𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗼𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝟮, 𝗠𝗜𝗕𝗡𝗣

One of the ubiquitous species of birds in Station 2 is the coleto (𝑆𝑎𝑟𝑐𝑜𝑝𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑣𝑢𝑠). The coleto was first described by French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760. Its first binomial name was coined by Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1766 and its present scientific name was introduced by English ornithologist Arthur Walden in 1875 (Wikipedia).

The coleto has been recently discovered as the host of the brood parasite Asian koel (𝐸𝑢𝑑𝑦𝑛𝑎𝑚𝑦𝑠 𝑠𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑜𝑝𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑢𝑠) (Gicaraya, VAG; Española, CP (2023), another species that is often heard at Station 2 but seldom seen.

The colecto is an omnivore. We’ve seen flocks feed on the fruits of “gamot-labang” (Taobuid name for igyo tree, 𝐷𝑦𝑠𝑜𝑥𝑦𝑙𝑢𝑚 𝑔𝑎𝑢𝑑𝑖𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑢𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑛𝑢𝑚) when the igyo tree near the ranger bunkhouse fruited in the first quarter of 2022. We’ve collected the seeds that fell on the ground and some of the seedlings that germinated have been outplanted in the biomass mounds and tree guilds at Landing. But we have not observed an igyo that has been naturally dispersed in Landing.