灰腹绣眼鸟种

亚种

灰腹绣眼鸟蒙自亚种（学名：Zosterops palpebrosa joannae）。该物种的模式产地在云南蒙自。

灰腹绣眼鸟西南亚种（学名：Zosterops palpebrosa siamensis）。在中国大陆，分布于西藏、四川、云南、贵州、广西等地。该物种的模式产地在缅甸Tenasserim。

The Indian white-eye (Zosterops palpebrosus), formerly the Oriental white-eye, is a small species of passerine bird in the white-eye family. It is a resident breeder in open woodland on the Indian subcontinent. They forage in small groups, feeding on nectar and small insects. The distinctive white eye-ring and overall yellowish upperparts easily identify them. The range previously extended eastwards to Southeast Asia, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Their name was recently changed because previous members of Zosterops palpebrosus in Southeast Asia were reclassified as a new species, making the Indian White-eye a more geographically accurate term for this species.

Taxonomy

The Indian white-eye was described by the Dutch zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck in 1824, based on a specimen collected in Bengal. He coined the binomial name Sylvia palpebrosa. The English and scientific names refer to the conspicuous ring of white feathers round the eyes, palpebrosus being Neo-Latin for "having prominent eyelids", from the Latin palpebrae "eyelids".

The English name of this species was changed from "Oriental white-eye" to "Indian white-eye" to more accurately reflect the geographic range following the reorganisation of the taxa with the introduction of Hume's white-eye (Zosterops auriventer), the warbling white-eye (Zosterops japonicus) and Swinhoe's white-eye (Zosterops simplex).

Description

This bird is small (about 8–9 cm long) with yellowish olive upper parts, a white eye ring, a yellow throat, and a vent. The belly is whitish-grey, but may be yellow in some subspecies. The sexes look similar. The species is widespread and belongs to a superspecies complex that includes Zosterops japonicus, Zosterops meyeni, and possibly others. The group's taxonomy is still unclear, with some island populations distinctive while others lack strong support. The population from Flores, Indonesia, for instance, is found closer to the pale white-eye. The family itself is now questioned since they are nested along with the Stachyris babblers.

About eleven subspecies are well recognised; these include the nominate form (type locality Bengal, India), which is found from Oman and Arabia to Afghanistan, northern India, and extends into China and northern Myanmar. The population in the Western Ghats and hills of southern India is placed in the nilgiriensis group. In contrast salimalii of the Eastern Ghats hills (Shevaroy, Chitteri, Seshachalam, Nallamalai) is sometimes subsumed into the nominate race. The population of the plains of India, Laccadives and Sri Lanka are sometimes placed in egregius (= egregia) but is restricted by other works to the population in Sri Lanka. The populations in southern Myanmar, Thailand and Laos are placed in siamensis.

Distribution and habitat

The species is found in a wide range of habitats from scrub to moist forest. They sometimes occur in mangrove areas, such as in the Karachi region, Pakistan, and on islands they may lead a more insectivorous life. They are somewhat rare only in the drier desert regions of western India.

A feral population was detected in San Diego, California, in the 1980s and subsequently eradicated.

Behaviour and ecology

These white-eyes are sociable, forming flocks which only separate on the approach of the breeding season. They are highly arboreal and only rarely descend to the ground. The breeding season is February to September, but April is the peak breeding season and the compact cup nest is placed like a hammock on the fork of a branch. The nest is made of cobwebs, lichens, and plant fibre. The nest is built in about 4 days, and the two pale blue eggs are laid within a couple of days of each other. The eggs hatch in about 10 days. Both sexes take care of brooding the chicks, which fledge in about 10 days.

Though mainly insectivorous, the Indian white-eye will also eat nectar and fruits of various kinds.

They call frequently as they forage, and the usual contact call is a soft nasal cheer. They pollinate flowers when they visit them for flower insects (such as thrips) and possibly nectar (questioned) that form their diet. The forehead is sometimes coloured by poll, leading to mistaken identifications. They have been observed bathing in dew accumulated on leaves.

When nesting, they may mob palm squirrels, but being small birds, they are usually on the defensive. Their predators include bats (esp. Megaderma lyra) and birds such as the white-throated kingfisher.