The pale-footed bush warbler (''Hemitesia pallidipes'') is a species of oriental
warbler
Various Passeriformes (perching birds) are commonly referred to as warblers. They are not necessarily closely related to one another, but share some characteristics, such as being fairly small, vocal, and insectivorous.
Sylvioid warblers
Th ...
in the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Cettiidae
Cettiidae is a newly validated family of small insectivorous songbirds ("warblers"), formerly placed in the Old World warbler "wastebin" assemblage. It contains the typical bush warblers (''Cettia'') and their relatives. As a common name, cetti ...
that is found in southern
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...
. It occurs in the Himalayan region west from
Dehradun
Dehradun () is the capital and the most populous city of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and is governed by the Dehradun Municipal Corporation, with the Uttarakhand Legislative As ...
through the foothills of
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
to northeastern
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. It also occurs in
Myanmar
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...
,
Laos
Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...
, northern
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
and southern
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
.
A single sighting was recorded from
Kandy
Kandy ( si, මහනුවර ''Mahanuwara'', ; ta, கண்டி Kandy, ) is a major city in Sri Lanka located in the Central Province. It was the last capital of the ancient kings' era of Sri Lanka. The city lies in the midst of hills ...
,
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
in March 1993.
Taxonomy
The pale-footed bush warbler was
formally described in 1872 by the English naturalist
William Blandford under the
binomial name
In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...
''Phylloscopus pallidipes''. The specific epithet ''pallidipes'' combines the
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
''pallidus'' meaning "pale" with ''pes'' meaning "foot". This warbler in now placed in the genus ''
Hemitesia
''Hemitesia'' is a genus of Old World warblers in the family Cettiidae, formerly classified in the family Sylviidae. The genus was erected by James Chapin in 1948.
Taxonomy
The genus ''Hemitesia'' was introduced in 1948 by the American ornitholo ...
'' that was introduced by
James Chapin in 1948.
Three
subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
are recognised:
[
* ''H. p. pallidipes'' ( Blanford, 1872) – Himalayas to west ]Yunnan
Yunnan , () is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in Southwest China, the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is ...
(south China) and north Myanmar
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...
* ''H. p. laurentei'' La Touche, 1921 – central Myanmar and south east Yunnan (south China) to Vietnam
* ''H. p. osmastoni'' ( Hartert, E, 1908) – Andaman Islands
The Andaman Islands () are an archipelago in the northeastern Indian Ocean about southwest off the coasts of Myanmar's Ayeyarwady Region. Together with the Nicobar Islands to their south, the Andamans serve as a maritime boundary between th ...
Distribution and habitat
The pale-footed bush warbler usually associates with '' Themeda'' grasslands. The habitat and altitudinal limit for pale-footed bush warbler vary slightly from place to place. For example, in Thailand, its habitat is grassland and scrub from foothills up to . In China, it is found in woodland up to .
Nepal
The pale-footed bush warbler is a resident bird for Nepal. It is mostly found in Chitwan. This species is threatened by habitat loss and population decline in Nepal.
India
In peninsular India the pale-footed bush warbler ''U. p. pallidipes'' has been reported as breeding in the Eastern Ghats
The Eastern Ghats are a discontinuous range of mountains along India's eastern coast. The Eastern Ghats pass through Odisha, Andhra Pradesh to Tamil Nadu in the south passing some parts of Karnataka as well as Telangana. They are eroded and cut ...
by Salim Ali and Sidney Dillon Ripley
Sidney Dillon Ripley II (September 20, 1913 – March 12, 2001) was an American ornithologist and wildlife conservationist. He served as secretary of the Smithsonian Institution for 20 years, from 1964 to 1984, leading the institution through ...
. They collected a specimen from Sunkarametta, Araku Valley, Vishakapatnam district ltitude of in the month of April. A male adult of the subspecies ''U. p. osmastoni'' was first described from Andaman Islands
The Andaman Islands () are an archipelago in the northeastern Indian Ocean about southwest off the coasts of Myanmar's Ayeyarwady Region. Together with the Nicobar Islands to their south, the Andamans serve as a maritime boundary between th ...
ltitude by Ernst Hartert
Ernst Johann Otto Hartert (29 October 1859 – 11 November 1933) was a widely published German ornithologist.
Life and career
Hartert was born in Hamburg, Germany on 29 October 1859. In July 1891, he married the illustrator Claudia Bernadine E ...
. Nest-building in ''U. p. osmastoni'' was described by Bertram Beresford Osmaston Bertram Beresford Osmaston CIE (3 January 1868 – 1961) was an officer in the Imperial Forestry Service in India. Known to many as "BB" he was born at Yeldersley Hall, Derbyshire. Born ninth into a family of fifteen, he was educated at Cheltenha ...
in the year 1907. Subspecies ''U. p. pallidipes'' has also been reported from Simlipal Tiger Reserve, Simlipal National Park Odisha
Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...
ltitude in December 2012 from a grassland near a Sal forest
Behaviour
The pale-footed bush warbler is extremely shy and is a great skulker, meaning it is very difficult to see even during the breeding season. This species breeds from May to July. The bird is usually found either by itself or in pairs in low bushes and grass clumps. It is also known as a ground-dwelling species; thus, it flies less than a meter above ground. It moves through grass reeds keeping low, staying mostly out of sight and it feeds on the lower half of grass reeds.
Vocalization
The pale-footed bush warbler has a loud song. Because it remains near the ground, it is more easily heard than seen. This species remains mostly silent during winter but its call and song can be easily heard during spring. Its explosive song is the best way to signal the presence of its species.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q27075474
pale-footed bush warbler
The pale-footed bush warbler (''Hemitesia pallidipes'') is a species of oriental warbler in the family (biology), family Cettiidae that is found in southern Asia. It occurs in the Himalayan region west from Dehradun through the foothills of Nepal ...
Birds of North India
Birds of Nepal
Birds of Eastern Himalaya
Birds of Yunnan
Birds of Myanmar
Birds of Laos
Birds of Vietnam
Birds of the Andaman Islands
pale-footed bush warbler
The pale-footed bush warbler (''Hemitesia pallidipes'') is a species of oriental warbler in the family (biology), family Cettiidae that is found in southern Asia. It occurs in the Himalayan region west from Dehradun through the foothills of Nepal ...
Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN