Wildlife of Lao PDR: 1999 Status Report - IUCN

Wildlife of Lao PDR: 1999 Status Report
forest, secondary growth, villages and towns up to at least
1500 m. Status obscure, due to identification difficulties with
congeners.
Sylviidae: Tesias, old-world warblers, tailorbirds,
grassbirds, laughingthrushes, babblers, parrotbills (123-
126 species)
Tesia castaneocoronata Chestnut-headed Tesia. Resident;
north B6 . Undergrowth of evergreen forest and secondary
growth, especially near streams; above 1400 m. First recorded
for Lao PDR in March 1996, in Phou Dendin NBCA (RJTiz).
Tesia olivea Slaty-bellied Tesia. Resident; north, centre B10 .
Undergrowth of evergreen forest and regrowth, especially
near streams, generally above 900 m, locally down to 700 m.
See cautionary note concerning historical records under Greybellied
Tesia.
Tesia cyaniventer Grey-bellied Tesia. Resident; north B6 ,
centre (historically, provisionally, Delacour 1929a), south B14 .
Undergrowth of evergreen forest and regrowth, especially
near streams, above 1140 m. Records prior to 1997 were
reviewed by Thewlis et al. (1998). In view of the species’s
apparently secure status at its then only known site (common
in the Phou Ahyon area and adjacent Dakchung Plateau)
and the lack of apparent threats, it was dropped from the
recommended list of key species. Historical records require
careful interpretation, as T. olivea was formerly considered
conspecific with Grey-bellied Tesia under the name T.
cyaniventer (Ludlow and Kinnear 1937, Thewlis et al. 1998).
Urosphena squameiceps (= Cettia squameiceps, ^K, ^T)
Asian Stubtail (= Stub-tailed Bush Warbler, ^K, ^T). Winter
visitor; north, centre, south B2 . Understorey of evergreen
forests and mature regenerating scrub over abandoned cultivation,
often near streams; up to at least 1500 m.
Cettia pallidipes Pale-footed Bush Warbler. Resident;
north B9 , centre (historically, Delacour 1929a). Open semievergreen
and mixed deciduous forest, grass and scrub from
550 to at least 1640 m. Records prior to 1996 were reviewed
by Duckworth et al. (1998a).
Cettia diphone Japanese Bush Warbler (separated as C.
canturians Manchurian Bush Warbler by ^K, ^Sm, ^T). Winter
visitor; north B2 , centre B10 . Dense scrub and fringes of cultivation,
often near water, at low - mid altitudes.
Cettia fortipes Brownish-flanked Bush Warbler. Resident;
north (historically B21 ). Probably forest edge, scrub and grass
at higher altitudes. Four males and six females were collected
in Phongsali in April 1929 (Bangs and Van Tyne 1931). While
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some of these appear to be the birds re-identified by Delacour
and Greenway (1941) as C. flavolivacea, P. Rasmussen (in
litt. 1999) has confirmed that some are indeed C. fortipes
davidiana. David-Beaulieu (1944) recorded one as this species
from Xiangkhouang Province in December 1938, but in
view of other warbler misidentifications in this collection
(see Bradypterus tacsanowskius and B. luteoventris) the
identification should be regarded as provisional. A taxonomic
reassessment of this group is needed to evaluate whether
davidiana truly belongs within C. fortipes (P. Rasmussen
in litt. 1999).
Cettia flavolivacea (= C. flavolivaceus, ^K) Aberrant Bush
Warbler. Resident; north (historically, Delacour and
Greenway 1941). Probably thick scrub, tall grass at higher
altitudes. Delacour and Greenway (1941) stated that previously
this form was confounded with C. fortipes davidiana,
and specifically mention Phongsali as a location for C.
flavolivacea. P. Rasmussen (in litt. 1999) has confirmed that
some of the Bangs and Van Tyne (1931) specimens are indeed
C. flavolivacea oblitus, although it is unclear whether
this form should continue to be regarded as a race of C.
flavolivacea.
Bradypterus thoracicus Spotted Bush Warbler. Winter visitor;
north (historically, Dickinson 1970b). Probably rank
dense herbage and scrub especially in wet areas. Robichaud
and Sounthala’s (1995) record was modified to Bradypterus
sp. in Duckworth et al. (1998a). Future records should be
checked carefully as B. ‘ t.’ davidi and allied races are probably
better considered to form a separate species, David’s
Bush Warbler (Round and Loskot 1995). The sole Lao record
was probably B. t. przevalskii (D. Goodwin in Dickinson
1970b), which falls with the thoracicus group.
Bradypterus tacsanowskius Chinese Bush Warbler. Nonbreeding
migrant; north (historically B20 ). Probably brush,
thickets, paddy-fields and other dense undergrowth. The species
was also recorded in north Lao PDR by David-Beaulieu
(1944), who stated that this species was a fairly common
winter visitor to Xiangkhouang Province. However, the only
one of his specimens available for re-examination is B.
thoracicus (Dickinson 1970b).
[Bradypterus luteoventris Brown Bush Warbler]. Seasonal
status unclear; north (provisionally, historically B21 ), centre
(provisionally, WCS 1996b). Dense weeds and grass, generally
(in neighbouring countries) at higher altitudes. A sight
record of a single bird in scrubby herbaceous growth at about
500 m on the Nakai Plateau in early 1996 (JAW) is the only
recent record, albeit provisional. A record from Nam Theun
Extension PNBCA (Tobias 1997) has been withdrawn (J. A.
Tobias in litt. 1998). David-Beaulieu (1944) recorded the
species as rare in Xiangkhouang in winter, but the sole