Superb Pitta
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Superb Pitta | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservation status | ||||||||||||||
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
| Binomial name | ||||||||||||||
| Pitta superba Rothschild & Hartert, 1914 |
The Superb Pitta, Pitta superba, is a large pitta, approximately 22cm long. It has black plumage with turquoise blue wings, a scarlet belly and green-tipped secondaries. Both sexes are almost similar. The female is a slightly smaller and duller than the male.
The Superb Pitta is distributed and endemic to primary and secondary forests of the Manus Island of Papua New Guinea. As with other pittas, it is a secretive and rarely seen terrestrial bird. The diet consists mainly of snails.
Due to ongoing habitat loss, limited range and small population size, the Superb Pitta is evaluated as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
[edit] References
- BirdLife International (2004). Pitta superba. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 6 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is vulnerable
