Philippine dwarf kingfisher
The Philippine dwarf kingfisher (Ceyx melanurus) is a species of bird in the family Alcedinidae that is endemic to the Philippines. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Philippine dwarf kingfisher | |
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Illustration by John Gerrard Keulemans | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Coraciiformes |
Family: | Alcedinidae |
Subfamily: | Alcedininae |
Genus: | Ceyx |
Species: | C. melanurus |
Binomial name | |
Ceyx melanurus (Kaup, 1848) | |
Taxonomy
The Philippine kingfisher was formally described by the German naturalist Johann Jakob Kaup in 1848 under the binomial name Alcedo melanura.[2][3] The specific epithet is from the Ancient Greek melanouros meaning "with a black tail".[4] The Philippine dwarf kingfisher is now placed in the genus Ceyx that was introduced by the French naturalist Bernard Germain de Lacépède in 1799.[5][6]
Three subspecies are recognised:[6]
- C. m. melanurus (Kaup, 1848) – Luzon, Polillo, Alabat and Catanduanes (north Philippines)
- C. m. samarensis Steere, 1890 – Samar and Leyte (east central Philippines)
- C. m. mindanensis Steere, 1890 – Mindanao and Basilan (south Philippines)
The subspecies C. m. mindanensis is sometimes treated as a separate species, the south Philippine dwarf-kingfisher (Ceyx mindanensis).[7]
In March of 2020 a fledgling of the C. m. mindanensis subspecies was photographed for the first time. After 10 years of searching in the field Filipino field biologist Michael David De Leon photographed the bird.[8]
References
- BirdLife International (2014). "Ceyx melanurus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2014. Retrieved 17 August 2014.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- Kaup, Johann Jakob (1848). "Die Familie der Eisvögel (Alcedidae)". Verhandlungen des Naturhistorischen Vereins für das Großherzogthum Hessen und Umgebung (in German). 2: 61–81 [74]. OCLC 183221382.
- Peters, James Lee, ed. (1945). Check-List of Birds of the World. Volume 5. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 185.
- Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 248. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
- Lacépède, Bernard Germain de (1799). Discours d'ouverture du Cours d'histoire naturelle des animaux vertébrés et a sang rouge: Tableau des sous-classes, divisions, sous-divisions, ordres et genres des oiseaux. Paris: Plassan. p. 10.
- Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (2020). "Rollers, ground rollers & kingfishers". IOC World Bird List Version 10.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
- del Hoyo, J.; Collar, N.; Kirwan, G.M. (2020). del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A.; Sargatal, J.; Christie, D.A.; de Juana, E. (eds.). "South Philippine Dwarf-kingfisher (Ceyx mindanensis)". Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
- ago, Mario Alvaro Limos | 2 days. "Ultra-Rare Dwarf Kingfisher Fledgling Photographed for the Very First Time". Esquiremag.ph. Retrieved 2020-03-16.