Gansu Leaf-warbler
Encyclopedia
The Gansu Leaf-warbler (Phylloscopus kansuensis) is a small passerine
bird
known only from China
. It belongs to the leaf warbler
genus
Phylloscopus within the family Phylloscopidae
. It was formerly treated as a subspecies
of Pallas's Warbler
(P. proregulus) but is now regarded as a separate species based on differences in voice and cytochrome-b gene
sequences.
It is 10 cm long, slightly larger than Pallas's Warbler. It has greenish upperparts, pale underparts and a pale rump. The head has a long white supercilium
and a pale stripe along the centre of the crown. The wings have one conspicuous wingbar, a slight second bar and whitish edges to the tertials.
The song
is very different from Pallas's Warbler and consists of a thin, high-pitched note followed by a series of accelerating notes and finally a trill.
It is known to breed only in Gansu
and Qinghai
provinces in northern China. Its wintering grounds are uncertain but probably lie in Yunnan
province in southern China. It is found up to 3,200 metres above sea-level in deciduous forest with some spruce
and juniper
. It is not currently known to be threatened with extinction
and so is classed as a species of Least Concern
by BirdLife International
.
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...
known only from China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. It belongs to the leaf warbler
Leaf warbler
Leaf-warblers are small insectivorous birds belonging mainly to the genus Phylloscopus. They were formerly included in the Old World warbler family but are now considered to belong to the Phylloscopidae, a family created in 2006. The genus is closely related to Seicercus and some species have been...
genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Phylloscopus within the family Phylloscopidae
Phylloscopidae
Phylloscopidae is a newly described family of small insectivorous birds formerly placed in the Old World warbler family. Its members occur in Eurasia, ranging into Wallacea and Africa...
. It was formerly treated as a subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of Pallas's Warbler
Pallas's Warbler
The Pallas's Warbler or Pallas's Leaf Warbler is a leaf warbler which breeds in southern Siberia , northern Mongolia, and northeastern China...
(P. proregulus) but is now regarded as a separate species based on differences in voice and cytochrome-b gene
Gene
A gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...
sequences.
It is 10 cm long, slightly larger than Pallas's Warbler. It has greenish upperparts, pale underparts and a pale rump. The head has a long white supercilium
Supercilium
The supercilium is a plumage feature found on the heads of some bird species. It is a stripe which runs from the base of the bird's beak above its eye, finishing somewhere towards the rear of the bird's head. Also known as an "eyebrow", it is distinct from the eyestripe, which is a line which runs...
and a pale stripe along the centre of the crown. The wings have one conspicuous wingbar, a slight second bar and whitish edges to the tertials.
The song
Bird song
Bird vocalization includes both bird calls and bird songs. In non-technical use, bird songs are the bird sounds that are melodious to the human ear. In ornithology and birding, songs are distinguished by function from calls.-Definition:The distinction between songs and calls is based upon...
is very different from Pallas's Warbler and consists of a thin, high-pitched note followed by a series of accelerating notes and finally a trill.
It is known to breed only in Gansu
Gansu
' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east...
and Qinghai
Qinghai
Qinghai ; Oirat Mongolian: ; ; Salar:) is a province of the People's Republic of China, named after Qinghai Lake...
provinces in northern China. Its wintering grounds are uncertain but probably lie in Yunnan
Yunnan
Yunnan is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the far southwest of the country spanning approximately and with a population of 45.7 million . The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders Burma, Laos, and Vietnam.Yunnan is situated in a mountainous area, with...
province in southern China. It is found up to 3,200 metres above sea-level in deciduous forest with some spruce
Spruce
A spruce is a tree of the genus Picea , a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the Family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal regions of the earth. Spruces are large trees, from tall when mature, and can be distinguished by their whorled branches and conical...
and juniper
Juniper
Junipers are coniferous plants in the genus Juniperus of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on taxonomic viewpoint, there are between 50-67 species of juniper, widely distributed throughout the northern hemisphere, from the Arctic, south to tropical Africa in the Old World, and to the...
. It is not currently known to be threatened with extinction
Extinction
In biology and ecology, extinction is the end of an organism or of a group of organisms , normally a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and recover may have been lost before this point...
and so is classed as a species of Least Concern
Least Concern
Least Concern is an IUCN category assigned to extant taxon or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category. As such they do not qualify as threatened, Near Threatened, or Conservation Dependent...
by BirdLife International
BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global Partnership of conservation organisations that strives to conserve birds, their habitats and global biodiversity, working with people towards sustainability in the use of natural resources...
.