White-breasted Mesite
Encyclopedia
The White-breasted Mesite, Mesitornis variegatus, is a ground-dwelling bird
endemic
to Madagascar
. One of three species in the mesite
family
Mesitornithidae, it has a small population and is restricted to five sites in the north and west of the island.
The White-breasted Mesite is a medium-sized terrestrial bird which is often described as rail
-like (a family with which the mesites are sometimes placed). The species has a white face with distinctive facial markings (a white supercilium and dark malar stripes) and a short dark straight bill
. The upperparts of the bird are rufous brown, the underside white with a tawny chest band and a barred belly.
The White-breasted Mesite is a forest species; it forages slowly through the forest floor flicking over leaf-litter in order to find invertebrates. It travels in small family groups of 2-4 individuals. The preferred habitat is undisturbed deciduous forest.
The population of this species is declining and is projected to continue doing so. It is sensitive to disturbance, and its forest home is threatened by logging
and forest fires. It is also subject to hunting pressure.
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...
endemic
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
to Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
. One of three species in the mesite
Mesite
The mesites are a family of birds of uncertain affinities. They are smallish, near flightless birds endemic to Madagascar. Generally brownish with paler undersides, they are of somewhat pheasant-like appearance and were initially placed with the Galliformes...
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...
Mesitornithidae, it has a small population and is restricted to five sites in the north and west of the island.
The White-breasted Mesite is a medium-sized terrestrial bird which is often described as rail
Rallidae
The rails, or Rallidae, are a large cosmopolitan family of small to medium-sized birds. The family exhibits considerable diversity and the family also includes the crakes, coots, and gallinules...
-like (a family with which the mesites are sometimes placed). The species has a white face with distinctive facial markings (a white supercilium and dark malar stripes) and a short dark straight bill
Beak
The beak, bill or rostrum is an external anatomical structure of birds which is used for eating and for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship and feeding young...
. The upperparts of the bird are rufous brown, the underside white with a tawny chest band and a barred belly.
The White-breasted Mesite is a forest species; it forages slowly through the forest floor flicking over leaf-litter in order to find invertebrates. It travels in small family groups of 2-4 individuals. The preferred habitat is undisturbed deciduous forest.
The population of this species is declining and is projected to continue doing so. It is sensitive to disturbance, and its forest home is threatened by logging
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
and forest fires. It is also subject to hunting pressure.
