Munia
Chestnut-breasted munia Lonchura castaneothorax
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Estrildidae
Genus: Lonchura
Sykes, 1832
Type species
Fringilla nisoria = Loxia punctulata nisoria
Species

See text

Lonchura is a genus of the estrildid finch family, and includes munias (or minias) and mannikins. They are seed-eating birds that are found in South Asia from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka east to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines. The name mannikin is from Middle Dutch mannekijn 'little man', and also the source of the common name of the family Pipridae, manakin.[1]

Some of the Lonchura species were formerly placed in Spermestes. Others have been placed in a genus of their own, Euodice.

Characteristics

They are small gregarious birds which feed mainly on seeds, usually in relatively open habitats, preferring to feed on the ground or on reeds of grasses. Several species have been noted to feed on algae such as Spirogyra.[2][3]

The nest is a large domed grass structure into which four to ten white eggs are laid. Some species also build communal roosting nests for overnight rest.

The species in this genus are similar in size and structure, with stubby bills, stocky bodies and long tails. Most are 10–12 cm in length. Plumage is usually a combination of browns, black and white, with the sexes similar, but duller and less contrasted for immature birds.

The similarities within this group and the existence of subspecies with differing vocalisations and plumage mean that some races may be elevated to species status. African and Indian silverbill are now usually considered distinct species in the Genus Euodice, and the two races of black-throated munia are often also split.

The munias are popular in the bird trade and many freed or escaped birds have formed feral colonies in different pockets across the world.

The red munia Amandava amandava and green munia Amandava formosa also take the name munia, but are in the genus Amandava.

Taxonomy

The genus Lonchura was introduced by the English naturalist William Henry Sykes in 1832.[4] The name combines the Ancient Greek lonkhē meaning "spear-head" or "lance" with oura meaning "tail".[5] Sykes included three species in the genus and of these the type species was designated as Fringilla nisoria Temminck 1830 by Arend Wiegmann in 1835. This taxon is now a subspecies, Loxia punctulata nisoria, of the scaly-breasted munia.[6][7]

Species

The genus contains 28 species:[7]

Image Common Name Scientific name Distribution
Scaly-breasted munia also known as nutmeg mannikin or spice finch Lonchura punctulata Indian Subcontinent, including Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka
Black-throated munia also known as Jerdon's mannikin Lonchura kelaarti southwest India, the Eastern Ghats and Sri Lanka
Black-faced munia Lonchura molucca Indonesia
White-rumped munia Lonchura striata Indian subcontinent to southern China east to Taiwan, and through Southeast Asia south to Sumatra
Dusky munia Lonchura fuscans Borneo
White-bellied munia Lonchura leucogastra Malay Peninsula to Philippines
Javan munia Lonchura leucogastroides Southern Sumatra, Java, Bali and Lombok, Indonesia. Introduced in Singapore and south Malay Peninsula
Tricolored munia Lonchura malacca southern India and Sri Lanka
Chestnut munia Lonchura atricapilla Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Burma, Nepal, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam and Hawaii
White-capped munia Lonchura ferruginosa Java and Bali
White-headed munia Lonchura maja Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam
Pale-headed munia Lonchura pallida Indonesia
Great-billed mannikin Lonchura grandis northern and eastern New Guinea
Black-breasted mannikin Lonchura teerinki West Papua, Indonesia
Western alpine mannikin Lonchura montana New Guinea
Eastern alpine mannikin Lonchura monticola Papua
Grey-banded mannikin Lonchura vana north-west Papua, Indonesia
Grey-crowned mannikin Lonchura nevermanni southern New Guinea
Grey-headed mannikin Lonchura caniceps Papua
Hooded mannikin Lonchura spectabilis New Britain and New Guinea
Forbes's mannikin Lonchura forbesi Papua New Guinea
Mottled mannikin Lonchura hunsteini New Ireland
New Hanover mannikin Lonchura nigerrima New Hannover
Yellow-rumped mannikin Lonchura flaviprymna Northern Territory, Australia
Five-colored munia Lonchura quinticolor Lesser Sunda Islands
Chestnut-breasted mannikin Lonchura castaneothorax Australia, New Caledonia, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea.
Black mannikin Lonchura stygia New Guinea, Papua, Papua New Guinea
Buff-bellied mannikin Lonchura melaena New Britain and Buka Island

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lonchura.
  1. ^ New Oxford American Dictionary (2nd ed., 2005), p. 1032.
  2. ^ Pillai, N.G. (1968). "The green algae, Spirogyra sp., in the diet of the White-backed Munia, Lonchura striata (Linn.)". The Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. 65 (2): 490–491.
  3. ^ Avery, Michael L. (1980). "Diet and breeding seasonality among a population of sharp-tailed munias, Lonchura striata in Malaysia" (PDF). The Auk. 97 (1): 160–166.
  4. ^ Sykes, William Henry (1832). "Catalogue of birds of the raptorial and insessorial orders (systematically arranged,) observed in the Dukhun". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 2 (18): 77–99 [94].
  5. ^ Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 229. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
  6. ^ Wiegmann, Arend (1835). "Bericht über die Fortschritte der Zoologie im Jahre 1834, vom Herausgeber". Archiv für Naturgeschichte. 1 (2): 255-348 [306].
  7. ^ a b Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2023). "Waxbills, parrotfinches, munias, whydahs, Olive Warbler, accentors, pipits". IOC World Bird List Version 13.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
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