White-Spotted
Mannikin
(Lonchura leucosticia)
Range: Southern part of Papua New
Guinea, mainly from the Noord River to the Gulf of Papua.
Description: Small warm brown bird
with a pale throat, white spots on the head and wings, and a straw-colored
rump. It is cinnamon below with white spots on the breast and flanks. Closely
related to the Streak-Headed Mannikin, there are two subspecies of
White-Spotted Mannikin, the White-Spotted Mannikin (Lonchura
leucosticia), and the Lessor White-Spotted Mannikin (Lonchura
leucosticia maresbyi). Both are very similar, and will be treated as one
species here.
Habitat: It is a lowland species that
seems most likely to occur in open land between forest and marsh. It can often
be found in tall marshland grasses, areas of savanna and grass areas along
river banks.
Behavior: It is a sociable species
usually found in groups or flocks. Birds in captivity often react to a threat
by dropping to the ground and remaining motionless.
Food & Feeding: In the wild, it
has been observed feeding on seeding grasses, clumps of bamboo, the seeds of Echinocola
grass,
Breeding: The clutch is normally 3 to
5 oval white eggs, which hatch in 14 days. The nestlings are orange-brown upon
hatching, becoming darker within 2 or 3 days and start feathering at 7 days.
At 14 days, dark rosy-brown plumage was apparent. The white spots of the
adults become apparent at about 10 weeks, The young males also start singing
about that time.
