Sunbittern
| Sunbittern | |
|---|---|
.JPG) |
|
| on Cristalino River Southern Amazon, Brazil |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Infraclass: | Neognathae |
| Order: | Eurypygiformes |
| Family: |
Eurypygidae Selby, 1840 |
| Genus: |
Eurypyga Illiger, 1811 |
| Species: | E. helias |
| Binomial name | |
|
Eurypyga helias (Pallas, 1781) |
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_Area.svg) |
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| Sunbittern range | |
The sunbittern (Eurypyga helias) is a bittern-like bird of tropical regions of the Americas, and the sole member of the family Eurypygidae (sometimes spelled Eurypigidae) and genus Eurypyga. It ranges from Guatemala to southern Peru, showing three extant subspecies. The sunbittern shows both morphological and molecular similarities with the kagu (Rhynochetos jubatus) of New Caledonia, indicating an gondwanic origin, both species being placed in the clade Eurypygiformes.
The sunbittern is usually placed in the Gruiformes, but this was always considered preliminary. Altogether, the bird is most similar to another bird that was provisionally placed in the Gruiformes, the kagu (Rhynochetos jubatus). Molecular studies seem to confirm that the kagu and sunbittern are each other's closest living relatives and have a similar wing display. They are probably not Gruiformes (though the proposed Metaves are just as weakly supported). Altogether, the two species seem to form a minor Gondwanan lineage which could also include the extinct adzebills and/or the mesites, and is of unclear relation to the Gruiformes proper. Notably, the kagu and mesites also have powder down.
There were formerly two species (E. helias and E. major), but now E. helias is divided into three subspecies differentiated by plumage characters and size. The three subspecies are apparently allopatric.
The bird has a generally subdued coloration, with fine linear patterns of black, grey and brown. Its remiges however have vividly colored middle webs, which with wings fully spread show bright eyespots in red, yellow, and black. These are shown to other sunbitterns in courtship and threat displays, or used to startle potential predators. Male and female adult sunbitterns can be differentiated by small differences in the feather patterns of the throat and head. Like some other birds, the sunbittern has powder down.
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Wikipedia