapayoa from the Neotropics and the asities
from Madagascar
.
is in contrast dull and streaked. The bills, which give the family their common name, are broad, flat and hooked.
and the African Green Broadbill
are primarily frugivores (which also take some insects as well).
They are generally gregarious, with many species moving about in flocks of about 20 individuals. Broadbills attach their purse-shaped nests to suspended vines, and leave a tail of fibres hanging below it. This gives the nest the appearance of being random debris caught in the tree, an effect further enhanced by the birds covering the nest with lichen and spider webs. Broadbills typically lay two to three eggs.
, a family endemic to Madagascar
, are sometimes included in the broadbills. It has been suggested that the group is not monophyletic.
There are five subfamilies of broadbills.
FAMILY: EURYLAIMIDAE
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s, Eurylaimidae. The Smithornis and Pseudocalyptomena species occur in sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa as a geographical term refers to the area of the African continent which lies south of the Sahara. A political definition of Sub-Saharan Africa, instead, covers all African countries which are fully or partially located south of the Sahara...
; the rest extend from the eastern Himalayas
Himalayas
The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...
to Sumatra
Sumatra
Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
and Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
. The family possibly also includes the Sapayoa from the Neotropics and the asities
Asity
The asities, are a family, the Philepittidae, of small suboscine passerine birds. The family consists of four species in two genera endemic to Madagascar. They were thought to have been related to the pittas, hence the scientific name of the family, but a 1993 study suggested that they are actually...
from Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
.
Description
Many of the broadbills are brightly coloured birds. They range from 13 to 28 centimetres in length, and live in the dense canopies of wet forests, allowing them to hide despite their brightly coloured plumage. The plumage of the three African broadbills in the genus SmithornisSmithornis
Smithornis is a genus of bird in the Eurylaimidae family.It contains the following species:* African Broadbill * Rufous-sided Broadbill * Grey-headed Broadbill...
is in contrast dull and streaked. The bills, which give the family their common name, are broad, flat and hooked.
Behaviour
The broadbills are for the most part insectivorous and carnivorous. Prey taken include insects, spiders, centipedes and millipedes, as well as lizards and tree frogs. Prey is obtained by sallying from a perch to snatch it in flight, and gleaning the prey off leaves and branches while flying. Some species may take some fruit, but only the green broadbills of the genus CalyptomenaCalyptomena
The bird genus Calyptomena, first described by Thomas Stamford Raffles in 1822, consists of three species of south-east Asian broadbills with primarily green plumages...
and the African Green Broadbill
African Green Broadbill
The Grauer's Broadbill or African Green Broadbill, Pseudocalyptomena graueri, is a species of bird in the Eurylaimidae family. It is monotypic within the genus Pseudocalyptomena...
are primarily frugivores (which also take some insects as well).
They are generally gregarious, with many species moving about in flocks of about 20 individuals. Broadbills attach their purse-shaped nests to suspended vines, and leave a tail of fibres hanging below it. This gives the nest the appearance of being random debris caught in the tree, an effect further enhanced by the birds covering the nest with lichen and spider webs. Broadbills typically lay two to three eggs.
Taxonomy
The Sapayoa was originally classified in the group Pipridae, according to at least one author, the genus more accurately fits the broadbill family. The four species of asitiesAsity
The asities, are a family, the Philepittidae, of small suboscine passerine birds. The family consists of four species in two genera endemic to Madagascar. They were thought to have been related to the pittas, hence the scientific name of the family, but a 1993 study suggested that they are actually...
, a family endemic to Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
, are sometimes included in the broadbills. It has been suggested that the group is not monophyletic.
Species
FAMILY: EURYLAIMIDAE
- Subfamily: Sapyornithinae (probably better considered a distinct family)
- Genus: Sapayoa
- Sapayoa, Sapayoa aenigma
- Genus: Sapayoa
- Subfamily: Smithornithinae - typical African broadbills
- Genus: SmithornisSmithornisSmithornis is a genus of bird in the Eurylaimidae family.It contains the following species:* African Broadbill * Rufous-sided Broadbill * Grey-headed Broadbill...
- African BroadbillAfrican BroadbillThe African Broadbill, Smithornis capensis, is a species of bird in the Eurylaimidae family.It is found in Angola, Botswana, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria,...
, Smithornis capensis - Grey-headed BroadbillGrey-headed BroadbillThe Grey-headed Broadbill, Smithornis sharpei, is a species of bird in the Eurylaimidae family.It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Nigeria....
, Smithornis sharpei - Rufous-sided BroadbillRufous-sided BroadbillThe Rufous-sided Broadbill, Smithornis rufolateralis, is a species of bird in the Eurylaimidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone,...
, Smithornis rufolateralis
- African Broadbill
- Genus: Smithornis
- Subfamily: Pseudocalyptomeninae
- Genus: Pseudocalyptomena
- Grauer's Broadbill, Pseudocalyptomena graueri
- Genus: Pseudocalyptomena
- Subfamily: Calyptomeninae - Asian green broadbills
- Genus: CalyptomenaCalyptomenaThe bird genus Calyptomena, first described by Thomas Stamford Raffles in 1822, consists of three species of south-east Asian broadbills with primarily green plumages...
- Green BroadbillGreen BroadbillThe Green Broadbill, Calyptomena viridis, is a small, approximately 17 cm long, brilliant green-plumaged bird with a black ear patch, wide gape bill, rounded head, short tail and three black bars on wings. The beak itself is very weak and almost hidden by the crest above it. Both sexes are...
, Calyptomena viridis - Hose's BroadbillHose's BroadbillHose's Broadbill is a species of bird in the Eurylaimidae family. It was named after zoologist Charles Hose. It is endemic to highland forests in northern Borneo. It is threatened by habitat loss. It has a blue belly, but otherwise it resembles the other members of the genus...
, Calyptomena hosei - Whitehead's BroadbillWhitehead's BroadbillThe Whitehead's Broadbill is a species of bird in the Eurylaimidae family. It is restricted to montane forest in northern Borneo. It is the largest member of the genus Calyptomena.-References:...
Calyptomena whiteheadi
- Green Broadbill
- Genus: Calyptomena
- Subfamily: Eurylaiminae - typical Asian broadbills
- Genus Corydon
- Dusky BroadbillDusky BroadbillThe Dusky Broadbill is a species of bird in the Eurylaimidae family.It is found in Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam....
, Corydon sumatranus
- Dusky Broadbill
- Genus: Cymbirhynchus
- Black-and-red BroadbillBlack-and-red BroadbillThe Black-and-red Broadbill is a species of bird in the Eurylaimidae family. It is monotypic within the genus Cymbirhynchus....
, Cymbirhynchus macrorhynchos
- Black-and-red Broadbill
- Genus: EurylaimusEurylaimusEurylaimus is a genus of bird in the Eurylaimidae family.It contains the following species:* Banded Broadbill * Black-and-yellow Broadbill * Visayan Broadbill...
- Banded BroadbillBanded BroadbillThe Banded Broadbill is a species of bird in the Eurylaimidae family.It is found in Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam....
, Eurylaimus javanicus - Black-and-yellow BroadbillBlack-and-yellow BroadbillThe Black-and-yellow Broadbill is a species of bird in the Eurylaimidae family.It is found in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, and Thailand....
, Eurylaimus ochromalus - Wattled Broadbill, Eurylaimus steerii
- Visayan BroadbillVisayan BroadbillThe Visayan Broadbill, Eurylaimus samarensis, is a species of bird in the Eurylaimidae family.It is endemic to the Philippines.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.It is threatened by habitat loss.-References:...
, Eurylaimus samarensis
- Banded Broadbill
- Genus: Psarisomus
- Long-tailed BroadbillLong-tailed BroadbillThe Long-tailed Broadbill is a species of broadbill that is found in the Himalayas, Southeast Asia, and Indonesia. It is the only bird in the genus Psarisomus. The Long-tailed Broadbill is about 25 cm in length and weighs between 50 and 60 grams...
, Psarisomus dalhousiae
- Long-tailed Broadbill
- Genus: Serilophus
- Silver-breasted BroadbillSilver-breasted BroadbillThe Silver-breasted Broadbill is a species of bird in the broadbill family Eurylaimidae. It is monotypic within the genus Serilophus...
, Serilophus lunatus
- Silver-breasted Broadbill
- Genus Corydon
External links
- Broadbill videos on the Internet Bird Collection