Jacky winter
Jacky winter | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Passeriformes |
Infraorder: | Passerides
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Family: | Petroicidae |
Genus: | Microeca |
Species: | M. fascinans
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Binomial name | |
Microeca fascinans (Latham, 1801)
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The jacky winter (Microeca fascinans) is a small grey-brown robin found commonly throughout Australia and also in Papua New Guinea. The jacky winter acquired its name due to rapid and strong vocalisations, which sound like jacky-jacky winter-winter.[2] Their call is also often referred to as sounding like peter-peter-peter.[3] Its habitats include open woodlands and farmlands.
Taxonomy and distribution
The jacky winter belongs to the family of
The generic name Microeca derives from the Greek micros meaning 'small' and oikos meaning 'house'. This refers to the fact that they build the smallest nest of any Australian bird.[9] The specific name fascinans is Latin for 'fascinating' and derives from fascinare meaning 'to bewitch'.[9]
Other vernacular names for the jacky winter are brown flycatcher, peter peter, postboy, spinks and stumpbird.[3][10]
There are three races of jacky winter found in
Description
The jacky winter is around 12 – 14 cm in length (including the tail) and its weight varies from 14 – 18 g.[14] The plumage of M. f. fascinans includes a greyish breast with white on the bottom half, its head and back is greyish-brown, while its wings are a darker brown with white edges. The bill is black, it has a narrow eye-line and a buff alula stripe. The tail of M. f. fascinans is blackish brown with white outer feathers. Its legs are black. Subspecies M. f. assimilis is very similar to M. f. fascinans; however, it is darker, with more grey over the breast and flanks, covering up the white which is seen on M. f. fascinans.[14] M. f. pallida is smaller than the other two subspecies, being only around 13 cm. M. f. pallida is much more pallid than the other subspecies, and is usually a sandy brown colour.[12]
Behaviour
The jacky winter can be heard vocalising before sunrise and usually stops towards the middle of the day. Occasionally closer to sunset, it can be heard again.
Diet
The jacky winter is an
Reproduction
In many species of birds, the male plumage is quite bright and flamboyant to attract the opposite sex in hope of finding a partner to mate with. The jacky winter is instead a sexually monomorphic bird, which means that both the male and female are almost identical in appearance.[14] Rather than plumage playing a significant role in attracting the opposite sex, the jacky winter male uses song to attract a female during courtship.[15] In the eastern states of Australia, the jacky winter breeds mostly to the west of the Great Dividing Range, where a suitable habitat of eucalyptus woodland is present. They build a small, open cup-shaped nest, which is often made from grass and bark strips held together by spider webs. The nest is built in an exposed position, usually on a fork of a branch.[14]
The breeding season of jacky winters occurs from September to November. Leading up to September, singing from the males is at its highest peak, then as the
Territory size of the jacky winter has been recorded at 1.7 ha, which is similar to other species of
Status
The jacky winter is a common species of bird found throughout
All subspecies of the jacky winter in
Threats
A number of species of woodland birds, such as the jacky winter, are declining and going locally
The increase of bare ground, created by woodland fragmentation and degradation, can also cause nesting resources of the jacky winter to become scarce due to the increase of weeds in the area. This results in the jacky winter having to try to find another suitable habitat.
References
- . Retrieved 13 November 2021.
- ^ ISBN 067087918-5.
- ^ ISBN 085179813-6
- ^ Gill, F. and D. Donsker, eds. (2020). IOC World Bird List (v 10.1). Doi 10.14344/IOC.ML.10.1. http://www.worldbirdnames.org/
- ^
- ^ a b Jobling, James A. "Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird-names". Retrieved 10 April 2020.
- ISBN 073222436-5
- ISBN 978174021417-9
- ^ a b c d e Reid, J. R. W. and Gillen, J. S. 2013. Riparian bird assembladges of Cooper Creek, South Australia Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine. – South Australian Arid Lands Natural Resources Management Board.
- ^ ISSN 1448-0107
- ^
- ISSN 0004-8038
- ^ a b c Recher, H. F., Davis, W. E. and Calver, M. C. 2002. Comparative foraging ecology of five species of ground-pouncing birds in western Australian woodlands with comments on species decline. – Ornithol. Sci. 1: 29–40.
- ^
- ^ a b Recher, H. F. and Davis Jr, W. E. 2002. Foraging profile of a Salmon Gum woodland avifauna in Western Australia. – Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia. 85: 103–111.
- ^ a b Reid, J. R. W. 1999. Threatened and declining birds in the New South Wales Sheep-Wheat Belt: I. Diagnosis, characteristics and management. Consultancy report to the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. – CSIRO Wildlife and Ecology.
- ^ doi:10.1071/MU09115
- ^ Ford, H. A., Barrett, G. W., Saunders, D. A. and Recher, H. F. 2001. Why have birds in the woodlands of Southern Australia declined? – Biol. Cons. 97: 71–88.
- ISSN 1038-2097
- ISSN 0004-8038
- ISSN 1038-2097
- ^ Neuhӓuser, M. 2007. Climate change and the arrival of self-introduced bird species in New Zealand. – Notornis. 54: 11–14.
- doi:10.2307/1370453
- ^ .
- ^ Ford, H. A., Walters, J. R., Cooper, C. B., Debus, S. J. S. and Doerr, V. A. J. 2009. Extinction debt or habitat change? – Ongoing losses of woodland birds in north-eastern New South Wales, Australia. – Biol. Cons. 142: 3182–3190.
- ISSN 1471-2954