Long-billed Tailorbird Artisornis moreaui Scientific name definitions
Text last updated December 12, 2017
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Species names in all available languages
| Language | Common name |
|---|---|
| Catalan | ocell sastre becllarg |
| Dutch | Moreaus Snijdervogel |
| English | Long-billed Tailorbird |
| English (United States) | Long-billed Tailorbird |
| French | Apalis à long bec |
| French (France) | Apalis à long bec |
| German | Usambarafeinsänger |
| Japanese | ハシナガイロムシクイ |
| Norwegian | langnebbskredderfugl |
| Polish | rdzawoczółek szydłodzioby |
| Russian | Длинноклювый апалис |
| Serbian | Dugokljuna ptica krojač |
| Slovak | penička dlhozobá |
| Spanish | Sastrecillo de Moreau |
| Spanish (Spain) | Sastrecillo de Moreau |
| Swedish | långnäbbad skräddarfågel |
| Turkish | Uzun Gagalı Afrika Terzikuşu |
| Ukrainian | Кравчик довгодзьобий |
Artisornis moreaui (Sclater, 1931)
Definitions
- ARTISORNIS
- moreaui
The Key to Scientific Names
Legend Overview
Originally Appeared in
Introduction
Taxonomic note: Lump. This account is a combination of multiple species accounts originally published in HBW Alive. That content has been combined and labeled here at the subspecies level. Moving forward we will create a more unified account for this parent taxon. Please consider contributing your expertise to update this account.
Field Identification
Long-billed Tailorbird (Long-billed)
11–12 cm; 8·3–10 g. An inconspicuous long-billed , long-tailed dark grey-brown warbler; very long and slender bill relatively wide at base. Adult has forecrown and area around eye washed foxy brown, brightest as a supraloral stripe from above eye to base of bill; inconspicuous but long, fine white filoplumes project from face (significance unknown, but elongated fine hairs sported by at least some Orthotomus); sides of head, ear-coverts and upperparts, including upperwing and tail, grey; centre of throat and central underparts, including belly and undertail-coverts, whitish; breast and flanks strongly washed drab greyish; iris red-brown; bill wholly dark grey; legs greyish flesh. Differs from A. metopias in having longer and wider tail, inconspicuous foxy-brown wash on face (not most of head rufous-chestnut). Sexes alike. Juvenile lacks rusty wash on head, is darker grey below.
Long-billed Tailorbird (Njesi)
11–12 cm; 8·5–10·4 g. An inconspicuous long-billed, long-tailed dark grey-brown warbler; very long and slender bill relatively wide at base. Compared to the previously conspecific A. moreaui, the present species is considered smaller and darker above and below, with more extensive foxy tones over forehead, lores and ear-coverts. Sexes alike. Juvenile apparently undescribed.
Systematics History
Editor's Note: This article requires further editing work to merge existing content into the appropriate Subspecies sections. Please bear with us while this update takes place.
Long-billed Tailorbird (Long-billed)
Hitherto considered conspecific with A. sousae (which see). Monotypic.Long-billed Tailorbird (Njesi)
Hitherto considered conspecific with A. moreaui, but differs in its dull brownish (slightly brighter on frons) vs dull rufous-tinged olive-grey forehead, lores and ear-coverts (2), vaguely olivaceous vs olive-grey upperparts (1), greyer underparts, notably on breast and flanks (1), shorter bill (1), longer wing and tail (1), use of canopy vs undergrowth (1, 2) (1). Monotypic.Subspecies
Long-billed Tailorbird (Long-billed) Artisornis moreaui moreaui Scientific name definitions
Systematics History
Apalis moreaui W. L. Sclater, 1931, Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 51:109.—forest near Amani, 3,000 ft., Usambara district, Tanganyika. (3)
The holotype, an adult, was collected by R. E. Moreau on 14 December 1930, and is held at the Natural History Museum, Tring (NHMUK 1931.5.7.1) (4).
Distribution
Endemic to the East Usambara Mts, in northeast Tanzania.
Identification Summary
Described under Plumages.
Artisornis moreaui moreaui (Sclater, 1931)
Definitions
- ARTISORNIS
- moreaui
The Key to Scientific Names
Legend Overview
Long-billed Tailorbird (Njesi) Artisornis moreaui sousae Scientific name definitions
Systematics History
Apalis moreaui sousae Benson, 1945, Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 66:19.—Njesi Plateau, 5,500 ft. (12°45′S, 35°20′E), 10 miles north of Unango, northern Portuguese East Africa (= Mozambique) (5).
The holotype, an adult male, was collected on 12 August 1945 by Jali Makawi for Constantine W. Benson, and is at the Natural History Museum, Tring (NHMUK 1945.25.3) (4).
Distribution
Confined to the Njesi Plateau, in northern Mozambique.
Identification Summary
Differs from the nominate subspecies in being smaller, and darker above and below, with more extensive foxy tones over the forehead, lores, and ear-coverts. See also Systematics History. One male (the holotype): wing length 50 mm, tail length 54 mm, bill length 17 mm, tarsus length 22 mm; one female: wing length 45 mm, tail length 46 mm, bill length 17 mm, tarsus length 22 mm (5).
Artisornis moreaui sousae (Benson, 1945)
Definitions
- ARTISORNIS
- moreaui
- sousae / souzae
The Key to Scientific Names
Legend Overview
Distribution
Long-billed Tailorbird (Long-billed)
E Usambara Mts, in NE Tanzania.
Long-billed Tailorbird (Njesi)
Njesi Plateau, in N Mozambique.
Habitat
Long-billed Tailorbird (Long-billed)
Evergreen forest. Occurs at 800–1000 m in dense undergrowth, especially with tangles of vines and creepers along forest edge and in forest gaps, including dense Lantana thickets. Territories are also frequently sited along streams.
Long-billed Tailorbird (Njesi)
Riparian and tall evergreen forest. Occurs at c. 1430–1850 m and all records are from midstorey and forest canopy, possibly because of co-occurrence with A. metopias, which is common in forest understorey at two of the sites occupied by present species; at the third, Mt Sanga, where A. metopias is absent, A. sousae still keeps to the higher strata. Prefers light gaps, clearings and areas with dense vine tangles.
Migration Overview
Long-billed Tailorbird (Long-billed)
Presumably resident.
Long-billed Tailorbird (Njesi)
Presumably resident. Recent survey work has established that mean territory size is 1531 m².
Diet and Foraging
Long-billed Tailorbird (Long-billed)
Diet mainly insects. Sometimes accompanies mixed-species flocks. Forages by searching foliage, mainly in low and middle strata, but recent study of feeding behaviour in Amani Nature Reserve found that foraging heights varied from 0·5 m to 24 m, with a median of 3·9 m. In same study, 85·7% of foraging manoeuvres were gleans and most of these (71·4 %) were directed at live leaves, especially their undersides, and 86·3% of foraging manoeuvres were in vine tangles (the others occurred in Lantana, an exotic bamboo Bambusa sp. and a tree leaf). Works its way up through creepers before moving back down again. Feeds with deliberate movements, thrusting long bill into tightly packed vegetation.
Long-billed Tailorbird (Njesi)
Diet presumably is mainly insects. Sometimes accompanies mixed-species flocks. Forages by searching foliage in canopy. Works its way up through creepers before moving back down again. Feeds with deliberate movements, thrusting long bill into tightly packed vegetation.Sounds and Vocal Behavior
Long-billed Tailorbird (Long-billed)
Song a rhythmic, almost mechanical, repeated “tcheu-tcheu-tcheu-tcheu-tcheu-tcheu-tcheu”, varying slightly in pitch; sometimes notes are almost disyllabic, as “t’wee-t’wee-t’wee…”. A rasping call also reported, considered to be a form of contact note during foraging.
Long-billed Tailorbird (Njesi)
Song only recently sound-recorded, is also rhythmic and almost mechanical, like A. moreaui, being regularly given in male-female duets, with one bird (possibly usually the male ) initiating a duet with either a series of single nasal notes or a rapidly repeated chiming two-note call. An alarm call from a bird in the hand is a slightly squeaky series of ‘urgent’-sounding notes.
Breeding
Long-billed Tailorbird (Long-billed)
Little known. Family party with two recently fledged young in mid-Oct suggests laying in early Sept. Nest not reliably described; one reputed to be of this species was a cup of rootlets, moss and hair, built inside leaves sewn together with typical tailorbird technique at end of sapling branch. Aforementioned fledglings were fed by parents until early Feb, remained with adults until mid-Mar.
Long-billed Tailorbird (Njesi)
Nothing known.Conservation Status
Long-billed Tailorbird (Long-billed)
CRITICALLY ENDANGERED. Restricted-range species: present in Tanzania-Malawi Mountains EBA. Occurs only in E Usambaras (Amani and Nilo Forests), in Tanzania: population estimated to be fewer than 250 individuals, most of these in Amani Nature Reserve and Nilo Forest Reserve, but also recorded in Mazumbai Forest Reserve; in 2014, 80–120 territories estimated for an area of > 200 km² (6). Although the species is an early successional forest specialist, it avoids areas with significant human disturbance, so forest exploitation for wood and non-timber products may be the principal threat. Small-holder, subsistence agriculture and commercial crops have replaced > 60% of indigenous forest, and what remains is often heavily disturbed, severely fragmented, and degraded by numerous invasive plants, introduced via the development of Amani Botanical Garden. Given that it is scarce, elusive and found at low densities, A. moreaui may remain to be discovered in other Eastern Arc forests. Further fieldwork and research needed, as is formal protection.
Long-billed Tailorbird (Njesi)
ENDANGERED. Restricted-range species: present in Tanzania-Malawi Mountains EBA. Confined to Njesi Plateau plus adjacent Mt Sanga and Mt Chitagal, in NE Mozambique, where recently (2001) rediscovered (7); population poorly known, but follow-up surveys in 2011 and 2016 found it to be reasonly common. Further surveys in N Mozambique are required urgently. Although the species is an early successional forest specialist, it avoids areas with significant human disturbance, so forest exploitation for wood and non-timber products may be the principal threat. Given that it is scarce, elusive and found at low densities, A. sousae may remain to be discovered in other Eastern Arc forests. Further fieldwork and research needed, as is formal protection.
