Leiothrix argentauris

Leiothrix argentauris

Life-forms

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Cladus: Sarcopterygii
Cladus: Rhipidistia
Cladus: Tetrapodomorpha
Cladus: Eotetrapodiformes
Cladus: Elpistostegalia
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Classis: Reptilia
Cladus: Eureptilia
Cladus: Romeriida
Subclassis: Diapsida
Cladus: Sauria
Infraclassis: Archosauromorpha
Cladus: Crurotarsi
Divisio: Archosauria
Cladus: Avemetatarsalia
Cladus: Ornithodira
Subtaxon: Dinosauromorpha
Cladus: Dinosauriformes
Cladus: Dracohors
Cladus: Dinosauria
Cladus: Saurischia
Cladus: Eusaurischia
Subordo: Theropoda
Cladus: Neotheropoda
Cladus: Averostra
Cladus: Tetanurae
Cladus: Avetheropoda
Cladus: Coelurosauria
Cladus: Tyrannoraptora
Cladus: Maniraptoromorpha
Cladus: Maniraptoriformes
Cladus: Maniraptora
Cladus: Pennaraptora
Cladus: Paraves
Cladus: Eumaniraptora
Cladus: Avialae
Infraclassis: Aves
Cladus: Avebrevicauda
Cladus: Pygostylia
Cladus: Ornithothoraces
Cladus: Ornithuromorpha
Cladus: Carinatae
Parvclassis: Neornithes
Cohors: Neognathae
Cladus: Neoaves
Cladus: Telluraves
Cladus: Australaves
Ordo: Passeriformes
Subordo: Passeri
Infraordo: Passerida
Superfamilia: Sylvioidea

Familia: Leiothrichidae
Genus: Leiothrix
Species: Leiothrix argentauris
Subspecies: L. a. argentauris – L. a. aureigularis – L. a. cunhaci – L. a. galbana – L. a. laurinae – L. a. ricketti – L. a. rookmakeri – L. a. tahanensis – L. a. vernayi
Name

Leiothrix argentauris (Hodgson, 1837)
Synonymy

Mesia argentauris (protonym)

References

The India Review and Journal of Foreign Science and the Arts 2: 88.
Vernacular names
العربية: بهدل فضي الأذن
čeština: Timálie stříbrouchá
Cymraeg: Mesia arianglust
Deutsch: Silberohr-Sonnenvogel
English: Silver-eared Mesia
español: Leiótrix cariblanco
فارسی: گوش‌نقره‌ای
suomi: Hopeakorvatimali
français: Léiothrix à joues argent
magyar: Ezüstfülű napmadár
Bahasa Indonesia: Panca warna
italiano: Mesia guanceargento
Bahasa Melayu: Burung Rimba Telinga Perak
नेपाली: चाँदीकाने मिसिया
Nederlands: Zilveroortimalia
svenska: Silverörad sångtimalia
Tiếng Việt: Kim oanh tai bạc
中文: 银耳相思鸟

The silver-eared mesia (Leiothrix argentauris) is a species of bird from South East Asia.
Taxonomy and distribution

The species was once placed in the large Old World babbler family Timaliidae, but that family has recently been split with this species being placed with the laughingthrushes in the new family Leiothrichidae.[3]

The species is sometimes placed in its own genus Mesia, or in the genus Leiothrix with the red-billed leiothrix. There are seven described subspecies, with considerable variation in plumage between them. Further research is needed to establish if this represents a single species or not.[4]

The subspecies and their distributions are:

M argentauris argentauris (Hodgson, 1837) - Northern and eastern India, Bhutan, northern Burma and southern China.
M argentauris galbana (Mayr & Greenway, 1938) - Southern Burma and northern Thailand
M argentauris ricketti (La Touche, 1923) - China (Yunnan, Guixhou & Guangxi), and northern Laos and Vietnam.
M argentauris cunhaci (Robinson & Kloss, 1919) - Southern Laos & Vietnam, Cambodia.
M argentauris tahanensis (Yen Kwokyung, 1934) - Southern Thailand and Peninsular Malaysia.
M argentauris rookmakeri (Junge, 1948) - Northern Sumatra.
M argentauris laurinae (Salvadori, 1879) - Southern Sumatra.

The species is generally resident although it has been reported as a winter migrant to Nameri National Park in Assam, India, which implies that the species may be an altitudinal migrant.[4] The species has been introduced to Hong Kong from captive stock derived from caged birds.[5]
Diet

The diet of the silver-eared mesia is dominated by insects and their larvae, as well as fruit and to a lesser extent seeds. A study of the diet of feral birds in Hong Kong found that 87% of the faecal samples studied had the remains on insects in them, and 97% had the remains of fruit. The species will often associate in large groups of up to thirty individuals while foraging, and even forms groups during the breeding season. They will also join large flocks of other species in the forest, known as waves, which include other species of babblers. They generally feed closer to the ground, but may go as high as 5 metres up into the canopy.[4]
Breeding

The silver-eared mesia is a seasonal breeder, with the season lasting from November to August, although the season starts later, in April, in the northern part of its range. Both the male and female are involved in building the nest, a deep cup of bamboo and other dead leaves lined with rootlets and fern fibres. The nest takes about four days to construct and is placed near ground level or up to 2m up in a bush. Underlying its relationship with the red-billed leiothrix the nest is said to be indistinguishable from the one of that species.[4]

The eggs of silver-eared mesia are white with light but rich madder-brown spots. Between two and five eggs are laid in a typical clutch, with four being the typical number in India but two or three more common in Malaysia. Both parents incubate the eggs, with (at least in captivity) the female incubating the eggs during the night. The eggs are incubated for 13 to 14 days after the laying of the first egg. Both parents feed the chicks, which fledge after 12 days, and parental care lasts for a further 22 days after fledging.[4]

From Neora Valley National Park, West Bengal, India

References

BirdLife International (2016). "Leiothrix argentauris". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T103878477A94498105. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T103878477A94498105.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
"Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
Gill, Frank; David Donsker (2010). "Babbler Families and Genera". IOC World Bird Names. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
Collar, N. J. & Robson C. 2007. Family Timaliidae (Babblers) Pp. 269 – 270 in; del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. & Christie, D.A. eds. Handbook of the Birds of the World, Vol. 12. Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.
Leven, Michael; Corlett, Richard (2004). "Invasive birds in Hong Kong, China". Ornithological Science. 3: 43–55. doi:10.2326/osj.3.43.