Pachycephala modesta
Crown is dark grey, upper side of face to below orbit grey, ear- coverts brown, upperparts sooty brown with olive wash; upperwing and tail slaty brown, all wing feathers edged light grey; throat and underparts white, breast and flanks tinged grey; iris dark brown or dark red- brown; bill and legs black. Sexes alike. Juvenile is mottled heavily with chestnut- brown to dark red- brown; immature has upperparts olive- green, secondaries edged rufous, underparts buffy, upper breast sometime with indistinct rufous band, belly washed pale yellow. Race hypoleuca differs from nominate in having upperparts less olive, more greyish- brown, underparts darker grey; telefolminensis resembles previous, but darker above and below.
Crown is dark grey, upper side of face to below orbit grey, ear- coverts brown, upperparts sooty brown with olive wash; upperwing and tail slaty brown, all wing feathers edged light grey; throat and underparts white, breast and flanks tinged grey; iris dark brown or dark red- brown; bill and legs black. Sexes alike. Juvenile is mottled heavily with chestnut- brown to dark red- brown; immature has upperparts olive- green, secondaries edged rufous, underparts buffy, upper breast sometime with indistinct rufous band, belly washed pale yellow. Race hypoleuca differs from nominate in having upperparts less olive, more greyish- brown, underparts darker grey; telefolminensis resembles previous, but darker above and below.
14 cm; 19- 21 g
Taxonomy: Poecilodryas modesta De Vis, 1894, Mount Maneao, 5000 feet [c. 1525 m], south-east New Guinea. Relationships within genus uncertain. Three subspecies recognized. (source: Handbook of the Birds of World)
Subspecies and Distribution:
- * telefolminensis Gilliard & LeCroy, 1961 - Victor Emanuel Mts and Hindenburg Mts, in EC New Guinea. * hypoleuca Reichenow, 1915 - mountains in provinces of Western, Southern and Eastern Highlands, Schrader Range, and Huon Peninsula (Saruwaged Mts), in E New Guinea. * modesta ( De Vis, 1894) - Herzog Mts and mountains of SE New Guinea.
Forest, ecologically disturbed areas, occasionally small trees in alpine grassland. Mainly from 1830 m to timber- line (3350- 3600 m); locally as low as 1130 m in SE of range (Efogi).
Insects, occasionally fruits. Frequently canopy (70- 85% of observations) and middle storey. Captures prey by gleaning from large and small branches, twigs and outer foliage; very occasionally by sallying.
Female with well- developed egg in early Sept, and breeding birds in late Nov and early Dec, indicative of breeding during latter part of dry season to early wet season, at least. No other information.