Rufous-headed Robin
A species of Nightingales and Allies Scientific name : Larvivora ruficeps Genus : Nightingales and Allies
Rufous-headed Robin, A species of Nightingales and Allies
Botanical name: Larvivora ruficeps
Genus: Nightingales and Allies
Content
Description General Info
Photo By Ayuwat Jearwattanakanok
Description
This is a small robin (average length 15 cm) with orange-rufous head, a black face, and a white throat with black bordering. Back, upper breast and flanks are grey, most of the belly and underparts are white. The tail is black with rufous fringes and blackish tips to outer feathers. The song is powerful and clearly phrased, and most similar to that of the Ryukyu robin.
Size
15 cm
Dite type
Insectivorous
General Info
Distribution Area
The species has been recorded from only seven confirmed or probable breeding sites in the Qin Mountains of Sichuan and southern Shaanxi, and is also known from a very few scattered migrant records. While good population estimates are absent, it is assumed to have a very localized distribution and small total population size of no more than 1,500-3,800 individuals. It inhabits mixed coniferous and deciduous forest and scrubland in a very narrow altitude band (2,400-2,800 m above sea level), apparently making use of successional scrub in valley bottom areas subject to flash-floods. Using known breeding records of the rufous-headed robin, ecological niche modeling predicts that there should be suitable habitats for this species in north and central Sichuan, south Gansu, south Shaanxi and south-east Tibet.
Species Status
Populations of the rufous-headed robin appear to be on the decline. The species was classified by the IUCN as Vulnerable until 2012 and was uplisted to Endangered in 2013, based on the rarity of recent sightings, which is taken to indicate an ongoing population decline. The main threats are believed to be habitat loss and degradation, likely exacerbated to an unknown degree by capture of live specimens for the caged bird trade.
Photo By Ayuwat Jearwattanakanok
Scientific Classification
Phylum
Chordates Class
Birds Order
Perching birds Family
Old world flycatchers Genus
Nightingales and Allies Species
Rufous-headed Robin