Helmet Vanga
Encyclopedia
The Helmet VangaEuryceros prevostii is a distinctive-looking bird of the vanga
family, Vangidae, and is classified in its own genus Euryceros. It is mainly blue-black in colour, with rufous wings and a huge arched blue bill. It is restricted to lowland and lower montane rainforests of northeastern Madagascar. Its diet is composed of invertebrates, predominantly insects.
family Laniidae. When the ornithologist Austin L. Rand
moved the majority of the vangas into a separate family in 1936, he placed Helmet Vanga in its own monotypic family, Eurycerotidae. It was moved to the vanga family by J. Dorst in 1960. The closest relative within the family is believed to be the Rufous Vanga
, which is thought to have split from the Helmet Vanga 800,000 years ago. The specific name prevostii commemorates the French artist Florent Prévost
.
. In length it measures 28 to 31 cm (11 to 12.2 in) and weighs 84 to 114 g (3 to 4 oz). The most distinctive feature is the massive hooked bill, which is 51 mm (2 in) long and 30 mm (1.2 in) deep. The plumage
of the head, neck, throat, breast and belly are a solid blue-black, as are the primary coverts
and remiges of the wing. The mantle, back, and the rest of the wings are rufous. The tail, which is long and broad, is black below and rufous above. The bill is bright blue with a black tip. Both sexes are alike.
s in north-east Madagascar
. Sites where it can be found include Marojejy National Park
, the Masoala National Park
and Mantadia National Park.
and seasonal breeders. The breeding season runs from October to January on the Masoala Peninsula. Both sexes work on the construction of the nest, which is a cup shape 15 cm (5.9 in) in diameter constructed from woven plant fibres, mosses and twigs, and is placed in a fork in a tree 2 to 4 m (6.6 to 13.1 ft) off the ground. There is one record of courtship feeding by a male before copulation. The clutch size is two or three pinkish white eggs.
Vanga
The vangas are a group of little-known small to medium-sized passerine birds restricted to Madagascar and the Comoros. They are usually classified as the family Vangidae. There are about 22 species, depending on taxonomy...
family, Vangidae, and is classified in its own genus Euryceros. It is mainly blue-black in colour, with rufous wings and a huge arched blue bill. It is restricted to lowland and lower montane rainforests of northeastern Madagascar. Its diet is composed of invertebrates, predominantly insects.
Taxonomy
The Helmet Vanga is the only member of the genus Euryceros. Like most vangas it was originally placed in the shrikeShrike
Shrikes are passerine birds of the family Laniidae. The family is composed of thirty-one species in three genera. The family name, and that of the largest genus, Lanius, is derived from the Latin word for "butcher", and some shrikes were also known as "butcher birds" because of their feeding habits...
family Laniidae. When the ornithologist Austin L. Rand
Austin L. Rand
Austin Loomer Rand was a Canadian zoologist.He was born in Kentville, Nova Scotia in 1905 and grew up in nearby Wolfville, where he was mentored by the noted local ornithologist Robie W. Tufts...
moved the majority of the vangas into a separate family in 1936, he placed Helmet Vanga in its own monotypic family, Eurycerotidae. It was moved to the vanga family by J. Dorst in 1960. The closest relative within the family is believed to be the Rufous Vanga
Rufous Vanga
The Rufous Vanga is a species of bird in the Vangidae family. It is monotypic within the genus Schetba. It is endemic to Madagascar. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . ...
, which is thought to have split from the Helmet Vanga 800,000 years ago. The specific name prevostii commemorates the French artist Florent Prévost
Florent Prévost
Florent Prévost was a French naturalistPrévost was assistant naturalist at the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle. He was the author of various zoological works, including Les Pigeons par Madame Knip and, with C. L...
.
Description
The Helmet Vanga is a large vanga, the second largest species of vanga after the Sickle-billed VangaSickle-billed Vanga
The Sickle-billed Vanga is a species of bird in the vanga family Vangidae. It is monotypic within the genus Falculea. It is endemic to Madagascar...
. In length it measures 28 to 31 cm (11 to 12.2 in) and weighs 84 to 114 g (3 to 4 oz). The most distinctive feature is the massive hooked bill, which is 51 mm (2 in) long and 30 mm (1.2 in) deep. The plumage
Plumage
Plumage refers both to the layer of feathers that cover a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage vary between species and subspecies and can also vary between different age classes, sexes, and season. Within species there can also be a...
of the head, neck, throat, breast and belly are a solid blue-black, as are the primary coverts
Flight feather
Flight feathers are the long, stiff, asymmetrically shaped, but symmetrically paired feathers on the wings or tail of a bird; those on the wings are called remiges while those on the tail are called rectrices . Their primary function is to aid in the generation of both thrust and lift, thereby...
and remiges of the wing. The mantle, back, and the rest of the wings are rufous. The tail, which is long and broad, is black below and rufous above. The bill is bright blue with a black tip. Both sexes are alike.
Distribution and habitat
It is restricted to lowland and lower montane rainforestRainforest
Rainforests are forests characterized by high rainfall, with definitions based on a minimum normal annual rainfall of 1750-2000 mm...
s in north-east Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
. Sites where it can be found include Marojejy National Park
Marojejy National Park
Marojejy National Park is a national park in the Sava Region of northeastern Madagascar. It covers and is centered around the Marojejy Massif, a mountain chain that rises to an elevation of . Access to the area around the massif was restricted to research scientists when the site was set aside as...
, the Masoala National Park
Masoala National Park
Masoala National Park, in northeast Madagascar, is the largest of the island's protected areas. Most of the park is situated in Sava Region and a part in Analanjirofo. Created in 1997, the park protects 2,300 square kilometres of rainforest and 100 square kilometres of marine parks. The Masoala...
and Mantadia National Park.
Behaviour
Adults mainly eat large insects, but food items brought to young in the nest may be more varied, including snails, lizards, spiders and crabs.Breeding
Helmet Vangas are mongamousMonogamy
Monogamy /Gr. μονός+γάμος - one+marriage/ a form of marriage in which an individual has only one spouse at any one time. In current usage monogamy often refers to having one sexual partner irrespective of marriage or reproduction...
and seasonal breeders. The breeding season runs from October to January on the Masoala Peninsula. Both sexes work on the construction of the nest, which is a cup shape 15 cm (5.9 in) in diameter constructed from woven plant fibres, mosses and twigs, and is placed in a fork in a tree 2 to 4 m (6.6 to 13.1 ft) off the ground. There is one record of courtship feeding by a male before copulation. The clutch size is two or three pinkish white eggs.
Further reading
- Graetz, J. (1991) Nest observations of the Helmet Vanga Euryceros prevostii Newsletter of the Working Group on Madagascar Birds 1: 2.
- Powzyk, J. (1995) Exceptional observations in Mantadia National Park Newsletter of the Working Group on Madagascar Birds 5 (2): 4
- Safford, Roger (2000) Photospot: Helmet Vanga Bulletin of the African Bird ClubBulletin of the African Bird ClubThe Bulletin of the African Bird Club is an English language ornithological colour magazine published biannually by the African Bird Club since 1994. It contains material concerning the wild birds of continental Africa, Indian Ocean islands west of 80° East, and Atlantic Ocean islands on or east...
volume 7.1