Ptiloprora erythropleura
Nominate race has head and neck leaden grey, fine and dense pale greyish speckling or scaling on forehead and lores and in diffuse suborbital crescent, fine pale and diffuse suborbital crescent, fine pale dull olive edges on top of head and hindneck, upperparts dusky to blackish-brown with fine and obscure dull olive-grey streaking or scaling, olive-brown wash on rump and uppertail-coverts, upperwing-coverts varying edged rufous to very pale olive, pale olive edges on remiges, underbody pale leaden grey, fine off-white to pale grey feather edges on breast and centre on belly, chestnut-brown flanks, iris red, brownish-red or red-brown, bill black, sometimes blackish-grey, legs blue-grey to grey-blue or slate-grey. Sexes alike in plumage, male larger than female. Juvenile and immature not properly known, but plumage generally washed olive or creamy yellow to greenish-yellow, especially below.
Not Threatened
Nominate race has head and neck leaden grey, fine and dense pale greyish speckling or scaling on forehead and lores and in diffuse suborbital crescent, fine pale and diffuse suborbital crescent, fine pale dull olive edges on top of head and hindneck, upperparts dusky to blackish-brown with fine and obscure dull olive-grey streaking or scaling, olive-brown wash on rump and uppertail-coverts, upperwing-coverts varying edged rufous to very pale olive, pale olive edges on remiges, underbody pale leaden grey, fine off-white to pale grey feather edges on breast and centre on belly, chestnut-brown flanks, iris red, brownish-red or red-brown, bill black, sometimes blackish-grey, legs blue-grey to grey-blue or slate-grey. Sexes alike in plumage, male larger than female. Juvenile and immature not properly known, but plumage generally washed olive or creamy yellow to greenish-yellow, especially below.
17 cm, male 21-25 g and female 18.5-20.5 g (nominate)
Taxonomy: Ptilotis erythropleura Salvadori, 1876, Arfak Mountains, north-west New Guinea. Formerly considered conspecific with P. mayri, P. guisei and P. perstriata, but the four differ in size, plumage (crown colour, dorsal coloration, colour of wing-covert edgings, distinctness of ventral spotting, flank colour) and iris colour. Present species is sympatric (and with broad altitudinal overlap) with P. perstriata over distance of at least 400 km in W New Guinea. Birds from Wissel Lakes area (between Weyland Mts and Snow Mts) described as race incerta, but validity uncertain, and thought possibly a hybrid between race dammermani and P. perstriata (of nominate race); further study needed. In NW (Bomberai Peninsula), female specimen in Kumawa Mts like race dammermani in size and iris colour, but with pale yellowish wash below; birds almost certainly of this species seen commonly in Fakfak Mts also had somewhat yellowish underbody, and thought by later researchers to differ from nominate race in larger size, distinct streaking below and lack of rufous in plumage (also, tuft at side of breast yellowish, and at least some had pale iris); both populations provisionally included with present species, but study required in order to determine whether they represent one or two undescribed races, or even new species. Two subspecies currently recognized. (source: Handbook of the Birds of World)
Subspecies and Distribution:
- * erythropleura (Salvadori, 1876) - mountains of Vogelkop and Bomberai Peninsula, in NW New Guinea. * dammermani Stresemann & Paludan, 1934 - Weyland Mts E to Nassau Range and Oranje Mts, in W New Guinea.
Mid-montane forest and secondary growth. Recorded at 1300-2800 m, heard commonly above 1200 m in Falfak Mts.
Diet includes arthropods, nectar and fruit. Forages mainly in middle and upper levels of vegetation, but extends to understorey, gleans and probes. Active, confiding, quick mowingand usually conspicuous, seen in twos and in small groups.
No information