#Falcunculus

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A new variant has been added!

Western Shriketit (Falcunculus leucogaster) © Unknown

It hatches from , and new eggs.

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[a-dinosaur-a-day]

Falcunculus frontatus

By Frankzed, CC BY 2.0

Etymology: Curved Falcon

First Described By: Vieillot, 1816

Classification: Dinosauromorpha, Dinosauriformes, Dracohors, Dinosauria, Saurischia, Eusaurischia, Theropoda, Neotheropoda, Averostra, Tetanurae, Orionides, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Tyrannoraptora, Maniraptoromorpha, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, Pennaraptora, Paraves, Eumaniraptora, Averaptora, Avialae, Euavialae, Avebrevicauda, Pygostaylia, Ornithothoraces, Euornithes, Ornithuromorpha, Ornithurae, Neornithes, Neognathae, Neoaves, Inopinaves, Telluraves, Australaves, Eufalconimorphae, Psittacopasserae, Passeriformes, Eupasseres, Passeri, Euoscines, Corvides, Orioloidea, Falcunculidae

Status: Extant, Least Concern

Time and Place: Within the last 10,000 years, in the Holocene of the Quaternary 

The Crested Shriketit lives entirely in Australia 

Physical Description: The Crested Shriketit is a small yellow bird, reaching between sixteen and nineteen centimeters in length. They have distinctive white and black striped heads, with small thick beaks. The males have shaggy black crests on their heads, while the females have more smooth heads. Some varieties of this birds are black and olive on their backs, wings, and tails; while some are yellow nearly all over. Regardless, they have yellow undersides all over. The juveniles tend to be somewhat browner than the adults. They are round, stocky passerines, rather than slender, and have a vague appearance like they’re smiling! Even though they are not. In short, these are quite adorable little birds.

Diet: Crested Shriketits mainly feed on small invertebrates and some fruits, seeds, and other plant materials, though invertebrates such as insects and spiders are the bulk of their diets. 

By Aviceda, CC BY-SA 3.0

Behavior: Crested Shriketits primarily forage on branches, sometimes divided based on sex with males feeding higher in the trees than females; they tend to look for trees with smooth bark, with males preferring dead branches and females preferring to glean food from leaves. They will pick around the bark or underneath it, and even tear it away or dig into the bark or plants to find food. They have been observed breaking off twigs, holding it in their mouths, and poking it into holes to force out insects. They’ll also hold their food with their feet and bashing it against the branches to break it apart to eat. They make a series of descending and ascending notes with double whistles to one another, though some make high-pitched descending mournful whistles. They’ll also yell at each other with scolding “tut-tut” calls.

These birds tend to vary when they breed, some breeding in the late winter, others breeding closer to the start of summer. They breed in simple pair, sometimes with helpers, and are very territorial over their breeding areas. The females will build nests of deep cups of barks and dry grass, covered with spiderwebs and lichen. They are usually placed fairly high above the ground, and two to three eggs are laid in the nest. The female will do most of the incubation for about three weeks, with some help from the male; both parents and any helpers will aid in feeding the young for two more weeks. The fledglings are then cared for by the parents for up to six months before going out on their own. They do not tend to migrate, but they may move locally in response to food availability. 

By J. J. Harrison, CC BY-SA 4.0

Ecosystem: Crested Shriketits are mainly found in eucalyptus forests and woodlands, though they will also be found in river-associated vegetation in drier areas and in even in some of the remaining rainforests of Australia, though they prefer slightly drier habitats. They are preyed upon by a variety of predatory birds, and their nests are parasitized by at least three different species of Cuckoo.

Other: These birds are not threatened with extinction and are quite common in their habitats; they have shown some decline in areas due to logging and fires, but not enough to be classified as nearly threatened. Some local populations are more vulnerable to fires than others.

~ By Meig Dickson

Sources under the Cut 

Boles, W. & Christie, D.A. (2019). Eastern Shrike-tit (Falcunculus frontatus). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.

del Hoyo, J., Collar, N. & Christie, D.A. (2019). Northern Shrike-tit (Falcunculus whitei). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. 

Dickinson, E. C. 2003. The Howard & Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World. 3rd Ed. Princeton University Press, Princeton, N.J. 

Higgins, P. J.; Peter, J. M. (2002). Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds. Vol.6 Pardalotes to Shrike-thrushes (1. publ. ed.). Melbourne: Oxford University Press. pp. 1050–1063.

Noske, Richard (2003). "Does the crested shrike‐tit Falcunculus frontatus exhibit extended parental care?". Corella. 27: 118–119. ‘

Schodde, R. and I. J. Mason. 1999. Directory of Australian Birds. Passerines: i-x, 1-851. CSIRO Publishing, Canberra. 

West, Judy. "Water for a Healthy Country" (PDF). Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation. Archived from the original  on 28 October 2009. Retrieved 12 November 2011.

[hello-birdies]

Falcunculus frontatus by Off-World Photos.

[bumblebeeappletree]

Sophie visits the gardens of a couple who have transformed a cow paddock into a biodiverse and beautiful garden for native plants and birds. Subscribe 🔔 http://ab.co/GA-subscribe

In the hills above Victor Harbor in South Australia, retired farmers Pat and Gerald Uppill have transformed a degraded block of land into a garden for native plants, wildlife, and for their own food and enjoyment.

Pat says, “It was a cow paddock that we managed to get in 2003, and we’ve gone from there. The minute we walked in we started gardening.” Whilst there were some trials and losses, eventually, they decided that planting natives was the best way to go to support and complement the existing mature gum trees and patches of remnant bushland.

Some parts of the site have very sandy soil, which was perfect for growing an ornamental banksia garden. There’s a variety of species from different areas of Australia, including a prostrate Coast Banksia and the brilliant red flowers of the Scarlet Banksia. The native plants attract a lot of wildlife, including at least 80 species of birds such as honeyeaters, lorikeets, finches, Pat’s favourite Crested Shrike-tits, and the much-loved Superb Fairy-wrens.

The property also has a perched swamp – a wetland area perched on a hillside, rather than at the bottom of a gully. It’s an important water source for the bushland which in turn provides important breeding and feeding habitat for wildlife.

Closer to the house, there’s an orchard with 22 fruit trees, well protected from the wildlife, and a productive veggie patch that saves them running to the shops. This gorgeous garden is a result of nearly 20 years of love and labour, and a commitment to protecting and celebrating native species.

Featured Plants:

PROSTRATE COAST BANKSIA - Banksia integrifoliacv.

SCARLET BANKSIA - Banksia coccinea

TEA TREE - Leptospermum sp.

CHERRY - Prunus cv.

Featured Species:

TAWNY FROGMOUTH - Podargus strigoides

NANKEEN NIGHT-HERON - Nycticorax caledonicus

NEW HOLLAND HONEYEATER - Phylidonyris novaehollandiae

CRIMSON ROSELLA - Platycercus elegans

RAINBOW LORIKEET - Trichoglossus haematodus

RED-BROWED FINCH - Neochmia temporalis

CRESTED SHRIKE-TIT - Falcunculus frontatus

SUPERB FAIRY-WREN - Malurus cyaneus

Filmed on Ngarrindjeri Country| Lower Inman Valley, SA

[typhlonectes]

Crested Shrike-tit (Falcunculus frontatus), Dharug National Park, New South Wales, Australia

photograph by JJ Harrison | Wikimedia CC