Pitohui nigrescens

General description: 

Male nominate race has body entirely slaty black, crown and side of head slightly darker, flanks slightly more slaty, remiges and rectrices blackish- brown; iris dark brown; bill and legs black. Female has crown ashy brown, forehead and lores slightly greyer, sides of face and neck tawny- brown, upperparts olive- brown, rump and uppertail- coverts slightly more reddish, remiges brown, edged chestnut on outer webs, wing- coverts washed reddish- brown, greater coverts with olive tinge, tail chestnut; throat ashy brown, underparts tawny- brown; iris umbre, bill blackish- brown, lower mandible sometimes paler, legs dark grey. Juvenile male is generally sooty greyish- brown to blackish with chestnut edges of feathers, including wing- coverts; immature male like adult but lighter, retains some juvenile wing- coverts, bill pale; immature female like adult, but retains some juvenile wing- coverts. Race wandamensis is similar to nominate, but male belly black, female crown more rufous- brown, like back; meeki male is deeper black, female with less grey tinge; buergersi like previous, but female bright reddish- brown, especially on underparts; schistaceus male is more slaty black, female more grey- tinged below; harterti is like last, but female browner, less grey- tinged below.

Conservation status: 

Not Threatened

Diagnostic description: 

Male nominate race has body entirely slaty black, crown and side of head slightly darker, flanks slightly more slaty, remiges and rectrices blackish- brown; iris dark brown; bill and legs black. Female has crown ashy brown, forehead and lores slightly greyer, sides of face and neck tawny- brown, upperparts olive- brown, rump and uppertail- coverts slightly more reddish, remiges brown, edged chestnut on outer webs, wing- coverts washed reddish- brown, greater coverts with olive tinge, tail chestnut; throat ashy brown, underparts tawny- brown; iris umbre, bill blackish- brown, lower mandible sometimes paler, legs dark grey. Juvenile male is generally sooty greyish- brown to blackish with chestnut edges of feathers, including wing- coverts; immature male like adult but lighter, retains some juvenile wing- coverts, bill pale; immature female like adult, but retains some juvenile wing- coverts. Race wandamensis is similar to nominate, but male belly black, female crown more rufous- brown, like back; meeki male is deeper black, female with less grey tinge; buergersi like previous, but female bright reddish- brown, especially on underparts; schistaceus male is more slaty black, female more grey- tinged below; harterti is like last, but female browner, less grey- tinged below.

Size: 

23 cm; 73- 86 g

Phylogeny: 

Taxonomy: Rectes nigrescens Schlegel, 1871, Arfak Mountains, Vogelkop, New Guinea. Six subspecies recognized. (source: Handbook of the Birds of World)

Distribution: 

Subspecies and Distribution:

    * nigrescens (Schlegel, 1871) - Vogelkop (Tamrau Mts, Arfak Mts), in NW New Guinea. * wandamensis E. J. O. Hartert, 1930 - Wandammen Peninsula, in W New Guinea. * meeki Rothschild & E. J. O. Hartert, 1913 - mountains in W New Guinea (Weyland, Nassau and Oranje Ranges). * buergersi Stresemann, 1922 - EC New Guinea (Sepik Mts and Hindenburg Mts E to Mt Hagen). * harterti (Reichenow, 1911) - Huon Peninsula (Saruwaged Mts), in NE New Guinea. * schistaceus (Reichenow, 1900) - SE New Guinea E from Herzog Mts.
Habitat: 

Inhabits lower montane forest, mainly at 1600- 2000 m, locally down to 1000 m and up to 2600 m.

Trophic strategy: 

Insects and fruit, occasionally seeds. Forages from ground to lower canopy, mainly in substage and middle stage. Gleans prey from foliage and ground.

Reproduction: 

Adult feeding young in mid- Sept, female with egg in oviduct in late Nov, and egg in late Dec. Nest a cup of fern fronds and fine rootlets, built high in tree. Clutch 1- 2 eggs, maroon- brown or deep pink (slightly buffish- tinged), spotted and blotched with light and dark brown and grey, or dark reddish- brown and purple, 32- 33,2 x 22,6- 23,7 mm. No other information.

Scratchpads developed and conceived by (alphabetical): Ed Baker, Katherine Bouton Alice Heaton Dimitris Koureas, Laurence Livermore, Dave Roberts, Simon Rycroft, Ben Scott, Vince Smith