More time was spent at Quoin Hill than at any other locality. Fifty five
of the more common and hence best-known birds are listed in Table 1
together with their primary and secondary preferences of habitat. The
habitat distribution of the birds shows the amount of secondary
utilization of habitats by birds that occurred predominantly in one
habitat. Cocoa was utilized by 6.2 per cent of the birds of the primary
forest, and 88.8 per cent of birds of the secondary forest. This
indicates that cocoa is an effective substitute for secondary forest for
some birds. Of the species of the primary forest, 18.7 per cent occurred
also in secondary forest; thus, three times as many species of primary
forest utilized secondary forest as utilized cocoa. This too might be
expected, since "secondary" forest is of frequent natural occurrence and
an ancient feature while the comparatively simple cocoa plantings are
new and artificial.
TABLE 1.--Habitat preferences of 55 Quoin Hill birds.
=====================================================
X = Primary |Primary forest
O = Secondary | |Secondary forest
| | |Cocoa plantations
SPECIES | | | |Fluviatile water
| | | | |Abaca
----------------------------+----+----+----+----+----
_Treron curvirostra_ | | X | | |
_Cacomantis merulinus_ | | O | X | |
_Chalcites malayanus_ | | | X | |
_Phaenicophaeus_ | | | | |
_chlorophaeus_ | | O | X | |
_Harpactes diardi_ | X | | | |
_Harpactes duvauceli_ | X | | | |
_Alcedo euryzona_ | | | | X |
_Ceyx erithacus_ | X | | | |
_Eurystomus orientalis_ | | X | O | |
_Calorhamphus fuliginosus_ | | O | X | |
_Megalaima chrysopogon_ | | X | O | |
_Megalaima henrici_ | X | | O | |
_Sasia abnormis_ | O | X | | |
_Meiglyptes tukki_ | | X | | |
_Dryocopus javensis_ | | X | O | |
_Chrysocolaptes validus_ | | O | X | |
_Eurylaimus ochromalus_ | | O | X | |
_Pitta guajana_ | X | | | |
_Coracina fimbriata_ | | | X | |
_Aegithina viridissima_ | | | X | |
_Chloropsis cyanopogon_ | | X | | |
_Irena puella_ | | X | | |
_Pycnonotus brunneus_ | | | X | |
_Criniger bres_ | | X | O | |
_Criniger phaeocephalus_ | X | | | |
_Criniger finschii_ | | | X | |
_Hypsipetes criniger_ | | X | O | |
_Copsychus pyrrhopygus_ | X | | | |
_Copsychus stricklandi_ | | X | O | |
_Enicurus ruficapillus_ | | | | X |
_Pellorneum capistratum_ | X | | | |
_Trichastoma malaccense_ | X | O | | |
_Trichastoma sepiarium_ | | X | | |
_Malacopteron magnum_ | X | O | | |
_Malacopteron magnirostre_ | X | O | | |
_Kenopia striata_ | X | | | |
_Stachyris poliocephala_ | | X | | |
_Alcippe brunneicauda_ | X | | O | |
_Orthotomus atrogularis_ | | X | | |
_Orthotomus sepium_ | | X | O | |
_Rhipidura perlata_ | X | | | |
_Muscicapa dumetoria_ | X | | | |
_Rhinomyias umbratilis_ | X | | | |
_Hypothymis azurea_ | | | X | |
_Anthreptes simplex_ | | | X | |
_Anthreptes rhodolaema_ | | | X | |
_Nectarinia hypogrammica_ | | X | | |
_Arachnothera longirostris_ | | | | | X
_Arachnothera flavigaster_ | | | | | X
_Arachnothera chrysogenys_ | | | | | X
_Arachnothera affinis_ | | | | | X
_Zosterops everetti_ | | O | X | |
_Lonchura fuscans_ | | X | O | |
_Oriolus xanthonotus_ | | X | O | |
_Platysmurus leucopterus_ | | X | O | |
+----+----+----+----+----
Total Primary | 16 | 18 | 14 | 2 | 4
| | | | |
Total Secondary | 1 | 8 | 14 | 0 | 0
----------------------------+----+----+----+----+----
The avifauna at Quoin Hill was a mixture of montane, submontane, and
lowland species. Smythies (1957:527) defines four altitudinal areas of
distribution: Higher Montane, Montane, Submontane, and Lowland. Higher
Montane birds have not been recorded on mountains the summits of which
are lower than 5,000 feet, although on higher peaks the actual lower
limit of occurrence may be considerably below 5,000 feet. Montane birds
have not been recorded on mountains the summits of which are lower than
3,000 feet, although specimens may have been taken below that altitude
on higher peaks. Submontane, as defined by Smythies, is a comprehensive
term applied to birds occurring from sea level to an elevation of 5,000
feet but ordinarily not found away from mountainous country. The Lowland
birds normally range from sea level to 3,000 feet. Of the 125 species of
birds observed at Quoin Hill, 1.6 per cent were Montane, 14.4 per cent
were Submontane and 84 per cent were Lowland species. The distribution
of birds 12 miles north of Kalabakan closely resembled that at Quoin
Hill except for the total absence of Montane species and an increase of
Submontane species to 25 per cent. The observation of fewer species (48)
can be attributed to the nearly uniform habitat.
The avifauna in the moss forest 5.5 miles southwest of Tenom was unusual
in that 45.4 per cent consisted of Lowland species; this locality lies
4,000 feet above sea level, yet only 27.3 per cent of its species were
Submontane and 27.3 per cent Montane. If one looks at these figures from
the standpoint of the actual importance of the three groups at this
place, however, a different picture emerges. Some of the Lowland species
were seen only once while I was there and few were common, while all of
the Submontane and most of the Montane forms were more or less common.