Blue mockingbird

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Blue mockingbird
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Mimidae
Genus: Melanotis
Species:
M. caerulescens
Binomial name
Melanotis caerulescens
( Swainson , 1827)

The blue mockingbird ( Melanotis caerulescens ) is a species of bird in the family Mimidae . It is endemic to Mexico , but has occurred as a vagrant in the southern United States . Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests , subtropical or tropical moist montane forests , and heavily degraded former forest.

The blue mockingbird is uniformly blue on its back, tail, wings, head and underbelly. This color is a result of feather structure rather than pigment, and therefore can look gray in the shade. It has a black "mask" surrounding its reddish-brown eyes. It has a rather long, slightly graduated tail, and dark blue streaks over its breast. Its bill is long, thin and slightly curved, and its legs and feet are black.

Taxonomy [ edit ]

When he first described the blue mockingbird in 1827, William John Swainson assigned it to the mockingbird Orpheus , and when Orpheus became a junior synonym for the genus Mimus , the species was moved accordingly. Not all authorities agreed; several placed it in the thrush Turdus . However, when Charles Lucien Bonaparte moved it to its current genus Melanotis in 1850, most authorities quickly followed suit. [2] There is disagreement as to whether it is monotypic [3] or not. [4]

Among taxonomists who believe the species is polytypic , two subspecies are generally recognized.

  • M. c. caerulescens , the nominate subspecies, is found in the pine-oak zone of western Mexico, from southern Sonora south to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec .
  • M. c. longirostris is found only on the Tres Marias Islands , off the coast of western Mexico. [4]

The blue mockingbird has historically been considered conspecific with the closely related blue-and-white mockingbird . [5] Its species name is derived from the Latin adjective caer?l?us , meaning "blue". [6]

Description [ edit ]

Measuring 9.5?10.5 in (24?27 cm) in length, [7] and weighing between 50.2 and 59.7 g (1.77 and 2.11 oz), [8] the blue mockingbird is a medium-sized mimid . Individuals of the subspecies caerulescens have a mean body mass slightly higher than that for individuals of the subspecies longirostris ? 63.5 g (2.24 oz) for the former and 59.7 g (2.11 oz) for the latter. [8]

Habitat and range [ edit ]

The blue mockingbird lives in a variety of woodlands: humid forest, riparian thickets, scrub, pine-oak forests and second growth. It is found at elevations ranging from lowlands to 2,450 m (8,040 ft). [7]

Behavior [ edit ]

Breeding [ edit ]

The blue mockingbird builds a cup nest of twigs and rootlets. [7]

Food and feeding [ edit ]

The blue mockingbird is an omnivore ; it feeds primarily on invertebrates , but also on some vegetable matter. [9]

Conservation and threats [ edit ]

Because of its very large range and sizable population (estimated to number 500,000?4,999,999 individuals), the blue mockingbird is rated as a species of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature . There is, however, evidence that its overall numbers are dropping, primarily due to habitat fragmentation and loss. [1] The Mexican government has named the longirostris subspecies as a taxon of "special concern". [10]

References [ edit ]

  1. ^ a b BirdLife International (2020). " Melanotis caerulescens " . IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2020 : e.T22711020A139353996. doi : 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22711020A139353996.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021 .
  2. ^ United States National Museum (1907). Bulletin of the United States National Museum, Volume 50, part 4 . Washington, D.C.: Government Publishing Office. pp. 209?212.
  3. ^ Monroe, Burt L; Sibley, Charles G (1997). A World Checklist of Birds . Yale University Press. p. 237. ISBN   0-300-07083-7 .
  4. ^ a b Clements, James F. (2000). Birds of the World: A Checklist (5th ed.). Robertsbridge, UK: Pica Press. p. 408. ISBN   1-873403-93-3 .
  5. ^ Sibley, Charles Gald; Monroe, Burt Leavelle (1990). Distribution and Taxonomy of the Birds of the World . Yale University Press. p. 522. ISBN   0-300-04969-2 .
  6. ^ Simpson DP (1979). Cassell's Latin Dictionary (5th ed.). London: Cassell Ltd. p. 84. ISBN   0-304-52257-0 .
  7. ^ a b c Howell, Steve N.G.; Webb, Sophie (1995). A Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Northern Central America . Oxford University Press. p.  597 . ISBN   0-19-854012-4 .
  8. ^ a b Dunning Jr., John B. (5 December 2007). CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses (2nd ed.). Boca Raton, FL, US: CRC Press. p. 353. ISBN   978-1-4200-6444-5 .
  9. ^ Brewer, David (2010). Wrens, Dippers and Thrashers . London, UK: Christopher Helm. p. 210. ISBN   978-1-8734-0395-2 .
  10. ^ Wells, Jeffrey (2007). Birder's Conservation Handbook: 100 North American Birds at Risk . Princeton, NJ, US: Princeton University Press. p. 430. ISBN   978-0-691-12322-6 .

External links [ edit ]

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