The logrunners are two species of
bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...
s in the family
Orthonychidae
The logrunners (''Orthonyx'') are a clade of birds which comprises three species of passerine birds endemic to Australia and New Guinea. Some authorities consider the Australian family Cinclosomatidae to be part of the Orthonychidae. The three ...
. They were previously 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 organ ...
, but as they differ significantly, they are now generally considered separate species. The family Orthonychidae also contains a third species, the
chowchilla
The chowchilla (''Orthonyx spaldingii'') is a passerine bird in the family Orthonychidae. It is endemic to Australia.
Taxonomy
In their 1999 study, Schodde and Mason recognise two adjoining subspecies, ''O. s. spaldingii'' and ''O. s. melas ...
(''Orthonyx spaldingii'').
Description
Logrunners are 17–20 cm. in length. The bulky chowchilla is much larger, at 26–28 cm.
Chowchillas are dark brown above, with a black head and a blue-gray eye ring. Logrunners are patterned olive, gray, and mottled black. All males have a white throat, while females have a rufous throat and upper breast.
Distribution
Australian logrunner lives in the humid lowland forest along the eastern coast of Australia. Papuan logrunner is found in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea's tropical montane forests. Chowchillas live in the rain forests of northeastern Queensland.
Species
*
New Guinea logrunner
The Papuan logrunner or New Guinea logrunner (''Orthonyx novaeguineae'') is a species of bird in the family Orthonychidae. It was formerly considered conspecific with the Australian logrunner.
Habitat and Location
It is found in the highlands of ...
(''Orthonyx novaeguineae'').
*
Australian logrunner
The Australian logrunner (''Orthonyx temminckii'') is a species of bird that is endemic to eastern Australia where it uses unique foraging techniques and adaptations to search for its food on the floors of temperate, subtropical, or tropical moi ...
(''Orthonyx temminckii'').
*
Chowchilla
The chowchilla (''Orthonyx spaldingii'') is a passerine bird in the family Orthonychidae. It is endemic to Australia.
Taxonomy
In their 1999 study, Schodde and Mason recognise two adjoining subspecies, ''O. s. spaldingii'' and ''O. s. melas ...
(''Orthonyx spaldingii'')
References
* Del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A. & Christie D. (editors). (2006). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 12: Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees. Lynx Edicions. {{ISBN, 978-84-96553-42-2
Orthonychidae
Bird common names