Tahiti monarch

The Tahiti monarch or Tahiti flycatcher is a rare species of bird in the monarch flycatcher family. It is endemic to Tahiti in French Polynesia. There are between 25 and 100 individuals remaining with an increasing population trend. Adults boast a striking black plumage with pale blue pills and feet. Recognized for its melodious flute-like song and distinctive "tick-tick-tick" call, it thrives in dense forest, primarily inhabiting canopy and understory amidst native mara trees. Despite facing threats from introduces predators such as ship rats and invasive bird species, conservation efforts have been implemented to safeguard its population.

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Distribution

Region

Society Islands, South Pacific

Typical Environment

Restricted to a few valleys on Tahiti where intact or restored native rainforest persists. It favors dense, humid lowland and foothill forests with a multilayered canopy and abundant native trees such as mara. Birds forage from the understory to mid-canopy and along stream margins. The species avoids heavily degraded forest dominated by invasive plants but can use regenerating native habitat when predators are controlled.

Altitude Range

0–1200 m

Climate Zone

Tropical

Characteristics

Size15–17 cm

Wing Span22–26 cm

Male Weight0.017 kg

Female Weight0.016 kg

Life Expectancy7 years

Ease of Keeping

Beginner friendly: 1/5

Useful to know

Also called the Tahiti flycatcher, this monarch is among the rarest birds in the Pacific. Intensive predator control (especially against ship rats) and habitat restoration around native mara trees have begun to stabilize and slowly increase its numbers. Adults have a striking glossy-black plumage with pale blue bill and feet, and they sing a melodious, flute-like song punctuated by sharp tick notes.

Gallery

Behaviour

Temperament

pair-bonded and territorial

Flight Pattern

short rapid wingbeats between perches

Social Behavior

Typically found singly or in monogamous pairs that defend small territories year-round. Nests are neat, cup-shaped structures placed on horizontal branches in native trees. Clutch size is small, and both parents participate in incubation and chick rearing.

Migratory Pattern

Resident

Song Description

A clear, melodious, flute-like series of notes given from exposed perches, interspersed with sharp tick-tick-tick calls. Soft contact calls are used between mates while foraging.

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Identification

Comb Type

Plumage Description

Feather Color

Leg Color

Earlobe Color

Eye Color

Feeding Habits

Diet

Preferred Environment

Requires Supplement

Population

Conservation Status

Species Status

Wild Population

Total Known Population

Tahiti petrel

The Tahiti petrel is a medium-sized, dark brown and white seabird found across the Pacific Ocean. The species comprises two subspecies: P. r. rostrata which breeds in the west-central Pacific Ocean, and P. r. trouessarti which breeds in the tropical and subtropical Pacific Ocean. The Tahiti petrel belongs to the Procellariidae family and is the most studied member of the Pseudobulweria genus which comprises three critically endangered species. Similarly, the Tahiti petrel is considered near threatened by the 2018 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Threats include introduced rats, feral cats, pigs, dogs, nickel mining, and light pollution.

Tahiti rail

The Tahiti rail, Tahitian red-billed rail, or Pacific red-billed rail is an extinct species of rail that lived on Tahiti. It was first recorded during James Cook's second voyage around the world (1772–1775), on which it was illustrated by Georg Forster and described by Johann Reinhold Forster. No specimens have been preserved. As well as the documentation by the Forsters, there have been claims that the bird also existed on the nearby island of Mehetia. The Tahiti rail appears to have been closely related to, and perhaps derived from, the buff-banded rail, and has also been historically confused with the Tongan subspecies of that bird.

Taiga bean goose

The taiga bean goose is a species of goose that breeds in northern Europe and Asia. It is migratory and winters further south in Europe and Asia. This and the tundra bean goose were recognised as separate species by the International Ornithologists' Union and the American Ornithological Society from 2007, but are still considered a single species by some other authorities, notably BirdLife International and the IUCN. The taiga and tundra bean goose diverged about 2.5 million years ago and established secondary contact c. 60,000 years ago, resulting in extensive gene flow.

Taiga flycatcher

The taiga flycatcher or red-throated flycatcher is a migratory bird in the family Muscicapidae. The species was first described by Peter Simon Pallas in 1811. The female has brown upper parts with a blackish tail flanked by white. The breast is buffish with underparts mostly white. The male has ear coverts and sides of the neck blue-tinged grey with breeding males having orange-red coloration on the throats. Unlike the taiga flycatcher, the female of the similar red-breasted flycatcher has a brown tail while the red colour in breeding males extends to the breast in the red-breasted flycatcher. It breeds in northern Eurasia from eastern Russia to Siberia and Mongolia. It is a winter visitor to South and South-east Asia in Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Malaysia, Thailand, China, Vietnam, and Japan. Its natural habitat is taiga forest. It is a rare vagrant to western Europe.