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White-browed Shama Copsychus luzoniensis Scientific name definitions

Nigel Collar and Guy M. Kirwan
Version: 1.0 — Published March 4, 2020
Text last updated July 9, 2018

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Originally Appeared in

HBW Alive

Field Identification

17–18 cm; 22·8–25·3 g. Male nominate race is bluish black from head to back and wings and breast, with white supercilium from over lores to nape, white wing patch, white belly shading rufous on flanks and thighs and up onto rump; tail black, white tips on outer four graduated feathers; bill black, legs pinkish flesh. Female has olive-brown crown, grey-brown back, pale grey throat. Juvenile is very similar to adult female but can be slightly greyer or more grey-brown on head and upperparts (including wing-coverts), and has throat to breast whitish. Race parvimaculata similar to nominate, but has darker rump, and smaller white tail tips; shemleyi also has darker rump, but slightly larger white tail tips than nominate, female has white throat bordered by grey, reduced white in wing.

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.

Until recently considered conspecific with K. superciliaris. Race parvimaculata only rather weakly differentiated from nominate; shemleyi poorly known, and validity has been questioned. Deep genetic divergence reported among populations ascribed to nominate race from different parts of Luzon (1). Three subspecies currently recognized.

Subspecies

SUBSPECIES

Copsychus luzoniensis luzoniensis Scientific name definitions

Distribution

Luzon and Catanduanes, in N Philippines. Probably this race recently found on Alabat (2).
SUBSPECIES

Copsychus luzoniensis parvimaculatus Scientific name definitions

Distribution

Polillo I.
SUBSPECIES

Copsychus luzoniensis shemleyi Scientific name definitions

Distribution

Marinduque.

Distribution

Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Habitat

Primary forest and second growth, usually below 1000 m.

Movement

Sedentary.

Diet and Foraging

No information concerning diet, but presumably includes small invertebrates and their larvae. Usually in pairs, foraging low down or on ground below dense foliage; difficult to observe.

Sounds and Vocal Behavior

Song, given from low and concealed perch in dense forest understorey, a long, loud series of clear, throaty melodious and somewhat thrush-like phrases each lasting c. 11 seconds with 15–20 seconds’ pause, and consisting of whistles, trills, gurgles and somewhat squeaky notes, rising and falling, often ending on high or rising note, repeated frequently after a short pause. Said to recall song of Brachypteryx poliogyna. Calls include a dry whistled “suweeet” followed by a softer, almost whispered, and rising “weeet wirrr wirrr” and finally several coarse-sounding rattles.

Breeding

Apr–May. Nest a cup made of grass and dry leaves, placed low down in hollow stump or limb of tree or palm. Eggs two, pale green with heavy reddish-brown blotches. No other information.

Conservation Status

Conservation status on Birdlife LC Least Concern

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Restricted-range species: confined to the Luzon EBA. Believed to be generally common.

Distribution of the White-browed Shama - Range Map
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  • Year-round
  • Migration
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Distribution of the White-browed Shama

eBird and Macaulay Library

Recommended Citation

Collar, N. and G. M. Kirwan (2020). White-browed Shama (Copsychus luzoniensis), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.whbsha1.01
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