The Philippine frogmouth (''Batrachostomus septimus'') is a
nocturnal
Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite.
Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...
bird that can be found throughout the
Philippine archipelago
The islands of the Philippines, also known as the Philippine Archipelago, comprises about 7,641 islands, of which only about 2,000 are inhabited.[grasshopper
Grasshoppers are a group of insects belonging to the suborder Caelifera. They are among what is possibly the most ancient living group of chewing herbivorous insects, dating back to the early Triassic around 250 million years ago.
Grasshopp ...](_bla ...<br></span></div>. It is common in lowland forests and maturing second growth. There is little information about the bird. It feeds on <div class=)
s,
cicada
The cicadas () are a superfamily, the Cicadoidea, of insects in the order Hemiptera (true bugs). They are in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha, along with smaller jumping bugs such as leafhoppers and froghoppers. The superfamily is divided into two ...
s,
crickets
Crickets are orthopteran insects which are related to bush crickets, and, more distantly, to grasshoppers. In older literature, such as Imms,Imms AD, rev. Richards OW & Davies RG (1970) ''A General Textbook of Entomology'' 9th Ed. Methuen 8 ...
and
beetle
Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...
s.
Description
Like all
frogmouth
The frogmouths are a group of nocturnal birds related to owlet-nightjars, swifts, and hummingbirds. Species in the group are distributed in the Indomalayan and Australasian realms.
Biology
They are named for their large flattened hooked bill and ...
s, the Philippine frogmouth has large eyes for better night vision, a large flat bill for capturing insects, and cryptic plumage which allows them to be camouflaged while perched during the day. They are the only frogmouth species found in the Philippines, and can be confused with the
Philippine Nightjar
The Philippine nightjar (''Caprimulgus manillensis'') is a species of nightjar in the family Caprimulgidae. It is endemic to the Philippines. Its local names are ''kandarapa'' (Tagalog language, Tagalog) and ''tagolilong'' (Cebuano language, Cebu ...
, which despite its similar shape has very different plumage.
![Batrachostomus septimus 01](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Batrachostomus_septimus_01.jpg)
The Philippine frogmouth is a medium frogmouth, being 24–26 cm long, with two color morphs (and intermediate phases); one is a chestnut rufous with deep rufous ground color, the other a lighter brown with buff and black barring. Both morphs have three distinct light buff or white bands; one on their hindneck, a second on their lower throat, and a third around the lower breast. They have a yellow-orange iris and brown feet and bill. Although males and females have a similar appearance, females are typically darker and plainer.
Distribution and Habitat
The Philippine frogmouth is a sedentary bird, endemic to the Philippines, and is widely distributed within the archipelago, though noticeably absent from Palawan. Though rare, there have been sightings in India and Australia. They are thought to be found in lowland and maturing (but not mature) second growth forests, but their habitat is not known in detail as they are only active at night and do not sing songs or have loud calls.
Behavior and Ecology
Reproduction
The nest is built from a horizontal branch that is placed two to five meters above ground. It is made from the parent's own downy feathers which is held in place using spider silk, moss and lichens. The female lays one egg per season. The male incubates the egg during the day and the female at night.
Diet and Feeding
Philippine frogmouths are adaptable, and eat large insects, such as grasshoppers, cicadas, crickets, and beetles. They feed by waiting on low branches and striking when they notice an insect moving below.
Like other species in the genus ''Batrachostomus'', the Philippine frogmouth has elongated bristles around the base of their bill, believed to protect their eyes from prey.
Vocalizations
Male calls are a series of low, deep ''woah, wash, Guam, or g-aw'' noises, or a short even trill.
Female calls are louder, a short mewl that descends in pitch. Both sexes have a harsh growling call they repeat several times per minute, and a harsh staccato-like scream that is believed to be an alarm call.
Conservation
The Philippine frogmouth is currently listed as species of least concern by the IUCN as of 2012, though it is believed its population is slowly declining due to habitat destruction. The reason for this listing is the large range, the rate of decline not reaching the threshold to qualify as a vulnerable species, and while the population size has not been officially quantified, it is believed to exceed the threshold to be considered vulnerable based on the population size criterion.
References
Philippine Frogmouth
{{Taxonbar, from=Q594323
Philippine frogmouth
The Philippine frogmouth (''Batrachostomus septimus'') is a nocturnal bird that can be found throughout the Philippine archipelago. It is common in lowland forests and maturing second growth. There is little information about the bird. It feeds ...
Birds of the Philippines
Endemic birds of the Philippines
Philippine frogmouth
The Philippine frogmouth (''Batrachostomus septimus'') is a nocturnal bird that can be found throughout the Philippine archipelago. It is common in lowland forests and maturing second growth. There is little information about the bird. It feeds ...
Philippine frogmouth
The Philippine frogmouth (''Batrachostomus septimus'') is a nocturnal bird that can be found throughout the Philippine archipelago. It is common in lowland forests and maturing second growth. There is little information about the bird. It feeds ...