Island Thrush
Encyclopedia
Thrush (bird)
The thrushes, family Turdidae, are a group of passerine birds that occur worldwide.-Characteristics:Thrushes are plump, soft-plumaged, small to medium-sized birds, inhabiting wooded areas, and often feed on the ground or eat small fruit. The smallest thrush may be the Forest Rock-thrush, at and...
family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
. Almost 50 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...
have been described, ranging from Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, through South East Asia and Melanesia
Melanesia
Melanesia is a subregion of Oceania extending from the western end of the Pacific Ocean to the Arafura Sea, and eastward to Fiji. The region comprises most of the islands immediately north and northeast of Australia...
, to Samoa
Samoa
Samoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in...
, exhibiting great differences in plumage
Plumage
Plumage refers both to the layer of feathers that cover a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage vary between species and subspecies and can also vary between different age classes, sexes, and season. Within species there can also be a...
. Several subspecies are threatened and three have already become extinct.
Taxonomy
The Island Thrush is a member of the cosmopolitan genus Turdus (LinnaeusCarolus Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus , also known after his ennoblement as , was a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature. He is known as the father of modern taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern ecology...
, 1758), one of the most widely distributed bird genera
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...
in the world. The taxonomy of the Island Thrush is complex, and has defied attempts to split the group based on the four suspected morphological types. The subspecies Turdus poliocephalus niveiceps from Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
represents the most distinct taxon and may be a separate species. This subspecies lives at the northerly range of the species, and is the only one in which the males and females differ
Sexual dimorphism
Sexual dimorphism is a phenotypic difference between males and females of the same species. Examples of such differences include differences in morphology, ornamentation, and behavior.-Examples:-Ornamentation / coloration:...
in colour. There are also thought to be at least two further subspecies not yet described scientifically, both from the Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
n island of Sulawesi
Sulawesi
Sulawesi is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Maluku Islands. In Indonesia, only Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua are larger in territory, and only Java and Sumatra have larger Indonesian populations.- Etymology :The Portuguese were the first to...
.
List of subspecies
The list below is sorted alphabetically.- T. p. albifrons (E. P. RamsayEdward Pierson RamsayEdward Pierson Ramsay was an Australian zoologist who specialised in ornithology.-Early life:Pierson was born in Dobroyd Estate, Long Cove, Sydney and educated at St Mark's Collegiate School, The King's School, Parramatta...
, 1879). ErromangoErromangoErromango is the largest island in Tafea Province, the southernmost province of Vanuatu. Its highest point is Mount Santop, at 886 m. Its largest villages are Port Narvin and Dillons Bay . The former main village was Ipota...
, VanuatuVanuatuVanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
. - T. p. becki MayrErnst MayrErnst Walter Mayr was one of the 20th century's leading evolutionary biologists. He was also a renowned taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, historian of science, and naturalist...
, 1941. PaamaPaamaPaama is a small island in the Malampa Province, Vanuatu. The island is about 8 km from north to south and only 5 km or so at its widest point. The island is dominated by hills, rising to a height of around 550 m in the north...
, Lopevi, EpiEpi (island)Epi is the name of an island in Vanuatu, at the north end of the Shepherd Islands. It is in Shefa Province. It is long northwest-southeast, and wide, with an area of . Its shoreline measures 130 km...
and EmaeEmaeEmae is an island in the Shepherds Islands, Shefa, Vanuatu. Maunga Lasi is the highest peak at 644 m. It forms the northern rim of the underwater volcano of Makura, which also covers the nearby islands of Makura and Mataso...
, in Vanuatu. - T. p. beehleri RipleySidney Dillon RipleySidney Dillon Ripley was an American ornithologist and wildlife conservationist. He served as Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution from 1964-1984.-Biography:...
, 1977. New IrelandNew Ireland (island)New Ireland is a large island in Papua New Guinea, approximately 7,404 km² in area. It is the largest island of the New Ireland Province, lying northeast of the island of New Britain. Both islands are part of the Bismarck Archipelago, named after Otto von Bismarck, and they are separated by...
. - T. p. bougainvillei MayrErnst MayrErnst Walter Mayr was one of the 20th century's leading evolutionary biologists. He was also a renowned taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, historian of science, and naturalist...
, 1941. Bougainville IslandBougainville IslandBougainville Island is the main island of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville of Papua New Guinea. This region is also known as Bougainville Province or the North Solomons. The population of the province is 175,160 , which includes the adjacent island of Buka and assorted outlying islands...
. - T. p. canescens (De VisCharles Walter De VisCharles Walter de Vis , known as Devis before about 1882, was an English zoologist and ornithologist...
, 1894). Goodenough IslandGoodenough IslandGoodenough Island in the Solomon Sea is the westernmost of the three large islands of the D'Entrecasteaux Islands in Milne Bay Province of Papua New Guinea. It lies to the east of mainland New Guinea and south west of the Trobriand Islands.It should not be confused with Goodenough's Island...
. - T. p. carbonarius MayrErnst MayrErnst Walter Mayr was one of the 20th century's leading evolutionary biologists. He was also a renowned taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, historian of science, and naturalist...
& GilliardErnest Thomas GilliardErnest Thomas Gilliard was an American ornithologist and museum curator who led or participated in several ornithological expeditions, especially to South America and New Guinea.Gilliard was born in York, Pennsylvania...
, 1951. Mountains of east-central New GuineaNew GuineaNew Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
. - T. p. celebensis (BüttikoferJohann BüttikoferDr. Johann Büttikofer was a Swiss zoologist.Büttikofer was born in Ranflüh in Emmenthal. After his retirement he settled in Bern.-Scientific career:...
, 1893). South-west SulawesiSulawesiSulawesi is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Maluku Islands. In Indonesia, only Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua are larger in territory, and only Java and Sumatra have larger Indonesian populations.- Etymology :The Portuguese were the first to...
. - T. p. deningeri StresemannErwin StresemannErwin Stresemann was a German naturalist and ornithologist.Stresemann was one of the outstanding ornithologists of the 20th century...
, 1912. SeramSeramSeram is an island in the Maluku province of Indonesia. It is located north of Ambon Island. The chief port/town is Masohi.- Geography and geology :...
. - T. p. efatensis MayrErnst MayrErnst Walter Mayr was one of the 20th century's leading evolutionary biologists. He was also a renowned taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, historian of science, and naturalist...
, 1941. EfateÉfatéEfate is an island in the Agean Ocean which is part of the Shefa Province in The Republic of Maliki. It is also known as Île Vate. It is the most populous island in Vanuatu. Efate's land area of makes it Vanuatu's third largest island. Most inhabitants of Efate live in Port Vila, the national...
and NgunaNgunaNguna Island is an outer island of Efate, Vanuatu. it is neighboured to the east by Pele Island and to the west by Moso Island. Nguna is home to thirteen villages which are located on the north, east and south of the island, with west Nguna largely uninhabited...
, in Vanuatu. - T. p. erythropleurus SharpeRichard Bowdler SharpeRichard Bowdler Sharpe was an English zoologist.-Biography:Sharpe was born in London and studied at Brighton College, The King's School, Peterborough and Loughborough Grammar School. At the age of sixteen he went to work for Smith & Sons in London...
, 1887, Christmas Island ThrushChristmas Island ThrushThe Christmas Island Thrush , ia a subspecies of the Island Thrush . It is endemic to Christmas Island, an Australian territory in the Indian Ocean.-Description:...
. Christmas IslandChristmas IslandThe Territory of Christmas Island is a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean. It is located northwest of the Western Australian city of Perth, south of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, and ENE of the Cocos Islands....
. - T. p. fumidus Statius MullerPhilipp Ludwig Statius MüllerPhilipp Ludwig Statius Muller was a German zoologist.Statius Muller was born in Esens, and was Professor of Natural Science at Erlangen. Between 1773 and 1776, he published a German translation of Linnaeus's Natursystem...
, 1844. Mountains of western JavaJavaJava is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
. - T. p. hades MayrErnst MayrErnst Walter Mayr was one of the 20th century's leading evolutionary biologists. He was also a renowned taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, historian of science, and naturalist...
, 1941. Gau IslandGau IslandGau is an island belonging to Fiji's Lomaiviti Archipelago. Located at 18.00° S and 179.30 °E, it covers an area of 136.1 square kilometers, with a total shoreline of 66.3 kilometers, making it the 5th largest island in the Fijian archipelago. Its maximum altitude is 738 meters...
, FijiFijiFiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
. - T. p. heinrothi RothschildWalter Rothschild, 2nd Baron RothschildLionel Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild, Baron de Rothschild FRS , a scion of the Rothschild family, was a British banker, politician, and zoologist.-Biography:...
& HartertErnst HartertErnst Johann Otto Hartert was a German ornithologist. Hartert was born in Hamburg. He was employed by Lionel Walter Rothschild as ornithological curator of his private museum at Tring from 1892 to 1929....
, 1924. St Matthias Islands, Papua New GuineaPapua New GuineaPapua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
. - T. p. hygroscopus StresemannErwin StresemannErwin Stresemann was a German naturalist and ornithologist.Stresemann was one of the outstanding ornithologists of the 20th century...
, 1931. Southern SulawesiSulawesiSulawesi is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Maluku Islands. In Indonesia, only Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua are larger in territory, and only Java and Sumatra have larger Indonesian populations.- Etymology :The Portuguese were the first to...
. - T. p. indrapurae RobinsonHerbert Christopher RobinsonHerbert Christopher Robinson was a British zoologist and ornithologist. He is principally known for conceiving and initiating the major ornithological reference The Birds of the Malay Peninsula....
& KlossCecil Boden KlossCecil Boden Kloss was an English zoologist. He was an expert on the mammals and birds of Southeast Asia.In the early 1900s Kloss accompanied the American naturalist William Louis Abbott in exploring the Andaman and Nicobar islands. From 1908 he worked under Herbert Christopher Robinson at the...
, 1916. South-central SumatraSumatraSumatra 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...
. - T. p. javanicus HorsfieldThomas HorsfieldThomas Horsfield M. D. was an American physician and naturalist.Horsfield was born in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and studied medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. He was the grandson of Timothy Horsfield, Sr., a colonel and justice of the peace in Bethlehem, and a friend mentioned in Benjamin...
, 1821. Mountains of central Java. - T. p. katanglad SalomonsenFinn SalomonsenFinn Salomonsen was a Danish ornithologist. He is best known for his work on the birds of Greenland.His interest in Greenland began at the age of 16 when he made a trip with Lehn Schioler to the Upernavik District. He obtained a degree in zoology in 1932 and joined as a zoological assistant in the...
, 1953. Central MindanaoMindanaoMindanao is the second largest and easternmost island in the Philippines. It is also the name of one of the three island groups in the country, which consists of the island of Mindanao and smaller surrounding islands. The other two are Luzon and the Visayas. The island of Mindanao is called The...
, PhilippinesPhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. - T. p. kelleri (MearnsEdgar Alexander MearnsEdgar Alexander Mearns was a notable American ornithologist and field naturalist....
, 1905). Mount ApoMount ApoMount Apo is a large solfataric, potentially-active stratovolcano in the island of Mindanao, Philippines. With an altitude of , it is the highest mountain in the country and is located between Davao City and Davao del Sur province in Region XI and Cotabato province in Region XII...
, Philippines. - T. p. keysseri MayrErnst MayrErnst Walter Mayr was one of the 20th century's leading evolutionary biologists. He was also a renowned taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, historian of science, and naturalist...
, 1931. Mountains of the Huon PeninsulaHuon PeninsulaHuon Peninsula is a large rugged peninsula on the island of New Guinea in Morobe Province, eastern Papua New Guinea. It is named after French explorer Jean-Michel Huon de Kermadec who discovered it along with his personal assistant and porter, Henry Ole. The peninsula is dominated by the steep...
, New GuineaNew GuineaNew Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
. - T. p. kulambangrae MayrErnst MayrErnst Walter Mayr was one of the 20th century's leading evolutionary biologists. He was also a renowned taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, historian of science, and naturalist...
, 1941. KolombangaraKolombangaraKolombangara is an island in the New Georgia Islands group of the Solomon Islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean...
, Solomon IslandsSolomon IslandsSolomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
. - T. p. layardi (SeebohmHenry SeebohmHenry Seebohm was an English steel manufacturer, and amateur ornithologist, oologist and traveller.Seebohm was born in Bradford. His interest in natural history led him to travel widely, in Greece, Scandinavia, Turkey, and South Africa...
, 1891). Viti LevuViti LevuViti Levu is the largest island in the Republic of Fiji, the site of the nation's capital, Suva, and home to a large majority of Fiji's population.- Geography and economy :...
, OvalauOvalauOvalau is the sixth largest island in Fiji's Lomaiviti Archipelago. Situated at 17.70° South and 178.8° East, , the island is about 13 kilometers long and 10 kilometers wide...
, YasawaYasawaYasawa, also called Assawa and Ysava, is the main island of the Yasawa Group, an archipelago in Fiji's Western Division. Located at 17.00° South and 177.23° East, it covers an area of 32 square kilometers. It has a maximum altitude of 244 meters. The population was 1120 in 1983.- References :...
and KoroKoroKoro is a Japanese incense burner or censer often used in Japanese tea ceremonies.Examples are usually of globular form with three feet, made in pottery, Imari porcelain, Kakiemon, Satsuma, enamel or bronze....
Islands, Fiji. - T. p. loeseri Meyer de SchauenseeRodolphe Meyer de SchauenseeRodolphe Meyer de Schauensee was an American ornithologist.He was born in Rome, and his family moved to the United States in 1913. He was curator of birds at the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia for nearly fifty years. He was particularly noted for his study of South American birds...
, 1939. Northern SumatraSumatraSumatra 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...
. - T. p. malekulae MayrErnst MayrErnst Walter Mayr was one of the 20th century's leading evolutionary biologists. He was also a renowned taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, historian of science, and naturalist...
, 1941. PentecostPentecost IslandPentecost Island is one of the 83 islands that make up the South Pacific nation of Vanuatu. It lies due north of capital Port Vila. Pentecost Island is known as Pentecôte in French and Pentikos in Bislama. The island was known in its native languages by names such as Vanu Aroaroa, although these...
, Malekula and AmbrymAmbrymAmbrym is a volcanic island in the archipelago of Vanuatu . It is well known for its highly active volcanic activity that includes lava lake formation.-Etymology:...
Islands, Vanuatu. - T. p. malindangensis (MearnsEdgar Alexander MearnsEdgar Alexander Mearns was a notable American ornithologist and field naturalist....
, 1907). Mount MalindangMount MalindangMount Malindang is a complex volcano located in the province of Misamis Occidental in the southern island of Mindanao, Philippines. The least studied mountain range was formed through several volcanic activities some of which could be historical, evident by the presence of two calderas, surrounded...
, Philippines. - T. p. mareensis E. L. LayardEdgar Leopold LayardEdgar Leopold Layard CMG, FZS, MBOU was a British naturalist mainly interested in ornithology. Born in Florence, Italy, to a family of Huguenot descent, he was the sixth son of Henry Peter John Layard of the Ceylon Civil Service with his wife Marianne,...
& TristramHenry Baker TristramThe Reverend Henry Baker Tristram FRS was an English clergyman, Biblical scholar, traveller and ornithologist.Tristram was born at Eglingham vicarage, near Alnwick, Northumberland, and studied at Durham School and Lincoln College, Oxford. In 1846 he was ordained a priest, but he suffered from...
, 1879. Maré IslandMaré IslandMaré Island is the second-largest of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The island is part of the commune of Maré, in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia....
, in the Loyalty IslandsLoyalty IslandsThe Loyalty Islands are an archipelago in the Pacific. They are part of the French territory of New Caledonia, whose mainland is away. They form the Loyalty Islands Province , one of the three provinces of New Caledonia...
, New CaledoniaNew CaledoniaNew Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
. Extinct. - T. p. mayonensis (MearnsEdgar Alexander MearnsEdgar Alexander Mearns was a notable American ornithologist and field naturalist....
, 1907). Southern LuzonLuzonLuzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
, Philippines. - T. p. mindorensis Ogilvie-GrantWilliam Robert Ogilvie-GrantWilliam Robert Ogilvie-Grant was a Scottish ornithologist.-Career:Ogilvie-Grant was educated at Cargilfield and Fettes College, Edinburgh, where he studied zoology and anatomy. In 1882 he became an Assistant at the Natural History Museum. He studied ichthyology under Albert C. L. G...
, 1896. MindoroMindoroMindoro is the seventh-largest island in the Philippines. It is located off the coast of Luzon, and northeast of Palawan. The southern coast of Mindoro forms the northeastern extremum of the Sulu Sea.-History:...
, Philippines. - T. p. nigrorum Ogilvie-GrantWilliam Robert Ogilvie-GrantWilliam Robert Ogilvie-Grant was a Scottish ornithologist.-Career:Ogilvie-Grant was educated at Cargilfield and Fettes College, Edinburgh, where he studied zoology and anatomy. In 1882 he became an Assistant at the Natural History Museum. He studied ichthyology under Albert C. L. G...
, 1896. Negros, Philippines. - T. p. niveiceps (HellmayrCarl Edward HellmayrCarl Eduard Hellmayr was an Austrian ornithologist.-Life and work:Hellmayr was born in Vienna and studied at the University of Vienna, although he did not finish his degree...
, 1919), Taiwan Island ThrushTaiwan Island ThrushThe Taiwan Island Thrush is a bird in the thrush family. It is the most northerly subspecies of the Island Thrush and is endemic to the island of Taiwan.-Taxonomy:...
. TaiwanTaiwanTaiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
. - T. p. papuensis (De VisCharles Walter De VisCharles Walter de Vis , known as Devis before about 1882, was an English zoologist and ornithologist...
, 1890). Mountains of south-east New GuineaNew GuineaNew Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
. - T. p. placens MayrErnst MayrErnst Walter Mayr was one of the 20th century's leading evolutionary biologists. He was also a renowned taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, historian of science, and naturalist...
, 1941. UreparaparaUreparaparaUreparapara is the third largest island in the Banks Group in northern Vanuatu, after Gaua and Vanua Lava. It is an old volcanic cone that has been breached by the sea on its east coast, forming Divers Bay. Apart from this indentation, the island is circular in shape, with a diameter of eight...
and Vanua LavaVanua LavaVanua Lava is the second largest of the Banks Islands in Torba Province, Vanuatu, after slightly larger Gaua. It is located about 120 km north-northeast of Espiritu Santo and north of Gaua. It has a land area of 314 km². Its population numbered 2,623 in 2009.The island measures about...
, Vanuatu. - T. p. poliocephalus LathamJohn Latham (ornithologist)John Latham was an English physician, naturalist and author. He was born at Eltham in Kent, and was the eldest son of John Latham, a surgeon there, and his mother was a descendant of the Sothebys, in Yorkshire....
, 1801, Norfolk Island ThrushNorfolk Island ThrushThe Norfolk Island Thrush , also known as the Grey-headed Blackbird or Guava Bird, was a bird in the Thrush family endemic to Norfolk Island, an Australian territory in the Tasman Sea...
. Norfolk IslandNorfolk IslandNorfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, but it enjoys a large degree of self-governance...
. Extinct. - T. p. pritzbueri E. L. LayardEdgar Leopold LayardEdgar Leopold Layard CMG, FZS, MBOU was a British naturalist mainly interested in ornithology. Born in Florence, Italy, to a family of Huguenot descent, he was the sixth son of Henry Peter John Layard of the Ceylon Civil Service with his wife Marianne,...
, 1878. LifouLifouLifou is a commune in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia in the Pacific Ocean.-Geography:Lifou is made up of Lifou Island, the largest and most heavily populated of the Loyalty Islands, its smaller neighbour Tiga Island, and several uninhabited islets in between these two...
, Loyalty IslandsLoyalty IslandsThe Loyalty Islands are an archipelago in the Pacific. They are part of the French territory of New Caledonia, whose mainland is away. They form the Loyalty Islands Province , one of the three provinces of New Caledonia...
, New CaledoniaNew CaledoniaNew Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
(probably extinct); and Tanna, VanuatuVanuatuVanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
. - T. p. rennellianus MayrErnst MayrErnst Walter Mayr was one of the 20th century's leading evolutionary biologists. He was also a renowned taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, historian of science, and naturalist...
, 1931. Rennell IslandRennell IslandRennell Island, locally known as Mungava, is the main island of two inhabited islands that make up the Rennell and Bellona Province in the Solomon Islands. Rennell Island has a land area of that is about long and wide. It is the second largest raised coral atoll in the world with the largest lake...
, southern Solomon IslandsSolomon IslandsSolomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
. - T. p. ruficeps (E. P. RamsayEdward Pierson RamsayEdward Pierson Ramsay was an Australian zoologist who specialised in ornithology.-Early life:Pierson was born in Dobroyd Estate, Long Cove, Sydney and educated at St Mark's Collegiate School, The King's School, Parramatta...
, 1876). KadavuKadavuKadavu , with an area of , is the fourth largest island in Fiji, and the largest island in the Kadavu Group, a volcanic archipelago consisting of Kadavu, Ono, Galoa and a number of smaller islands in the Great Astrolabe Reef...
, FijiFijiFiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
. - T. p. samoensis TristramHenry Baker TristramThe Reverend Henry Baker Tristram FRS was an English clergyman, Biblical scholar, traveller and ornithologist.Tristram was born at Eglingham vicarage, near Alnwick, Northumberland, and studied at Durham School and Lincoln College, Oxford. In 1846 he was ordained a priest, but he suffered from...
, 1879. Savai'iSavai'iSavaii is the largest and highest island in Samoa and the Samoa Islands chain. It is also the biggest landmass in Polynesia outside Hawaii and New Zealand. The island of Savai'i is also referred to by Samoans as Salafai, a classical Samoan term used in oratory and prose...
and UpoluUpoluUpolu is an island in Samoa, formed by a massive basaltic shield volcano which rises from the seafloor of the western Pacific Ocean. The island is long, in area, and is the second largest in geographic area as well as the most populated of the Samoan Islands. Upolu is situated to the east of...
Islands, SamoaSamoaSamoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in...
. - T. p. schlegeli P. L. SclaterPhilip SclaterPhilip Lutley Sclater was an English lawyer and zoologist. In zoology, he was an expert ornithologist, and identified the main zoogeographic regions of the world...
, 1861. Western TimorTimorTimor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, north of the Timor Sea. It is divided between the independent state of East Timor, and West Timor, belonging to the Indonesian province of East Nusa Tenggara. The island's surface is 30,777 square kilometres...
. - T. p. seebohmi (SharpeRichard Bowdler SharpeRichard Bowdler Sharpe was an English zoologist.-Biography:Sharpe was born in London and studied at Brighton College, The King's School, Peterborough and Loughborough Grammar School. At the age of sixteen he went to work for Smith & Sons in London...
, 1888), Borneo Island ThrushBorneo Island ThrushThe Borneo Island Thrush , also known as the Mountain Blackbird or locally in Dusun as Luhui tana, is a bird in the Thrush family. It is a subspecies of the Island Thrush endemic to the island of Borneo.-Description:The Borneo Island Thrush is mainly dark brown in colour...
. Mountains of northern BorneoBorneoBorneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
. - T. p. sladeni Cain & Galbraith, 1955. GuadalcanalGuadalcanalGuadalcanal is a tropical island in the South-Western Pacific. The largest island in the Solomons, it was discovered by the Spanish expedition of Alvaro de Mendaña in 1568...
, Solomon IslandsSolomon IslandsSolomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
. - T. p. sterlingi MayrErnst MayrErnst Walter Mayr was one of the 20th century's leading evolutionary biologists. He was also a renowned taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, historian of science, and naturalist...
, 1944. Eastern TimorTimorTimor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, north of the Timor Sea. It is divided between the independent state of East Timor, and West Timor, belonging to the Indonesian province of East Nusa Tenggara. The island's surface is 30,777 square kilometres...
. - T. p. stresemanni M. Bartels, Jr, 1938. Mount LawuMount LawuMount Lawu, or Gunung Lawu, is a massive compound stratovolcano straddling the border between East Java and Central Java, Indonesia. The north side is deeply eroded and the eastern side contains parasitic crater lakes and parasitic cones. A fumarolic area is located on the south flank at 2,550 m...
, JavaJavaJava is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
. - T. p. tempesti E. L. LayardEdgar Leopold LayardEdgar Leopold Layard CMG, FZS, MBOU was a British naturalist mainly interested in ornithology. Born in Florence, Italy, to a family of Huguenot descent, he was the sixth son of Henry Peter John Layard of the Ceylon Civil Service with his wife Marianne,...
, 1876. TaveuniTaveuniTaveuni is the third-largest island in Fiji, after Vanua Levu and Viti Levu, with a total land area of 435 square kilometers . The cigar-shaped island, a massive shield volcano which rises from the floor of the Pacific Ocean, is situated 6.5 kilometers to the east of Vanua Levu, across the...
, FijiFijiFiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
. - T. p. thomassoni (SeebohmHenry SeebohmHenry Seebohm was an English steel manufacturer, and amateur ornithologist, oologist and traveller.Seebohm was born in Bradford. His interest in natural history led him to travel widely, in Greece, Scandinavia, Turkey, and South Africa...
, 1894). Northern LuzonLuzonLuzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
, Philippines. - T. p. tolokiwae DiamondJared DiamondJared Mason Diamond is an American scientist and author whose work draws from a variety of fields. He is currently Professor of Geography and Physiology at UCLA...
, 1989. Tolokiwa Island, Bismarck ArchipelagoBismarck ArchipelagoThe Bismarck Archipelago is a group of islands off the northeastern coast of New Guinea in the western Pacific Ocean and is part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea.-History:...
; and possibly New BritainNew BritainNew Britain, or Niu Briten, is the largest island in the Bismarck Archipelago of Papua New Guinea. It is separated from the island of New Guinea by the Dampier and Vitiaz Straits and from New Ireland by St. George's Channel...
. - T. p. vanikorensis QuoyJean René Constant QuoyJean René Constant Quoy was a French zoologist.Along with Joseph Paul Gaimard he served as naturalist aboard La Coquille under Louis Isidore Duperrey during its circumnavigation of the globe , and the Astrolabe under the command of Jules Dumont d'Urville...
& GaimardJoseph Paul GaimardJoseph Paul Gaimard was a French naval surgeon and naturalist.Along with Jean René Constant Quoy he served as naturalist on the ships L'Uranie under Louis de Freycinet 1817-1820, and L'Astrolabe under Jules Dumont d'Urville 1826-1829...
, 1830. Vanikolo Islands and UtupuaUtupua IslandUtupua Island is an island in the Santa Cruz Islands, located 66 km to the Southeast of the main Santa Cruz group, between Vanikoro and Santa Cruz proper. This island belongs administratively to the Temotu Province of the Solomon Islands....
, in the Solomons; and Espiritu SantoEspiritu SantoEspiritu Santo is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of . It belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region of Melanesia. It is in the Sanma Province of Vanuatu....
and MaloMalo IslandMalo is an island in Vanuatu, off the southern coast of the larger Espiritu Santo in Sanma Province. It has a circumference of and an area of . In 1979 the island had a population of 2,312. In 1999, the population numbered about 3000...
, Vanuatu. - T. p. versteegi Junge, 1939. Mountains of western New GuineaNew GuineaNew Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
. - T. p. vinitinctus (GouldJohn GouldJohn Gould was an English ornithologist and bird artist. The Gould League in Australia was named after him. His identification of the birds now nicknamed "Darwin's finches" played a role in the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection...
, 1855), Lord Howe Island ThrushLord Howe Island ThrushThe Lord Howe Island Thrush , also known as Vinous-tinted Thrush or Vinous-tinted blackbird, is an extinct subspecies of the Island Thrush...
. Lord Howe IslandLord Howe IslandLord Howe Island is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, directly east of mainland Port Macquarie, and about from Norfolk Island. The island is about 11 km long and between 2.8 km and 0.6 km wide with an area of...
. Extinct. - T. p. vitiensis E. L. LayardEdgar Leopold LayardEdgar Leopold Layard CMG, FZS, MBOU was a British naturalist mainly interested in ornithology. Born in Florence, Italy, to a family of Huguenot descent, he was the sixth son of Henry Peter John Layard of the Ceylon Civil Service with his wife Marianne,...
, 1876. Vanua LevuVanua LevuVanua Levu , formerly known as Sandalwood Island, is the second largest island of Fiji. Located 64 kilometres to the north of the larger Viti Levu, the island has an area of 5,587.1 km² and a population of some 130,000.- Geography :...
, Fiji. - T. p. whiteheadi (SeebohmHenry SeebohmHenry Seebohm was an English steel manufacturer, and amateur ornithologist, oologist and traveller.Seebohm was born in Bradford. His interest in natural history led him to travel widely, in Greece, Scandinavia, Turkey, and South Africa...
, 1893). Mountains of eastern JavaJavaJava is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
. - T. p. whitneyi MayrErnst MayrErnst Walter Mayr was one of the 20th century's leading evolutionary biologists. He was also a renowned taxonomist, tropical explorer, ornithologist, historian of science, and naturalist...
, 1941. Gaua IslandGauaGaua is the largest of the Banks Islands in Torba Province of northern Vanuatu. It covers 342 km².- Physical geography :...
, Vanuatu. - T. p. xanthopus J. R. ForsterJohann Reinhold ForsterJohann Reinhold Forster was a German Lutheran pastor and naturalist of partial Scottish descent who made contributions to the early ornithology of Europe and North America...
, 1844. Yandé Island, New CaledoniaNew CaledoniaNew Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
.
Distribution
The Island Thrush is widely but patchily distributed across its range. It is present on islands in SamoaSamoa
Samoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in...
, Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
, Vanuatu
Vanuatu
Vanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
, New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, the Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
, New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
and surrounding islands, many Indonesian islands, the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, and Taiwan. However, it is restricted to areas with bird communities of less than 25–35 species. On the larger islands (like 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....
or New Guinea) this means that it is only found at high altitudes, above 2750 m. Smaller islands can only support much smaller bird communities, and on these the Island Thrush may be found at lower altitudes. Two or more subspecies may exist on some islands, segregated into different habitats. The ranges of many subspecies may be as small as a single island—for example the Kadavu
Kadavu
Kadavu , with an area of , is the fourth largest island in Fiji, and the largest island in the Kadavu Group, a volcanic archipelago consisting of Kadavu, Ono, Galoa and a number of smaller islands in the Great Astrolabe Reef...
subspecies T. p. ruficeps.
Description
The 49 subspecies of Island Thrush vary dramatically in appearance, but almost all resemble a typical Turdus thrush and have a yellow bill, eye-ring and legs. The Samoan subspecies, T. p. samoensis, is identical in appearance to the Blackbird (Turdus merula), whereas T. p. seebohmi of northern Borneo is dark above with a red breast and resembles the American RobinAmerican Robin
The American Robin or North American Robin is a migratory songbird of the thrush family. It is named after the European Robin because of its reddish-orange breast, though the two species are not closely related, with the European robin belonging to the flycatcher family...
(Turdus migratorius). Some subspecies have an entirely white head (including the male T. p. niveiceps, but not the female), and the Kadavu form T. p. ruficeps has an entirely orange head.
Behaviour
Diet
The Island Thrush has a very catholic diet, taking a range of invertebrates such as insects (mostly beetleBeetle
Coleoptera is an order of insects commonly called beetles. The word "coleoptera" is from the Greek , koleos, "sheath"; and , pteron, "wing", thus "sheathed wing". Coleoptera contains more species than any other order, constituting almost 25% of all known life-forms...
s), spider
Spider
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
s, snail
Snail
Snail is a common name applied to most of the members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word is used in its most general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. The word snail without any qualifier is however more often...
s, earthworm
Earthworm
Earthworm is the common name for the largest members of Oligochaeta in the phylum Annelida. In classical systems they were placed in the order Opisthopora, on the basis of the male pores opening posterior to the female pores, even though the internal male segments are anterior to the female...
s, as well as carrion and even small reptile
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
s. It will also take fruit and seeds, depending on what is locally available. Its foraging technique is described as similar to that of the Blackbird, investigating the leaf litter and low branches in dense cover, but in some places will also forage in the canopy.
Breeding
Most Island Thrushes breed in discrete two- to three-month seasons (the precise timing varies depending on location), although the birds in FijiFiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
nest from June until January. They nest in a well-constructed cup well hidden in dense vegetation, laying from one to three eggs.
Conservation
Endangered species
An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
so. This subspecies is found on Christmas Island
Christmas Island
The Territory of Christmas Island is a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean. It is located northwest of the Western Australian city of Perth, south of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, and ENE of the Cocos Islands....
, and is threatened by the introduced
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
yellow crazy ant
Yellow crazy ant
The yellow crazy ant is a species of ant, introduced accidentally to northern Australia and Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean, that has wreaked ecological damage in both locations....
, which is capable of killing nestlings. Several other subspecies have declining ranges, including T. p. samoensis from Samoa
Samoa
Samoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in...
, and T. p. xanthopus from New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, which is now extinct from Grande Terre
Grande Terre
Grande Terre is a French name typically given to the principal island of an archipelago. It may refer to the following:* The main island of New Caledonia.* The largest of the Kerguelen Islands....
and is restricted to 100 individuals surviving only on Yande and Neba.
Three subspecies have become extinct, T. p. vinitinctus
Lord Howe Island Thrush
The Lord Howe Island Thrush , also known as Vinous-tinted Thrush or Vinous-tinted blackbird, is an extinct subspecies of the Island Thrush...
from Lord Howe Island
Lord Howe Island
Lord Howe Island is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, directly east of mainland Port Macquarie, and about from Norfolk Island. The island is about 11 km long and between 2.8 km and 0.6 km wide with an area of...
, T. p. mareensis from the Loyalty Islands and the nominate race T. p. poliocephalus from Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, but it enjoys a large degree of self-governance...
. T. p. poliocephalus was relatively common as recently as 1941, but by 1975 it had become extinct, due to introduced Black Rat
Black Rat
The black rat is a common long-tailed rodent of the genus Rattus in the subfamily Murinae . The species originated in tropical Asia and spread through the Near East in Roman times before reaching Europe by the 1st century and spreading with Europeans across the world.-Taxonomy:The black rat was...
s, habitat loss and hybridization following colonisation by the closely related Blackbird.