Whiskered pitta

Whiskered pitta
Conservation status
Near Threatened  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
CITES Appendix I (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Pittidae
Genus:	Erythropitta
Species:	E. kochi
Binomial name
Erythropitta kochi (Brüggemann, 1876)
Synonyms
Pitta kochi Brüggemann, 1876

The whiskered pitta (Erythropitta kochi) is a rare species of

Description

EBird describes the bird as "A medium-sized bird of lower-elevation montane forest floor and undergrowth on Luzon. Prefers thick undergrowth with moss, ferns, and a steep slope. Brown on the back and sides with a red belly, a blue chest, tail, and edge of the wing, rufous on the back of the head, a dark face with a pale moustache, and a pale line behind the eye. Very similar to Blue-breasted Pitta, but Whiskered usually occurs at higher elevations, has an obvious whisker on the face, and has a brown rather than green back. Song is a long, mournful downslurred note followed by several shorter ones, “doooo doo-doo-doo-doo!”."^[5]

Habitat and conservation status

It chiefly inhabits montane forest, tolerating degraded and selectively logged areas. Records span a wide altitudinal range of 360 to 2,200 m. However, the highest densities found at 900-1,500 m where it typically breeds. It appears to prefer closed-canopy, primary montane, oak dominated forest, frequently on steep slopes. Its movements are poorly understood. Records from south Luzon (which may refer to wintering individuals) suggest that there is some intra-island migration..^[6]

IUCN has assessed this bird as

with wholesale clearance of forest habitats as a result of logging, agricultural conversion and mining activities occurring within the range. It is also threatened by hunting in snare traps.

It occurs in a number of protected areas, including the

Appendix I.

References