Cettia
Encyclopedia
Cettia is a genus
of small insectivorous songbird
s ("warbler
s") which make up the core of the newly recognized family
Cettiidae
. They were formerly placed in the Sylviidae
, which at that time was a wastebin taxon
for the warbler-like Sylvioidea
. The range of this genus extends from Europe to the western Pacific. The most recently described species is the Odedi
(Cettia haddeni) from Bougainville
.
The cettiid or typical bush-warblers share the lifestyle and related adaptations and apomorphies with Bradypterus
, the other genus called bush-warblers. However, Bradypterus is related to the grass-warblers of Locustella and Megalurus
and is more distant from Cettia. Both "bush-warbler" genera are smallish birds well adapted to climbing among shrub
bery. They are markedly long-tailed birds, at first glance somewhat reminiscent of wren
s.
These are quite terrestrial birds, which live in densely vegetated habitats
such as thick forest and reedbeds. They will walk away from disturbance rather than flush. The plumage
similarities and skulking lifestyle makes these birds hard to see and identify.
Cettid bush-warblers tend towards rich or greyish browns above and buffish or light grey tones below. They have little patterning apart from the ubiquitous supercilium
. Altogether, they appear much like the plainer species among Acrocephalus
marsh-warblers in coloration. Megalurid bush-warblers tend to be somewhat slimmer and have a very long and pointed tail, but are otherwise very similar.
(C. cetti), the type species
, seems close to the genus Tesia
from Southeast Asia
and neighboring regions. Others, such as the famous uguisu (鶯, Japanese Bush-warbler, C. diphone) and the Brownish-flanked Bush-warbler (C. fortipes) belong to a group that might include the aberrant Broad-billed Warbler
(Tickellia hodgsoni). This latter species differs wildly in its gaudy colors but in habitus
is a typical "bush-warbler".
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of small insectivorous songbird
Songbird
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds . Another name that is sometimes seen as scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin oscen, "a songbird"...
s ("warbler
Warbler
There are a number of Passeriformes called "warblers". They are not particularly closely related, but share some characteristics, such as being fairly small, vocal and insectivorous....
s") which make up the core of the newly recognized family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Cettiidae
Cettiidae
Cettiidae is a newly validated family of small insectivorous songbirds , formerly placed in the Old World warbler "wastebin" assemblage. It contains the typical bush-warblers and their relatives. As common name, cettiid warblers is usually used.Its members occur mainly in Asia and Africa, ranging...
. They were formerly placed in the Sylviidae
Sylviidae
Sylviidae is a family of passerine birds that was part of an assemblage known as the Old World warblers. The family was formerly a wastebin taxon with over 400 species of bird in over 70 genera. The family was poorly defined with many characteristics shared with other families...
, which at that time was a wastebin taxon
Wastebin taxon
Wastebasket taxon is a term used in some taxonomic circles to refer to a taxon that has the sole purpose of classifying organisms that do not fit anywhere else. They are typically defined by their lack of one or more distinct character states or by their not belonging to one or more other taxa...
for the warbler-like Sylvioidea
Sylvioidea
Sylvioidea is a superfamily of passerine birds. It is one of at least three major clades within the Passerida along with the Muscicapoidea and Passeroidea. It contains about 1300 species including the Old World warblers, Old World babblers, swallows, larks, bulbuls and perhaps the tits...
. The range of this genus extends from Europe to the western Pacific. The most recently described species is the Odedi
Odedi
The Odedi or Bougainville Bush-warbler is a bird species initially placed in the "Old World Warbler" assemblage, but nowadays moved with its congeners to the new cettiid warbler family....
(Cettia haddeni) from Bougainville
Bougainville Island
Bougainville Island is the main island of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville of Papua New Guinea. This region is also known as Bougainville Province or the North Solomons. The population of the province is 175,160 , which includes the adjacent island of Buka and assorted outlying islands...
.
The cettiid or typical bush-warblers share the lifestyle and related adaptations and apomorphies with Bradypterus
Bradypterus
Bradypterus is a genus of small insectivorous songbirds in the newly recognized grass warbler family . They were formerly placed in the Sylviidae, which at that time was a wastebin taxon for the warbler-like Sylvioidea...
, the other genus called bush-warblers. However, Bradypterus is related to the grass-warblers of Locustella and Megalurus
Megalurus
Megalurus is a genus of passerine bird in the family Locustellidae. The genus was once placed in the Old World warbler "wastebin" family Sylviidae. The genus contains six species also known as the typical grassbirds...
and is more distant from Cettia. Both "bush-warbler" genera are smallish birds well adapted to climbing among shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
bery. They are markedly long-tailed birds, at first glance somewhat reminiscent of wren
Wren
The wrens are passerine birds in the mainly New World family Troglodytidae. There are approximately 80 species of true wrens in approximately 20 genera....
s.
These are quite terrestrial birds, which live in densely vegetated habitats
Habitat (ecology)
A habitat is an ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular species of animal, plant or other type of organism...
such as thick forest and reedbeds. They will walk away from disturbance rather than flush. The plumage
Feather
Feathers are one of the epidermal growths that form the distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on birds and some non-avian theropod dinosaurs. They are considered the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates, and indeed a premier example of a complex evolutionary novelty. They...
similarities and skulking lifestyle makes these birds hard to see and identify.
Cettid bush-warblers tend towards rich or greyish browns above and buffish or light grey tones below. They have little patterning apart from the ubiquitous supercilium
Supercilium
The supercilium is a plumage feature found on the heads of some bird species. It is a stripe which runs from the base of the bird's beak above its eye, finishing somewhere towards the rear of the bird's head. Also known as an "eyebrow", it is distinct from the eyestripe, which is a line which runs...
. Altogether, they appear much like the plainer species among Acrocephalus
Acrocephalus
The Acrocephalus warblers are small, insectivorous passerine birds belonging to the genus Acrocephalus. Formerly in the paraphyletic Old World warbler assemblage, they are now separated as the namesake of the marsh- and tree-warbler family Acrocephalidae...
marsh-warblers in coloration. Megalurid bush-warblers tend to be somewhat slimmer and have a very long and pointed tail, but are otherwise very similar.
Species
This genus appears to be non-monophyletic. It seems that it will be split eventually. Cetti's WarblerCetti's Warbler
Cetti's Warbler , Cettia cetti, is an Old World warbler which breeds in Europe, northwest Africa and east southern temperate Asia as far as Afghanistan and NW Pakistan. It is the only bush warbler to occur outside Asia...
(C. cetti), the type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
, seems close to the genus Tesia
Tesia
The tesias are a genus, Tesia, of Old World warbler. The genus was once included in the large family Sylviidae but recent research placed it within the new family Cettiidae. The genus has a discontinuous distribution in East and South East Asia...
from Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
and neighboring regions. Others, such as the famous uguisu (鶯, Japanese Bush-warbler, C. diphone) and the Brownish-flanked Bush-warbler (C. fortipes) belong to a group that might include the aberrant Broad-billed Warbler
Broad-billed Warbler
The Broad-billed Warbler is a species of bush warbler . It was formerly included in the "Old World warbler" assemblage, and belongs to the monotypic genus Tickellia....
(Tickellia hodgsoni). This latter species differs wildly in its gaudy colors but in habitus
Morphology (biology)
In biology, morphology is a branch of bioscience dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features....
is a typical "bush-warbler".
- Manchurian Bush-warblerManchurian Bush-warblerThe Manchurian Bush-warbler , also known as Korean Bush-warbler, is a species of Old World warbler in the Sylviidae family....
, Cettia canturians - Pale-footed Bush-warbler, Cettia pallidipes
- Japanese Bush-warbler, Cettia diphone
- Philippine Bush-warblerPhilippine Bush-warblerThe Philippine Bush-warbler is a species of Old World warbler in the Sylviidae family.It is found only in the Philippines.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 10 July 2007....
, Cettia seebohmi - Palau Bush-warblerPalau Bush-warblerThe Palau Bush-warbler is a species of Old World warbler in the Sylviidae family.It is found only in Palau.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 10 July 2007....
, Cettia annae - Shade WarblerShade WarblerThe Shade Bush Warbler is a species of Old World warbler in the Cettiidae family.It is found only in Solomon Islands, where it is endemic to the island of Makira ....
, Cettia parens - OdediOdediThe Odedi or Bougainville Bush-warbler is a bird species initially placed in the "Old World Warbler" assemblage, but nowadays moved with its congeners to the new cettiid warbler family....
or Bougainville Bush-warbler, Cettia haddeni - Fiji Bush-warblerFiji Bush-warblerThe Fiji Bush-warbler is a species of Old World warbler in the Sylviidae family.It is endemic to the islands of Fiji. There are four subspecies occurring on all the main islands of the group...
, Cettia ruficapilla - Tanimbar Bush-warblerTanimbar Bush-warblerThe Tanimbar Bush-warbler is a species of Old World warbler in the Sylviidae family.It is found only in Indonesia.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.It is threatened by habitat loss.-Source:...
, Cettia carolinae - Brownish-flanked Bush-warbler, Cettia fortipes
- Sunda Bush-warblerSunda Bush-warblerThe Sunda Bush-warbler is a species of Old World warbler in the Sylviidae family.It is found in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 10 July 2007....
, Cettia vulcania - Chestnut-crowned Bush-warbler, Cettia major
- Aberrant Bush-warbler, Cettia flavolivacea
- Yellowish-bellied Bush-warbler, Cettia acanthizoides
- Hume's Bush-warbler, Cettia (acanthizoides) brunnescens
- Grey-sided Bush-warbler, Cettia brunnifrons
- Cetti's WarblerCetti's WarblerCetti's Warbler , Cettia cetti, is an Old World warbler which breeds in Europe, northwest Africa and east southern temperate Asia as far as Afghanistan and NW Pakistan. It is the only bush warbler to occur outside Asia...
, Cettia cetti