The figbirds are a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

(''Sphecotheres'') in the family of

Old World oriole The Old World orioles (Oriolidae) are an Old World family of passerine birds. Taxonomy and systematics The family Oriolidae comprises the piopios, figbirds, pitohuis and the Old World orioles. The piopios were added 2011, having been formerly p ...

s found in wooded habitats in Australia,

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...

, and the Lesser Sundas.

Taxonomy and systematics

Formerly, the three species have been considered

conspecific Biological specificity is the tendency of a characteristic such as a behavior or a biochemical variation to occur in a particular species. Biochemist Linus Pauling stated that "Biological specificity is the set of characteristics of living organis ...

, but all major authorities now consider them as separate species.Higgins, P. J., L. Christidis, & H. A. Ford (2008). Family Oriolidae (Orioles). Pp. 692-731 in: del Hoyo, J., A. Elliott, & D. A. Christie. eds. (2008). ''Handbook of the Birds of the World.'' Vol. 13. Pendulin-tits to Shrikes. Lynx Edicions. Dickinson, E. C. (editor) (2003). ''The Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World.'' 3rd edition, w. updates. Christopher Helm. Andrew, P. (1992). ''The Birds of Indonesia: A Check-list.'' Kukila Check-list No. 1. Indonesian Ornithological Society, Jakarta.Gill, F., M. Wright, & D. Donsker (2009).
IOC World Bird Names
'' Version 2.1. Accessed 04-07-2009Christidis, L., & W. E. Boles (2008). ''Systematics and Taxonomy of Australian Birds.'' CSIRO. The split is primarily based on differences in measurements, plumage, and biogeography.

Species

Three

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

are recognized:

Description

They are strongly

sexually dimorphic Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most ani ...

, with males having olive-green upperparts, a black head, and (uniquely for the family) distinct bright red facial skin.Simpson, K. (editor) & N. Day (illustrator) (1994). ''Field Guide to the Birds of Australia.'' 2nd edition. Christopher Helm. Coates, B. J., & K. D. Bishop (1997). ''A Guide to the Birds of Wallacea.'' Dove Publications Pty. Ltd. Females are drab-coloured, being dull brownish above, and white below with strong dark streaking. They have greyish facial skin, and a greyish-black bill.

Behaviour and ecology

Compared to the "typical" Old World orioles of the genus ''

Oriolus Orioles are colourful Old World passerine birds in the genus ''Oriolus'', the type genus of the corvoidean family Oriolidae. They are not closely related to the New World orioles, which are icterids (family Icteridae) that belong to the superfa ...

'', the figbirds are more

frugivorous A frugivore is an animal that thrives mostly on raw fruits or succulent fruit-like produce of plants such as roots, shoots, nuts and seeds. Approximately 20% of mammalian herbivores eat fruit. Frugivores are highly dependent on the abundance an ...

(though they also take some small insects, nectar, and seeds) and gregarious, even breeding in small, loose

colonies In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...

(at least for the Australasian figbird; the nesting habits are still unknown for the other two species).

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2417877 Birds of New Guinea Birds of the Lesser Sunda Islands Taxa named by Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot