阔嘴鸟科科

阔嘴鸟科的鸟类生活在非洲、南亚和东南亚的森林中，它们长约14至28厘米，身体比较臃肿，拥有很有力的、比较宽的喙，很短的腿和尾羽。大多数种的尾呈圆形，仅长尾阔嘴鸟（Psarisomus dalhousiae）例外。

大多数这些鸟拥有华丽的羽毛，从外观上两性无法区分。它们的食物包括果子、种子、昆虫和其它无脊椎动物。它们的巢往往挂在伸到水上的树枝上，一般呈梨形。

与其它雀形目鸟类不同的是阔嘴鸟科的鸟类有15根颈椎，而其它雀形目鸟类则只有14根。此外阔嘴鸟科鸟类拥有特殊的足筋。

物种

阔嘴鸟科共有5个亚科。

• 阔嘴鸟科 Eurylaimidae
• 非洲绿阔嘴鸟亚科 Pseudocalyptomeninae
• 非洲绿阔嘴鸟属 Pseudocalyptomena
• 非洲绿阔嘴鸟 Pseudocalyptomena graueri
• 阔嘴鸟亚科 Eurylaiminae - 典型的亚洲阔嘴鸟
• 暗阔嘴鸟属 Corydon
• 暗阔嘴鸟 Corydon sumatranus
• 黑红阔嘴鸟属 Cymbirhynchus
• 黑红阔嘴鸟 Cymbirhynchus macrorhynchos
• 阔嘴鸟属 Eurylaimus
• 斑阔嘴鸟 Eurylaimus javanicus
• 黑黄阔嘴鸟 Eurylaimus ochromalus
• 肉垂阔嘴鸟 Eurylaimus steerii
• 米沙岛阔嘴鸟 Eurylaimus samarensis
• 长尾阔嘴鸟属 Psarisomus
• 长尾阔嘴鸟 Psarisomus dalhousiae
• 丝冠鸟属 Serilophus
• 银胸丝冠鸟 Serilophus lunatus

The Eurylaimidae are a family of suboscine passerine birds that occur from the eastern Himalayas to Indonesia and the Philippines.

The family previously included the sapayoa from the Neotropics, the asities from Madagascar, and the Calyptomenidae from Africa and Asia, but these are now separated into distinct families.

Description

Many of the species are brightly coloured birds that present broad heads, large eyes and a hooked, flat and broad beak. They range from 13 to 28 centimetres in length, and live in the dense canopies of wet forests, allowing them to hide despite their brightly coloured plumage. The plumage of the juvenile eurylaimids are similar to those of the adults, differing in being duller and shorter-winged and shorter-tailed in some cases.

Behaviour and ecology

They are for the most part insectivorous and carnivorous. Prey taken includes insects, spiders, centipedes, and millipedes, as well as lizards and tree frogs. Prey is obtained by sallying from a perch to snatch it in flight, and gleaning the prey off leaves and branches while flying. Some species may take some fruit, but only the green broadbills of the genus Calyptomena and the Grauer's broadbill are primarily frugivores (which also take some insects).

They are generally gregarious, with many species moving about in flocks of about 20 individuals. They attach their purse-shaped nests to suspended vines, and leave a tail of fibres hanging below it. This gives the nest the appearance of being random debris caught in the tree, an effect further enhanced by the birds covering the nest with lichen and spider webs. Broadbills typically lay two to three eggs.

Taxonomy and systematics

The family Eurylaimidae was introduced in 1831 (as Eurylaimes) by the French naturalist René Lesson. They were characterized by a simple syrinx with just a single pair of muscles, the front toes being partially fused at the base and having 15 neck vertebrae. A DNA sequence-based study by Carl Oliveros and colleagues published in 2019 determined the phylogenetic relationships of the Eurylaimidae to other families in the Eurylaimides (Old World suboscines):