Rhipidura dahli

General description: 

Male nominate race has eyebrow and moustachial streak white, crown and side of head dusky grey-brown, becoming rufous-brown on mantle, rest of upperparts rufous-chesnut, R dark dusky brown, edges narrowly rusty red, on inner webs and more broadly on outer webs, amount of red on latter increasing inwards until inner S and T entirely rusty red, WC rufous-brown, tail rufous on basal half, blackish on distal half, extent of black vyrying individually, lateral R broadly tipped rufous, throat grey-buff, underparts buff, sometimes with rufous wash, iris dark brown, bill black, pale base, legs pale blue-grey. Female is smaller than male, with crown, ear-coverts and throat paler. Juvenile has paler and less well-defined head markings, with a buff supercilium, creamy moustachial streak, and pale bill.

Conservation status: 

Not Threatened

Diagnostic description: 

Male nominate race has eyebrow and moustachial streak white, crown and side of head dusky grey-brown, becoming rufous-brown on mantle, rest of upperparts rufous-chesnut, R dark dusky brown, edges narrowly rusty red, on inner webs and more broadly on outer webs, amount of red on latter increasing inwards until inner S and T entirely rusty red, WC rufous-brown, tail rufous on basal half, blackish on distal half, extent of black vyrying individually, lateral R broadly tipped rufous, throat grey-buff, underparts buff, sometimes with rufous wash, iris dark brown, bill black, pale base, legs pale blue-grey. Female is smaller than male, with crown, ear-coverts and throat paler. Juvenile has paler and less well-defined head markings, with a buff supercilium, creamy moustachial streak, and pale bill.

Size: 

13-14.5 cm

Phylogeny: 

Taxonomy: Rhipidura dahli Reichenow, 1897, Ralum, New Britain. Forms a superspecies with R. rufidorsa, R. matthiae and R. malaitae, as part of a larger species group that also includes R. teysmanni, R. superflua, R. dedemi. (source: Handbook of the Birds of World)

Distribution: 

Subspecies and Distribution:

    * dahli Reichenow, 1897 - Umboi I and New Britain, in Bismarck Archipelago. * antonii E. J. O. Hartert, 1926 - New Ireland.
Habitat: 

High-altitude montane forest, lower limits 750 m in Umboi, 530 in New Britain.

Migration: 

Resident.

Trophic strategy: 

Insect.Frequents dense growt from substage to canopy. Prey captured by FC. Joins mixed-species foraging flocks with other small insectivorous species, including Black-tailed Monarch and Golden Whistler.

Reproduction: 

Adults with fledgling in Dec in NB. No other info.

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