Status: 30.10.2022 8:47 a.m
Bright plumage, blue-yellow breast: In Indonesia, zoologists have discovered new species of tropical birds on isolated islands. The researchers speak of “exciting findings” that are important for understanding evolution.
Scientists have discovered several new species of tropical sunbirds on remote islands in Indonesia. This is from a new one study published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society became. Accordingly, zoologists from Trinity College Dublin, in collaboration with an Indonesian research team, identified, among other things, the previously unknown “Wakatobi sunbird” – also called “Cinnyris infrenatus”.
The male is identified by his bright blue and yellow breast – the female’s breast is only yellow. The species lives on the Wakatobi archipelago east of Sulawesi.
Without a blue breast: a female Wakatobi sunbird from Indonesia.
Image: Nicola Marples, David Kelly/Trinity College Dublin/dpa
“Exciting Findings”
The researchers also examined specimens that had previously been assigned to the “green-backed sunbirds” (“Cinnyris jugularis”) and “silky sunbirds” (“Leptocoma sericea”). They found out that individual individuals belong to previously unknown species.
Thus, for example, “green-backed sunbirds” represent a superspecies that must be divided into at least four species, according to the study. “These exciting findings have important implications for our understanding of evolution in this biodiverse region,” it said.
Studies on DNA and song
The study took into account DNA, song recordings, body dimensions and wing lengths, among other things – and showed that the sunbird family is far more diverse than previously thought, explained lead author Fionn Ó Marcaigh. “It’s amazing that in this region (…) there are still species waiting to be discovered,” he said.
I am thrilled that we have expanded the list of known species from this wonderful part of the world.
Islands with their own evolutionary processes
The Wakatobi Islands are recognized as an important bird area, but until recently they received “little ornithological attention,” the study said. Lead author Ó Marcaigh also stated: “Small, isolated islands like these have their own evolutionary processes – and these often produce unique species, as in the famous case of the Galápagos Islands.”
Tropical birds resemble hummingbirds
Sunbirds – or sunbirds in English – live in the tropics from Africa to Australia. They resemble the American hummingbirds. Male sunbirds often have bright plumage with iridescent and metallic feathers that gleam in the sunlight. The plumage of these animals has been studied by zoologists for hundreds of years to name species, the authors said. About 140 species are currently recognized.