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Saddleback | |
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North Island saddleback (Philesturnus rufusater) | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Passeriformes |
Family: | Callaeidae |
Genus: | Philesturnus I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1832 |
Type species | |
Sturnus carunculatus Gmelin, 1789
| |
Species | |
P. rufusater |
The saddlebacks or tīeke (Māori) are two species of New Zealand birds of the family Callaeidae. Both are glossy black with a chestnut saddle. Their taxonomic family is also known as that of the (New Zealand) "wattlebirds" and includes the two species of kōkako, and the extinct huia. All members of the family Callaeidae have coloured fleshy wattles on either side of the beak; the saddlebacks' are a vivid red.