Black-sided flowerpecker

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Black-sided flowerpecker
Male with Medinilla speciosa berry

Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Dicaeidae
Genus: Dicaeum
Species:
D. monticolum
Binomial name
Dicaeum monticolum
Sharpe, 1887
Synonyms
  • Dicaeum monticola Sharpe, 1889

The black-sided flowerpecker

least concern
. Though its numbers have not been quantified, the black-sided flowerpecker is said to be common throughout much of its range, and any declines are not thought to be precipitous. However, destruction of forest for palm plantations may impact it.

Taxonomy and systematics

When

endemic to Sulawesi, is its closest relative.[4] There are no subspecies.[3]

The genus name Dicaeum is an

species name monticolum is Latin for "mountain dweller" or "mountaineer".[6] It is also known as the Bornean flowerpecker.[4]

Description

The black-sided flowerpecker is a very small

sexually dimorphic; the male is considerably more colourful than the female. The male has glossy blue-black upperparts. His face and the sides of his neck are black, his chin is white, and he has a scarlet throat and breast surrounded by a greyish-black border. His upper flanks and upper belly are dark grey, while his lower flanks are olive, and his lower belly white. His vent and undertail coverts are buffy-yellow. His underwing coverts are white, as are his pectoral tufts.[8] The female has olive-green upperparts and greyish underparts, with buffy flanks, a yellowish rump, a whitish throat and white pectoral tufts.[7][8] Immature birds are like the female, but more olive-grey below. They are finely streaked with dark from their chin to the breast,[8] and males may show some crimson on the breast.[7] Both sexes have dark brown irises, black bills, and feet variously described as brown or dark grey.[8][9]

Voice

Dickcissel male perched on a metal pole singing, with neck stretched and beak open.

Songs and calls
Listen to the black-sided flowerpecker on xeno-canto

The black-sided flowerpecker has a number of vocalisations, including a high-pitched zit, a high, weak tseeep, a quick tsit-tsit, a slurred tsweet tsweet, and a loud, steady clicking.[7][10]

Similar species

The female can be confused with the plain flowerpecker, but is larger and has a whiter throat.[11] Her back is also more olive-toned, as compared to the browner-backed plain flowerpecker.[7] All other similar species are allopatric—not found on Borneo—so not likely to be confused.[12]

Habitat and range

The black-sided flowerpecker is endemic to the montane forests of Borneo.

kerangas forest (heathland), scrub, and gardens.[7][11]

Ecology

The black-sided flowerpecker is not known to make any seasonal or altitudinal movements.[12]

Feeding

Like all flowerpeckers, the black-sided flowerpecker is a frugivore. It specializes on mistletoe berries (particularly those of the family Loranthaceae),[8] but also eats other small fruits, including Medinilla speciosa berries.[4][14] Its diet includes seeds, nectar, and various invertebrates.[7] Most of its foraging takes place close to the ground, but it sometimes feeds in the canopy.[8]

Breeding

Little is known about the breeding ecology of the black-sided flowerpecker. Young have been recorded between November and February, and adults in breeding condition have been found during that period. The nest is made of moss and lined with the pith of tree ferns. Lichens are used to camouflage its surface.[8] The eggs are undescribed.[8]

Conservation

The

least concern, though its population has not been quantified. While its numbers are thought to be decreasing, the rate of decline is not thought to be precipitous, and the population is not fragmented.[1] The species is said to be common throughout much of its range.[4] Destruction of forest for oil palm plantations could have a detrimental impact on their numbers. Studies have shown that black-sided flowerpeckers are only found in palm groves in small numbers and within 300 m (980 ft) of the edge of forest; they were not found further into extensive groves.[15]

References

Notes

  1. ^ a b c BirdLife International 2018.
  2. ^ Salomonsen 1961, p. 17.
  3. ^ a b Salomonsen 1961, p. 13.
  4. ^ a b c d e Phillipps & Phillipps 2014, p. 302.
  5. ^ Jobling 2010, p. 135.
  6. ^ Jobling 2010, p. 260.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Myers 2016, p. 306.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i Cheke, Mann & Allen 2001, p. 170.
  9. ^ Büttikofer 1899, p. 212.
  10. ^ eBird 2021.
  11. ^ a b c Sheldon, Moyle & Kennard 2001, p. 245.
  12. ^ a b Cheke, Mann & Allen 2001, p. 169.
  13. ^ Brickle, Eaton & Rheindt 2010, p. 36.
  14. ^ Kimura, Yumoto & Kikuzawa 2001, p. 844.
  15. ^ Gervais et al. 2012, p. 33.

General references

External links
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