D'Arnaud's barbet
Species of bird
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
D'Arnaud's barbet (Trachyphonus darnaudii) is a species of bird in the family Lybiidae that is found in East African. Barbets and toucans are a group of birds with a worldwide tropical distribution. The barbets get their name from the bristles which fringe their heavy bills.
| D'Arnaud's barbet | |
|---|---|
| |
| Female, Serengeti National Park | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Piciformes |
| Family: | Lybiidae |
| Genus: | Trachyphonus |
| Species: | T. darnaudii |
| Binomial name | |
| Trachyphonus darnaudii | |
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Taxonomy
D'Arnaud's barbet was formally described in 1847 as Micropogon darnaudii by the French naturalists Florent Prévost and Marc Athanase Parfait Œillet des Murs.[2] The species was named in honour of the French explorer and engineer Joseph Pons d'Arnaud.[3] The type locality is the Kordofan region of central Sudan.[4] D'Arnaud's barbet is now one of four species placed in the genus Trachyphonus that was introduced 1821 by the Italian naturalist Camillo Ranzani.[5]
Four subspecies are recognised:[5]
- T. d. darnaudii (Prévost, F & des Murs, MAPO, 1847) – southeastern South Sudan, southwestern Ethiopia, northeastern Uganda, and west-central Kenya
- T. d. boehmi Fischer, GA & Reichenow, A, 1884 – southern and eastern Ethiopia to southern Somalia, eastern Kenya, and northeastern Tanzania
- T. d. emini Reichenow, A, 1891 – north-central Tanzania (east to Dar es Salaam suburbs)
- T. d. usambiro Neumann, OR, 1908 – southwestern Kenya to north-central Tanzania
The subspecies T. d. usambiro has sometimes been considered as a separate species, the Usambiro barbet.[6]
Behaviour
D'Arnaud's barbet is a small East African bird that feeds on insects, fruits, and seeds. It grows to about eight inches, and is equally at home in trees or on the ground. A vertical tunnel two to three feet into the ground with a sideways and upward turn leads to the nest chamber. In a striking dance the male and female face each on nearby twigs and twitch, bob and sing like mechanical toys.
They vocalize in groups, starting with a specific vocalization described as a chewp noise, often simultaneously raising and fanning the tail.[7]
