New Britain sparrowhawk
species of bird
The New Britain sparrowhawk (Tachyspiza brachyura) is a threatened species of bird of prey. It is endemic to two Papua New Guinea islands, New Britain and New Ireland. Even in 1934 Ernst Mayr, in his survey of mountain bird life during the Whitney South Sea Expedition, found the New Britain sparrowhawk to be very rare. This species was formerly placed in the genus Accipiter.
Description
These sparrowhawks are grey with a white underbelly and orange accents on the neck. They are often characterized by their large feet. They are the only hawk in New Britain or the Solomon Islands that has a middle toe that is longer than the rest. The feet of the New Britain sparrowhawks are pale yellow. These small birds only grow to be 27–34 cm long.
Ecology
This species lives in tropical to subtropical, moist montane forest.
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The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated Oct 4, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q114008. The first chronological checks are 1934.
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This entry incorporates text from “New Britain sparrowhawk” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.