Notiomystidae Stitchbird
Version: 1.0 — Published March 4, 2020
Introduction
The Stitchbird (also known by its native Maori name “Hihi”) was once much more widespread in New Zealand, but it is now limited to a few areas of the North Island that are free of introduced predators. This once common little songbird has been brought back from the brink of extinction. Wth a black hood and tufts of white feathers on the sides of its head, it vaguely recalls a honeyeater in appearance, but this morphological similarity belies a mating system and associated sexual behaviors that are unlike those of any other bird. Indeed, recent genetic work confirms that its ancestors have been following a distinct evolutionary trajectory for many millions of years.
Habitat
The Stitchbird is found in broadleaf evergreen forest.
Diet and Foraging
Stitchbirds feed on nectar, lerps, manna and honeydew, fruits, and invertebrates. The relative proportions of these food items varies with the time of year, but Stitchbirds appear to rely on nectar sources, and will visit artificial feeders over a kilometer apart.
Breeding
The Stitchbird is most commonly monogamous, but it can also be polygynous, polyandrous, and polygynandrous. Furthermore, it is believed that extra-pair copulations represent a high percentage of matings in this species. During these extra-pair copulations, a male may forcefully copulate with a female faceto-face by holding her down on her back on the ground. Stitchbirds typically build their nests in natural cavities. Within the cavity, the nest consists of a small cup built on a platform of sticks that is constructed of rootlets and fibers from ferns, often being further lined with feathers. Female Stitchbirds lay 2 to 6 eggs, but typically 4 or 5. Only the female constructs the nest and incubates the eggs. However, the male sometimes assists with brooding and provisioning the chicks. Incubation takes 13 to 19 days, and the nestlings leave the nest after about 26 to 32 days post-hatch. Fledglings join a crèche after about a week, and they are fed by their parents for up to two weeks post-fledging.
Conservation Status
Although the Stitchbird population is currently stable, it is still quite small, earning it vulnerable status (100%; 1 VU). The small Little Barrier Island, located off the coast of the North Island, is home to the only self-sustaining population of this species. Other populations have been established in areas free of introduced predators on other islands and on the mainland, but these are not yet self-sustaining. There is also a small population in captivity, but it is currently declining. In the near future, conservation efforts will continue to focus on translocating birds to new predator-free sites.
Systematics History
The Stitchbird is part of a miscellaneous group of families with uncertain relationships, some of which are part of a ladderized phylogeny, which we call the “basal passerid oscines.” On the basis of morphological traits, the Stitchbird was long assumed to belong in Meliphagidae. Recent molecular phylogenetic investigations, however, have revealed that the Stitchbird is only very distantly related to Meliphagidae. Instead, it represents an old lineage that may be sister to another endemic New Zealand family, Callaeidae (Ewen et al. 2006, Driskell et al. 2007). Of the three recent studies that have included both Notiomystidae and Callaeidae, two have found them to be sister taxa, in turn sister to Cnemophilidae (Driskell et al. 2007) or in a polytomy with other passerid families (Ewen et al. 2006). Alternatively, Notiomystidae may be sister to Petroicidae and these, taken together in a polytomy with other corvoid and passeroid groups (Aidala et al. 2013, cf. Barker 2014). Clearly, there is much still to be learned about these birds, but their recognition as a separate family seems well justified and likely to encourage further study.
Conservation Status
Least Concern |
0%
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Near Threatened |
0%
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Vulnerable |
100%
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Endangered |
0%
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Critically Endangered |
0%
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Extinct in the Wild |
0%
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Extinct |
0%
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Not Evaluated |
0%
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Data Deficient |
0%
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Unknown |
0%
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Data provided by IUCN (2023) Red List. More information