The common newtonia (''Newtonia brunneicauda'') is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...

in the family Vangidae. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found els ...

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s are subtropical or tropical dry

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s and subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. It is a small bird with greyish-brown upper parts, tannish-white underparts, a black bill and golden-yellow eyes.

Taxonomy and systematics

There are two subspecies of the common newtonia: ''Newtonia brunneicauda brunneicauda, Newton 1863-'' It is found in forested regions throughout Madagascar. ''Newtonia brunneicauda inornata'' is considered to be a synonym. ''Newtonia brunneicauda monticola, Salomonsen 1934-'' It is found in the Ankaratra mountains of central Madagascar.

Description

It is a small, short-winged,

warbler Various Passeriformes (perching birds) are commonly referred to as warblers. They are not necessarily closely related to one another, but share some characteristics, such as being fairly small, vocal, and insectivorous. Sylvioid warblers Th ...

like bird with relatively long legs. It is 12 cm in length and weighs 7–14.5 g, with a wing length of 54.5 mm. Sexes look similar to each other. It has grayish brown upperparts and is pale warm

buff Buff or BUFF may refer to: People * Buff (surname), a list of people * Buff (nickname), a list of people * Johnny Buff, ring name of American world champion boxer John Lisky (1888–1955) * Buff Bagwell, a ring name of American professional wr ...

in colour under. The nominate species has a cold grayish brown head and upperparts, with the sides of head and neck being a lighter grayish-brown. Its tail is also grayish brown, with off-white undertail coverts. They also have very pale yellow irises with a slender, short, and black

bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

. The lining of the mouth is yellow. Its tarsi are pale pinkish to grayish brown. Juveniles look similar to adults, but have browner upperparts, with rufous-brown tips on greater wing coverts and a ginger tinge on their

tertials Flight feathers (''Pennae volatus'') are the long, stiff, asymmetrically shaped, but symmetrically paired pennaceous feathers on the wings or tail of a bird; those on the wings are called remiges (), singular remex (), while those on the tai ...

. Irises are darker than in adults.

Ecology and behaviour

Diet

It is

insectivorous A robber fly eating a hoverfly An insectivore is a carnivorous animal or plant that eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which can also refer to the human practice of eating insects. The first vertebrate insectivores were ...

Distribution and habitat

The species is found throughout Madagascar, from sea level up until an elevation of 2,300 m. It is found through a variety of forests and wooded habitats, but is mostly restricted to native forest.

References

common newtonia common newtonia Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Vangidae-stub