Journal of Threatened
Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 October 2024 | 16(10): 26044–26045
ISSN 0974-7907
(Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print)
https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.9280.16.10.26044-26045
#9280 | Received 06
July 2024 | Final received 14 September 2024 | Finally accepted 04 October 2024
First photographic record of
Brown Bullfinch Pyrrhula nipalensis (Aves: Passeriformes: Fringillidae) from
Jammu & Kashmir, India
Mohsin Javid 1 , Khursheed
Ahmad 2 , Intesar Suhail 3 & Orus Ilyas
4
1,4 Department of Wildlife Sciences,
Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh 202001, India.
2 Division of Wildlife Sciences,
Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Srinagar
191201, India.
3 Department of Wildlife
Protection, Jammu & Kashmir 190001, India.
1 mjavid@myamu.ac.in (corresponding
author), 2 khursheed47@gmail.com, 3 intesarsuhail@gmail.com,
4 orus16@gmail.com
Editor: Carol Inskipp,
Bishop Auckland Co., Durham, UK. Date
of publication: 26 October 2024 (online & print)
Citation: Javid,
M., K. Ahmad, I. Suhail & O. Ilyas (2024). First
photographic record of Brown Bullfinch Pyrrhula
nipalensis (Aves: Passeriformes: Fringillidae)
from Jammu & Kashmir, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 16(10): 26044–26045. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.9280.16.10.26044-26045
Copyright: © Javid et al. 2024. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproduction, and
distribution of this article in any medium by providing adequate credit to the
author(s) and the source of publication.
Funding: Prime
Minister’s Research Fellowship “Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) of the Government of India”
Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
Acknowledgements:
We gratefully acknowledge the financial support provided by the PMRF
(Prime Minister’s Research Fellowship) scholarship, facilitating research in
the landscape.
Brown Bullfinch Pyrrhula nipalensis
is a passerine bird in the family Fringillidae, class Aves, and order
Passeriformes. The species has a mainly brown plumage; males tend to exhibit a
slightly richer brown hue compared to the more subdued tones of females. This
species is characterized by its stout, finch-like bill, which is well-suited
for a diet primarily consisting of seeds (Grimmett et
al. 2011).
A flock of five individuals was
sighted through a camera trap installed in Butamali Tullail, a famous meadow for herders at an altitude of 3,400
m, 34.546388˚N, 75.019806˚E, on a northeastern aspect in a Betula forest. The
flock was observed feeding on fallen Betula seeds on snow in October 2023. The
species is known for its elusive and shy behaviour,
often remaining hidden within dense foliage. It is typically observed foraging
in pairs or small flocks, rarely straying far from cover. Brown Bullfinch
primarily feeds on seeds, but its diet also includes berries and buds, which it
forages from trees and shrubs. The birds were observed in 30 camera trap
photographs and almost all the photographs were of foraging below the Betula
trees. They used the Betula stump as a perch and were feeding on fallen seeds
on ground. The trap was installed on a Betula tree.
The species has already been
documented from Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh,
Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland but has not previously been recorded from
Jammu & Kashmir (Oommen et al. 2005; Praveen
2016; Sharma 2020). This study documents the first photographic evidence of the
species from Jammu & Kashmir.
Brown Bullfinch thrives in dense,
temperate forests, favouring mixed woodlands, and
coniferous forests. Rhododendron thickets are particularly favoured,
providing ample cover and abundant food resources (Ali & Ripley 1983;
Rasmussen & Anderton 2005). These habitats offer a variety of seeds,
berries, and buds—the primary components of the Brown Bullfinch’s diet. The
dense foliage also provides excellent nesting sites and protection from
predators.
Brown Bullfinch is currently
classified as ‘Least Concern’ by the IUCN Red List, indicating that it is not
at immediate risk of significant population decline. In Gurez,
people are more dependent on forests than in other parts of Jammu &
Kashmir. The houses are primarily made of wood to provide better insulation
during winter, when temperatures drop to around minus 100C.
Additionally, they rely on wood-based cooking and heating appliances during the
colder months. Deforestation for urban development of tourist spots and logging
for house construction are primary concerns that could impact the availability
of suitable habitats for this species. However, ongoing habitat destruction and
fragmentation due to the newly road construction in border area of valley also
pose potential threats to the species. Conservation efforts should focus on
protecting and preserving the temperate forests of the Himalayan region to
ensure the long-term survival of the Brown Bullfinch. Betula serves as a
crucial food source for the species during winter as recorded from camera trap
photographs. Therefore, any climate impacts on Betula may also significantly
affect the bullfinch’s habitat.
For
image - - click here for full PDF
References
Ali, S. &
S.D. Ripley (1983). Handbook of the Birds of India and Pakistan. Compact Edition.
Oxford University Press, New Delhi.
Grimmett, R., C. Inskipp
& T. Inskipp (2011). Birds of
the Indian Subcontinent.
Oxford University Press, New Delhi.
Oommen, M.A. & K. Shanker
(2005). Bird conservation priorities for the Western
Ghats: Insights from an ornithological expedition. Current
Science 89(11): 1917–1924. https://doi.org/10.18520/cs/v89/i11/1917-1924
Praveen, J., R. Jayapal
& A. Pittie (2016). A checklist
of the birds
of India. Indian Birds
11(5&6): 113–172. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.159164
Rasmussen, P.C.
& J.C. Anderton (2005). Birds of
South Asia: The Ripley Guide. Smithsonian
Institution and Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.
Sharma, M. (2020). New records
of Brown Bullfinch from the Western Himalayas. Indian Birds 16(5): 145–146. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3926289