Photo by aloktewari
Karad City, Dist. Satara, Maharashtra, India, 25 December 2010
- Dicaeum agile
Includes: Striped Flowerpecker, Modest Flowerpecker, Tenggara Flowerpecker, Agile Flowerpecker
Identification
9–10·4 cm (3½-4 in)
- upperparts olive-green
- underparts greyish white, streaked on the breast
- tail short
- bill short, thick, curved
- tongue tubular
The sexes are alike.
Distribution
Photo by Romy Ocon
Mt. Makiling, Laguna Province, Luzon, Philippines, January 2007
Southern Asia from India east to Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore (where it is a rare non-breeding visitor) to Indonesia and Timor.
Taxonomy
Taxonomy complex, with different authorities recognising different species. They may be divided as follows: agile and zeylonicum as "Agile Flowerpecker" (D. agile); atjehense, finschi, modestum and pallescens as "Modest Flowerpecker" (D. modestum); obsoletum and tinctum as "Tenggara Flowerpecker" (D. obsoletum); and aeruginosum, affine and striatissimum as "Striped Flowerpecker" (D. aeruginosum) [5]. The IOC currently recognises Striped Flowerpecker [6]. The treatment here follows [1].
Subspecies
Photo by robby thai
Si Phang Na NP, Thailand, 29 April 2016
There are 11 subspecies [1]:
- D. a. agile: "Agile Flowerpecker". North-eastern Pakistan and peninsula India
- D. a. zeylonicum: "Agile Flowerpecker". Sri Lanka
- D. a. modestum: "Modest Flowerpecker". Southern peninsula Thailand, Malay Peninsula and Borneo
- D. a. pallescens: "Modest Flowerpecker". Bangladesh to Burma, northern Thailand and north Vietnam
- D. a. atjehense: "Modest Flowerpecker". Northern Sumatra (Aceh, Utara and Selatan)
- D. a. finschi: "Modest Flowerpecker". Western Java
- D. a. tinctum: "Tenggara Flowerpecker". Lesser Sundas (Sumba, Flores and Alor)
- D. a. obsoletum: "Tenggara Flowerpecker". Timor (eastern Lesser Sundas)
- D. a. striatissimum: "Striped Flowerpecker". Northern Philippines (Lubang, Luzon, Romblon, Sibuyan, Catanduanes)
- D. a. aeruginosum: "Striped Flowerpecker". Central and southern Philippines (Cebu, Negros, Mindoro and Mindanao)
- D. a. affine: "Striped Flowerpecker". South-western Philippines (Palawan)
Habitat
A variety of woods and forests, both broadleaved evergreen. Found in the canopy and forest edges, gardens with fruit trees, particularly figs.
Behaviour
They jerk their tails from side to side.
Breeding
They build a purse-like nest suspended from a tree. The clutch consists of 2-4 eggs.
Diet
Their diet consists mostly of fruit, particularly figs and lantana. They also eat flowers, nectar and insects, including spiders.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, S. M. Billerman, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2022. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2022. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved March 2015)
- BF Member observations
- AvianWeb
- Eaton, JA, B van Balen, NW Brickle, FE Rheindt 2021. Birds of the Indonesian Archipelago (Greater Sundas and Wallacea), Second Edition. Lynx Editions. ISBN978-84-16728-44-2
- Gill, F, D Donsker, and P Rasmussen (Eds). 2023. IOC World Bird List (v 13.2). Doi 10.14344/IOC.ML.13.2. http://www.worldbirdnames.org/
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Thick-billed Flowerpecker. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 27 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Thick-billed_Flowerpecker
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
