NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Brown-headed Paradise Kingfisher
Tanysiptera danae Sharpe, 1880
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Brown-headed Paradise-kingfisher (Tanysiptera danae)
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Open encyclopedia reference
The brown-headed paradise kingfisher (Tanysiptera danae), also known as the russet paradise kingfisher, is a species of bird in the family Alcedinidae. It is endemic to the lowland forest in the Bird's Tail Peninsula (Papua New Guinea). Its natural habitats are temperate forests and subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. Like all paradise kingfishers this bird has colourful plumage with a red bill and distinctive long tail streamers. No subspecies are distinguished.
Wikipedia contributors, Brown-headed paradise kingfisher; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T12:20:49.674559+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Tanysiptera danae Sharpe, 1880
- Name authority
- Sharpe, 1880
- Common name
- Brown-headed Paradise Kingfisher
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Coraciiformes
- Family
- Alcedinidae
- Genus
- Tanysiptera
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderCoraciiformes
- familyAlcedinidae
- subfamilyHalcyoninae
- genusTanysiptera Vigors, 1825
- speciesTanysiptera danae Sharpe, 1880
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Tanysiptera. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Common Paradise KingfisherTanysiptera galatea G. R. Gray, 1859 | AlcedinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Little Paradise KingfisherTanysiptera hydrocharis G. R. Gray, 1858 | AlcedinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Biak Paradise KingfisherTanysiptera riedelii J. Verreaux, 1866 | AlcedinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-capped Paradise KingfisherTanysiptera nigriceps P. L. Sclater, 1877 | AlcedinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cobalt Paradise KingfisherTanysiptera carolinae Schlegel, 1871 | AlcedinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Fairy Paradise KingfisherTanysiptera nympha G. R. Gray, 1840 | AlcedinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Buff-breasted Paradise KingfisherTanysiptera sylvia Gould, 1850 | AlcedinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=554632 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:54QD9. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.