
Orthonychidae
Sign in to saveOrthonychidae is a clade of passerine birds endemic to Australia and New Guinea. It encompasses the genus Orthonyx, (from Ancient Greek ὀρθός (orthós), meaning "straight", and ὄνυξ (ónux), meaning "claw") including the logrunners and the chowchilla. Some authorities consider the Australian family Cinclosomatidae to be part of the Orthonychidae. The three species use their stiffened tails to brace themselves when feeding.
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- taxon
- Image
- Logrunner male lam jan08.jpg
Show 7 more facts
- Commons category
- Orthonyx
- taxon rank
- family
- taxon name
- Orthonychidae
- Code of nomenclature
- International Code of Zoological Nomenclature
- topic's main category
- Category:Orthonychidae
- described by source
- Encyclopædia Britannica 11th edition
- taxonomic type
- Orthonyx
Sources (1)
via Wikidata · CC0
~6 min read
Encyclopedic overview
10 sectionsContents
- Taxonomy
- Species
- Description
- Behaviour and ecology
- Social structure and breeding
- Lifespan
- Distribution
- References
- Bibliography
- External links
Orthonychidae is a clade of passerine birds endemic to Australia and New Guinea. It encompasses the genus Orthonyx, (from Ancient Greek ὀρθός (orthós), meaning "straight", and ὄνυξ (ónux), meaning "claw") including the logrunners and the chowchilla. Some authorities consider the Australian family Cinclosomatidae to be part of the Orthonychidae. The three species use their stiffened tails to brace themselves when feeding.
The Australian logrunner, Orthonyx temminckii, is from northeastern New South Wales and southeast Queensland, where it is very local in its distribution, and strictly terrestrial in its habits. The wings are barred with white, and the chin, throat and breast are in the male pure white, but of a bright reddish-orange in the female. The remiges are very short, rounded and much incurved, showing a bird of weak flight. The rectrices are very broad, the shafts stiff, and towards the tip divested of barbs. The population which is found locally in New Guinea is now generally considered a separate species, the Papuan logrunner, Orthonyx novaeguineae.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Orthonychidae” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.