Another Babbler Species Discovered

Posted by Rosemary Drisdelle Aug 7, 2008

It seems impossible that there could still be bird species on Earth that no one has ever noticed, but for the second time in less than two years, ornithologists have described a new species of babbler: Stachyris nongangensis, the Nonggang Babbler (Liocichla bugunorum, the Bugun Liocichla, was described in India in 2006).

The Nonggang Babbler lives in southern China near the Vietnamese border, spending most of its time foraging for food on the ground. A small dark bird, it escaped notice until ornithologists did a bird survey in the Nonggang Natural Reserve. Zhou Fang and Jiang Aiwu first noticed the babbler four years ago and have been studying it ever since, working to prove that the species is new to science. Their description was published in April: Zhou Fang and Jiang Aiwu (2008) A New Species of Babbler (Timaliidae: Stachyris) from the Sino-Vietnamese Border Region of China. The Auk 125(2): 420–424.

Predictably, a bird that’s just now being noticed is neither numerous nor widespread. Conservation—particularly habitat protection—will be an issue immediately, and ornithologists want to find out whether the species’ range spreads outside the Nonggang Natural Reserve into other parts of China and even Vietnam. So far, the bird has not been found outside the park’s borders.

See pictures of the Nonggang Babbler at Oriental Bird Images