The fire-tailed myzornis (''Myzornis pyrrhoura'') is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of bird. Its genus ''Myzornis'' is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

, and has recently been placed in the family

Paradoxornithidae The parrotbills are a family, Paradoxornithidae, of passerine birds that are primarily native to East, Southeast and South Asia, with a single species in western North America, though feral populations exist elsewhere. They are generally smal ...

Description

The fire-tailed myzornis is a small species of warbler, long and weighing . It has bright green plumage with a black mask around the eyes and black scalloping on the . The wing is black and white with a streak of bright red and the sides of the tail are red too. The bill is long, slightly curved and black.Collar, N. & Robson, C. (2017). Fire-tailed Myzornis (''Myzornis pyrrhoura''). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from http://www.hbw.com/node/59675 on 14 June 2017).

Distribution and habitat

The species is found in

Bhutan Bhutan, officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked country in South Asia, in the Eastern Himalayas between China to the north and northwest and India to the south and southeast. With a population of over 727,145 and a territory of , ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

, and

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, 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 manifestation of its ...

is subtropical or tropical moist

montane forest Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures lapse rate, fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is ...

s. It is a common species in the upper ridges of the Sikkim and Arunachal Himalayas; mostly between 9,000 ft and 13,000 ft according to climatic conditions and seasonal variation. It prefers bamboo thickets, ''Rhododendron'' shrubs, birches, and junipers. There is some seasonal movement, the bird descending to lower altitudes in autumn.

Ecology

The fire-tailed myzornis feeds on

insect Insects (from Latin ') are Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...

spider Spiders (order (biology), order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight limbs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude spider silk, silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and ran ...

s and small

arthropod Arthropods ( ) are invertebrates in the phylum Arthropoda. They possess an arthropod exoskeleton, exoskeleton with a cuticle made of chitin, often Mineralization (biology), mineralised with calcium carbonate, a body with differentiated (Metam ...

s, as well as consuming fruit,

nectar Nectar is a viscous, sugar-rich liquid produced by Plant, plants in glands called nectaries, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollination, pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to an ...

and

sap Sap is a fluid transported in the xylem cells (vessel elements or tracheids) or phloem sieve tube elements of a plant. These cells transport water and nutrients throughout the plant. Sap is distinct from latex, resin, or cell sap; it is a s ...

from trees. In India and Nepal the breeding season is April to June, but the season may be longer in Bhutan, as juveniles have been observed in mid-September.

Gallery

File:Fire-tailed Myzornis On Bamboo Strand Pangolakha Wildlife Sanctuary East Sikkim India 14.05.2016.jpg, Bamboo stalks File:Fire-tailed Myzornis On Rhododendron Flowering Pangolakha Wildlife Sanctuary East Sikkim India 18.04.2016.jpg, Rhododendron File:Fire-tailed Myzornis On Himalayan Birch Pangolakha Wildlife Sanctuary East Sikkim India 05.05.2016.jpg, Birch File:Myzornis pyrrhoura -Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary, Arunachal Pradesh, India -male-8.jpg, Oak File:Fire-tailed Myzornis Pangolakha Wildlife Sanctuary East Sikkim India 06.04.2016.jpg, Rhododendron File:Fire tailed myzornis.jpg, Fire-tailed myzornis sunbathing beside Dirang Mandala Road at

Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary Eaglenest or Eagle's Nest Wildlife Sanctuary is a Protected areas of India, protected area of India in the Himalaya#Midlands, Himalayan foothills of West Kameng District, Arunachal Pradesh. It conjoins Sessa Orchid Sanctuary to the northeast an ...

References

External links

Image and Classification at Animal Diversity Web
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1064005

fire-tailed myzornis The fire-tailed myzornis (''Myzornis pyrrhoura'') is a species of bird. Its genus ''Myzornis'' is monotypic, and has recently been placed in the family Paradoxornithidae. Description The fire-tailed myzornis is a small species of warbler, long ...

Birds of Myanmar Birds of Nepal Birds of Northeast India Birds of Tibet Birds of Yunnan