Saturday 23 January 2016

Tuneful song reveals new species of Himalayan thrush

Scientists have described a new species of bird in northern India and China, called the Himalayan forest thrush.
During fieldwork in the mountains, researchers noticed that thrushes in the forests sang much more musically than those on the rocky peaks.
They then discovered physical and genetic differences as well, and have now declared the known "plain-backed thrush" to be two distinct species.
The mountain-dwelling variety has been re-christened the "alpine thrush".
"There aren't too many new birds to be found in the world," lead author Per Alström told the BBC. "So it's exciting when you find one."
The Himalayan forest thrush is only the fourth species of bird discovered in India since independence in 1947.

'Incredibly elusive'

Prof Alström, from Uppsala University in Sweden, worked with an international team of researchers on the study, which is reported in the journal Avian Research.
They gave the new thrush the scientific name Zoothera salimalii in honour of the late Indian ornithologist Dr Salim Ali.
"He did a lot of work on Indian birds and has been really important for bird conservation and knowledge about birds in India," said Prof Alström.-bbc link-http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-35361044

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