While exploring the Central Highlands of Papua New Guinea, I came across a remarkable bird, the Black Sittella (Daphoenositta miranda). This species belongs to the Neosittidae family and is native to several mountainous regions of New Guinea. In this blog, I would like to share my observations and findings about this rare bird.
The Black Sittella is found in various mountainous regions of New Guinea. The subspecies kuboriensis lives in the Central Highlands, particularly in the Kubor Mountains and Mount Giluwe, in the eastern part of New Guinea. During my trip, I found a beautiful male specimen of this subspecies in a small flock near Ambua Lodge in Tari, accessible via the Highlands Highway.
The Black Sittella is a close relative of the more well-known Papuan Sittella (Daphoenositta papuensis), a split from the Varied Sittella (Daphoenositta chrysoptera) (which is now confined to Australia only), but unlike the latter, little is known about the Black Sittella. Even on Wikipedia there is only sparse information. More detailed information is available in the Handbook of the Birds of the World (HBW 12, p. 641) or on their website.
I observed the flock at an altitude of 2150 meters above sea level, in the typical montane cloud forests of the central mountain ranges of New Guinea. As described in the literature, the flock moved from tree to tree, searching for insects, which they peeled from lichens and tree bark. The similarity to nuthatches is really striking, but I noticed that they moved more slowly and more or less silently – not as fast as the nuthatch species I know, such as the European Nuthatch (Sitta europaea).
The site location was near Ambua Lodge, Tari from the Highlands Highway. The coordinates are approximately: 5 ° 57.4’S, 143 ° 4’E on 2150 meters asl (above sea level) in a habitat of montane cloud forest.
The encounter with the Black Sittella was a fascinating experience. This rare species, which lives in the cloud forests of New Guinea, impressively shows the diversity and mystery of the bird life in this region. Despite the little information available, every observation offers new insights and underlines the importance of conservation in these unique habitats.
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