(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-03-15 14:47

JAKARTA -- Two field scientists from the University of Indonesia have found a new bird species, Zosterops Somadikartai or Togian white-eye, in the Togian Islands, Gulf of Tomini, Central Sulawesi province, local press reported Saturday.

An undated artist's rendering of the Zosterops somadikartai, or Togian white-eye. The small greenish bird that has been playing hide-and-seek with ornithologists on a remote Indonesian island since 1996 was declared a newly discovered species on March 14, 2008 and promptly recommended for endangered lists. [Agencies]

The newly discovered bird is small with green plumage and a red beak. It is very active and moves in small flocks.

However, unlike its closest relatives -- and despite its name -- the bird's eyes are circled by a band of red feathers, not white. Its beak is a more intense red than that of its relatives.

The species is being introduced for the first time this month in The Wilson Journal of Ornithology, 12 years after Indrawan and Sunarto first spotted the bird, reported English daily The Jakarta Post.

The two scientists collaborated with well-known taxonomist Pamela Rasmussen of Michigan State University, who specializes in Asian birds, to conduct final research into the new species.

Based on the criteria of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, the newly discovered bird is believed to be endangered because it is found only in a few small islands in Central Sulawesi.

The species is named after Prof. Somadikarta, Indonesia's leading taxonomist, who was recently appointed the honorary president of the International Ornithological Congress XXV in Brazil in 2010.

"I'm happy they put my name on it because it is an endangered species," Somadikarta said.

This finding has also established the Togian Islands as an endemic bird area. According to conservation organization BirdLife International, a region can be established as an endemic bird area if more than two bird species that do not exist in other regions are found there.

Indrawan and his team previously found a new owl species, Ninox burhani or Togian hawk-owl, in forests in the Togian Islands. The owl was named after a local farmer, Burhan, in appreciation of the local people's kindness.