Birds
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 Superb Fairy-wren, Malurus cyaneus, juvenile
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Birds are bipedal, warm-blooded, oviparous vertebrate animals characterized primarily by feathers, forelimbs modified as wings, and (in most) hollow bones.
Birds range in size from the tiny hummingbirds to the huge Ostrich and Emu. Depending on the taxonomic viewpoint, there are about 8,800–10,200 living bird species (and about 120–130 that have become extinct in the span of human history) in the world, making them the most diverse class of terrestrial vertebrates.
Birds feed on nectar, plants, seeds, insects, fish, mammals, carrion, or other birds.
Most birds are diurnal, or active during the day, but some birds, such as the owls and nightjars, are nocturnal or crepuscular (active during twilight hours), and many coastal waders feed when the tides are appropriate, by day or night.
Many birds migrate long distances to utilise optimum habitats (e.g., Arctic Tern) while others spend almost all their time at sea (e.g. the Wandering Albatross). Some, such as Common Swifts, stay aloft for days at a time, even sleeping on the wing.
Common characteristics of birds include a bony beak with no teeth, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, high metabolic rate, a 4-chambered heart, and a light but strong skeleton. Most birds are characterised by flight, though the ratites are flightless, and several other species, particularly on islands, have also lost this ability. Flightless birds include the penguins, ostrich, kiwi, and the extinct Dodo. Flightless species are vulnerable to extinction when humans or the mammals they introduce arrive in their habitat. The Great Auk, flightless rails, and the moa of New Zealand, for example, all became extinct due to human influence.
Birds are among the most extensively studied of all animal groups. Hundreds of academic journals and thousands of scientists are devoted to bird research, while amateur enthusiasts (called birdwatchers or, more commonly, birders) probably number in the millions.
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Birds
References
- ^ Early Adaptive Radiation of Birds: Evidence from Fossils from Northeastern China -- Hou et al. 274 (5290): 1164 -- Science. Retrieved on 2006-07-21.
- ^ Education - Senior 1. Manitoba Fisheries Sustainable Development. Retrieved on 2006-10-09.
- ^ Gowaty, Patricia Adair (1983). Male Parental Care and Apparent Monogamy among Eastern Bluebirds (Sialia sialis). The American Naturalist 121 (2): 149-160.
- ^ Ketterson, Ellen D., and Nolan, Val (1994). Male Parental Behavior in Birds. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 25: 601-28.
- ^ Worldwatch Paper #165: Winged Messengers: The Decline of Birds. Retrieved on 2006-07-21.
- ^ Help Migratory Birds Reach Their Destinations. Retrieved on 2006-07-21.
- ^ Protect Backyard Birds and Wildlife: Keep Pet Cats Indoors. Retrieved on 2006-07-21.
Links
- Avibase - The World Bird Database
- Bird Hybrids Database - Search by bird name, use Sibley classification
- International Ornithological Committee
- Birdlife International - Dedicated to bird conservation worldwide; has a database with about 250,000 records on endangered bird species
- Birdingonthe.net
- Worldtwitch - Rare bird news around the world
- The Internet Bird Collection - A free library of videos of the world's birds
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Bird taxonomy
High-level taxonomy
Birds are categorised as a biological class, Aves. The earliest known species of this class is Archaeopteryx lithographica, from the Late Jurassic period. According to the most recent consensus, Aves and a sister group, the order Crocodilia, together form a group of unnamed rank, the Archosauria.
Phylogenetically, Aves is usually defined as all descendants of the most recent common ancestor of modern birds (or of a specific modern bird species like Passer domesticus), and Archaeopteryx. Modern phylogenies place birds in the dinosaur clade Theropoda.
Modern birds are divided into two superorders, the Paleognathae (mostly flightless birds like ostriches), and the wildly diverse Neognathae, containing all other birds.
Bird orders
Relationships between bird orders according the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy. "Galloanseri" is now considered a superorder Galloanserae.
This is a list of the taxonomic orders in the class Aves.
Paleognathae:
- Struthioniformes, Ostrich, emus, kiwis, and allies
Tinamiformes, tinamous
Neognathae:
- Anseriformes, waterfowl
Galliformes, fowl
Gaviiformes, loons
Podicipediformes, grebes
Procellariiformes, albatrosses, petrels, and allies
Sphenisciformes, penguins
Pelecaniformes, pelicans and allies
Ciconiiformes, storks and allies
Phoenicopteriformes, flamingos
Accipitriformes, eagles, hawks and allies
Falconiformes, falcons
Turniciformes, button-quail
Gruiformes, cranes and allies
Charadriiformes, gulls, plovers and allies
Pteroclidiformes, sandgrouse
Columbiformes, doves and pigeons
Psittaciformes, parrots and allies
Cuculiformes, cuckoos, turacos, hoatzin
Strigiformes, owls
Caprimulgiformes, nightjars and allies
Apodiformes, swifts
Trochiliformes, hummingbirds
Coraciiformes, kingfishers
Piciformes, woodpeckers and allies
Trogoniformes, trogons
Coliiformes, mousebirds
Passeriformes, passerines
Note: This is the traditional classification (the so-called Clements order). A more recent, radically different classification based on molecular data has been developed (the so-called Sibley-Monroe classification or Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy). This has influenced taxonomical thinking considerably, with the Galloanserae proving well-supported by recent molecular, fossil and anatomical evidence[citation needed]. With increasingly good evidence, it has become possible by 2006 to test the major proposals of the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy. The results are often nothing short of astounding, see e.g. Charadriiformes or Caprimulgiformes.
Extinct bird orders
A wide variety of bird groups became extinct during the Mesozoic era and left no modern descendants. These include the Order Archaeopterygiformes, Order Confuciusornithiformes, toothed seabirds like the Hesperornithiformes and Ichthyornithes, and the diverse Subclass Enantiornithes ("opposite birds").
Shoebill, Balaeniceps rex
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Bird evolution
There is significant evidence that birds evolved from theropod dinosaurs, specifically, that birds are members of Maniraptora, a group of theropods which includes dromaeosaurs and oviraptorids, among others. As more non-avian theropods that are closely related to birds are discovered, the formerly clear distinction between non-birds and birds becomes less so. Recent discoveries in northeast China (Liaoning Province) demonstrating that many small theropod dinosaurs had feathers contribute to this ambiguity.
The basal bird Archaeopteryx, from the Jurassic, is well-known as one of the first "missing links" to be found in support of evolution in the late 19th century, though it is not considered a direct ancestor of modern birds. Confuciusornis is another early bird; it lived in the Early Cretaceous. Both may be predated by Protoavis texensis, though the fragmentary nature of this fossil leaves it open to considerable doubt if this was a bird ancestor. Other Mesozoic birds include the Enantiornithes, Yanornis, Ichthyornis, Gansus and the Hesperornithiformes, a group of flightless divers resembling grebes and loons.
The recently discovered dromaeosaur Cryptovolans was capable of powered flight, possessed a sternal keel and had ribs with uncinate processes. In fact, Cryptovolans makes a better "bird" than Archaeopteryx which is missing some of these modern bird features. Because of this, some paleontologists have suggested that dromaeosaurs are actually basal birds whose larger members are secondarily flightless, i.e. that dromaeosaurs evolved from birds and not the other way around. Evidence for this theory is currently inconclusive, but digs continue to unearth fossils (especially in China) of the strange feathered dromaeosaurs. At any rate, it is fairly certain that avian flight existed in the mid-Jurassic and was "tried out" in several lineages and variants by the mid-Cretaceous.
Snowy Owl, Bubo scandiacus
Although ornithischian (bird-hipped) dinosaurs share the same hip structure as birds, birds actually originated from the saurischian (lizard-hipped) dinosaurs (if the dinosaurian origin theory is correct), and thus arrived at their hip structure condition independently. In fact, the bird-like hip structure also developed a third time among a peculiar group of theropods, the Therizinosauridae.
An alternate theory to the dinosaurian origin of birds, espoused by a few scientists (most notably Lary Martin and Alan Feduccia), states that birds (including maniraptoran "dinosaurs") evolved from early archosaurs like Longisquama, a theory which is contested by most other scientists in paleontology, and by experts in feather development and evolution such as R.O. Prum. See the Longisquama article for more on this alternative.
Modern birds are classified in Neornithes, which are now known to have evolved into some basic lineages by the end of the Cretaceous. The Neornithes are split into the Paleognathae and Neognathae. The paleognaths include the tinamous (found only in Central and South America) and the ratites. The ratites are large flightless birds, and include ostriches, cassowaries, kiwis and emus (though some scientists suspect that the ratites represent an artificial grouping of birds which have independently lost the ability to fly in a number of unrelated lineages). The basal divergence from the remaining Neognathes was that of the Galloanseri, the superorder containing the Anseriformes (ducks, geese and swans), and the Galliformes (the pheasants, grouse, and their allies). See the chart for more information.
The classification of birds is a contentious issue. Sibley & Ahlquist's Phylogeny and Classification of Birds (1990) is a landmark work on the classification of birds (although frequently debated and constantly revised). A preponderance of evidence seems to suggest that the modern bird orders constitute accurate taxa. However, scientists are not in agreement as to the relationships between the orders; evidence from modern bird anatomy, fossils and DNA have all been brought to bear on the problem but no strong consensus has emerged. More recently, new fossil and molecular evidence is providing an increasingly clear picture of the evolution of modern bird orders.
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Bird anatomy
Birds have a body plan that shows so many unusual adaptations (mostly aiding flight) that birds have earned their own unique class in the vertebrate phylum.
Nesting
Eggs
All birds lay amniotic eggs[2] with hard shells made mostly of calcium carbonate. Non-passerines typically have white eggs, except in some ground-nesting groups such as the Charadriiformes, sandgrouse and nightjars, where camouflage is necessary, and some parasitic cuckoos which have to match the passerine host's egg. Most passerines, in contrast, lay coloured eggs, even if, like the tits they are hole-nesters.
The brown or red protoporphyrin markings on passerine eggs reduce brittleness and are a substitute for calcium when that element is in short supply. The colour of individual eggs is genetically influenced, and appears to be inherited through the mother only, suggesting that the gene responsible for pigmentation is on the sex determining W chromosome (female birds are WZ, males ZZ).
The eggs are laid in a nest, which may be anything from a bare cliff ledge or ground scrape to elaboratey decorated structures such as those of the oropendolas.
Social systems and parental care
The three mating systems that predominate among birds are polyandry, polygyny, and monogamy. Monogamy is seen in approximately 91% of all bird species. Polygyny constitutes 2% of all birds and polyandry is seen in less than 1%. Monogamous species of males and females pair for the breeding season. In some cases, the individuals may pair for life.
One reason for the high rate of monogamy among birds is the fact that male birds are just as adept at parental care as females. In most groups of animals, male parental care is rare, but in birds it is quite common; in fact, it is more extensive in birds than in any other vertebrate class. In birds, male care can be seen as important or essential to female fitness. "In one form of monogamy such as with obligate monogamy a female cannot rear a litter without the aid of a male".
These Redwing hatchlings are completely dependent on parental care.
The parental behavior most closely associated with monogamy is male incubation. Interestingly, male incubation is the most confining male parental behavior. It takes time and also may require physiological changes that interfere with continued mating. This extreme loss of mating opportunities leads to a reduction in reproductive success among incubating males. "This information then suggests that sexual selection may be less intense in taxa where males incubate, hypothetically because males allocate more effort to parental care and less to mating". In other words, in bird species in which male incubation is common, females tend to select mates on the basis of parental behaviors rather than physical appearance.
Birds and humans
Chinstrap Penguin, Pygoscelis antarctica
A birdbox is an artificial platform for birds to make a nest
Birds are an important food source for humans. The most commonly eaten species is the domestic chicken and its eggs, although geese, pheasants, turkeys, and ducks are also widely eaten. Other birds that have been utilized for food include emus, ostriches, pigeons, grouse, quails, doves, woodcocks, songbirds, and others, including small passerines such as finches. Birds grown for human consumption are referred to as poultry.
At one time swans and flamingos were delicacies of the rich and powerful, although these are generally protected now.
Besides meat and eggs, birds provide other items useful to humans, including feathers for bedding and decoration, guano-derived phosphorus and nitrogen used in fertilizer and gunpowder, and the central ingredient of bird's nest soup.
Many species have become extinct through over-hunting, such as the Passenger Pigeon, and many others have become endangered or extinct through habitat destruction, deforestation and intensive agriculture being common causes for declines.
Numerous species have come to depend on human activities for food and are widespread to the point of being pests. For example, the common pigeon or Rock Pigeon (Columba livia) thrives in urban areas around the world. In North America, introduced House Sparrows, European Starlings, and House Finches are similarly widespread.
Other birds have long been used by humans to perform tasks. For example, homing pigeons were used to carry messages before the advent of modern instant communications methods (many are still kept for sport). Falcons are still used for hunting, while cormorants are employed by fishermen. Chickens and pigeons are popular as experimental subjects, and are often used in biology and comparative psychology research. As birds are very sensitive to toxins, the Canary was used in coal mines to indicate the presence of poisonous gases, allowing miners sufficient time to escape without injury.
Colorful, particularly tropical, birds (e.g. parrots, and mynas) are often kept as pets although this practice has led to the illegal trafficking of some endangered species; CITES, an international agreement adopted in 1963, has considerably reduced trafficking in the bird species it protects.
Bird diseases that can be contracted by humans include psittacosis, salmonellosis, campylobacteriosis, Newcastle's disease, mycobacteriosis (avian tuberculosis), avian influenza, giardiasis, and cryptosporidiosis.
Threats to birds
According to Worldwatch Institute, bird populations are declining worldwide, with 1,200 species facing extinction in the next century. Among the biggest cited reasons are habitat loss, predation by nonnative species, oil spills and pesticide use, hunting and fishing, and climate change.
Trivia
- To preen or groom their feathers, birds use their bills to brush away foreign particles.
- The birds of a region are called the avifauna.
- Few birds use chemical defences against predators. Tubenoses can eject an unpleasant oil against an aggressor, and some species of pitohui, found in New Guinea, secrete a powerful neurotoxin in their skin and feathers.
- The Latin word for bird is avis.
Fledgling
A juvenile Laughing Gull
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Birds and humans
Birds are an important food source for humans. The most commonly eaten species is the domestic chicken and its eggs, although geese, pheasants, turkeys, and ducks are also widely eaten. Other birds that have been utilized for food include emus, ostriches, pigeons, grouse, quails, doves, woodcocks, songbirds, and others, including small passerines such as finches. Birds grown for human consumption are referred to as poultry.
At one time swans and flamingos were delicacies of the rich and powerful, although these are generally protected now.
Besides meat and eggs, birds provide other items useful to humans, including feathers for bedding and decoration, guano-derived phosphorus and nitrogen used in fertilizer and gunpowder, and the central ingredient of bird's nest soup.
Many species have become extinct through over-hunting, such as the Passenger Pigeon, and many others have become endangered or extinct through habitat destruction, deforestation and intensive agriculture being common causes for declines.
Numerous species have come to depend on human activities for food and are widespread to the point of being pests. For example, the common pigeon or Rock Pigeon (Columba livia) thrives in urban areas around the world. In North America, introduced House Sparrows, European Starlings, and House Finches are similarly widespread.
Other birds have long been used by humans to perform tasks. For example, homing pigeons were used to carry messages before the advent of modern instant communications methods (many are still kept for sport). Falcons are still used for hunting, while cormorants are employed by fishermen. Chickens and pigeons are popular as experimental subjects, and are often used in biology and comparative psychology research. As birds are very sensitive to toxins, the Canary was used in coal mines to indicate the presence of poisonous gases, allowing miners sufficient time to escape without injury.
Colorful, particularly tropical, birds (e.g. parrots, and mynas) are often kept as pets although this practice has led to the illegal trafficking of some endangered species; CITES, an international agreement adopted in 1963, has considerably reduced trafficking in the bird species it protects.
Bird diseases that can be contracted by humans include psittacosis, salmonellosis, campylobacteriosis, Newcastle's disease, mycobacteriosis (avian tuberculosis), avian influenza, giardiasis, and cryptosporidiosis.
Threats to birds
According to Worldwatch Institute, bird populations are declining worldwide, with 1,200 species facing extinction in the next century. Among the biggest cited reasons are habitat loss, predation by nonnative species, oil spills and pesticide use, hunting and fishing, and climate change.
Trivia
- To preen or groom their feathers, birds use their bills to brush away foreign particles.
- The birds of a region are called the avifauna.
- Few birds use chemical defences against predators. Tubenoses can eject an unpleasant oil against an aggressor, and some species of pitohui, found in New Guinea, secrete a powerful neurotoxin in their skin and feathers.
- The Latin word for bird is avis.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Aviculture
Aviculture is the practice of keeping and often breeding pet birds, generally companion parrots, and the culture that forms around it. Aviculture is generally focused not just on the raising and breeding of birds, but also on preserving avian habitat, and public awareness campaigns.
Types of aviculture
There are various reasons that people get involved in aviculture. Some people breed birds to preserve a species, some breed parrots as companion birds, and some breed birds to make a profit.
The truest meaning of aviculture is that described by Dr. Jean Delacour, the most influential individual aviculture has ever seen-
"Aviculture- The worldwide hobby of keeping and breeding numerous species of wild birds in captivity to maintain their numerical status in nature with a view of forestalling their extinction by supplying aviary raised stock"
Avicultural societies
There are avicultural societies throughout the world, but generally in Europe and the United States, where people tend to be more prosperous and have more leisure time to invest in such an expensive and time-consuming hobby.
Avicultural publications
Like many hobbies, there are many publications catering to aviculture, books on species as pets, books on breeding, and introductory books for parrots and softbills. There are also numerous periodicals, both generalized and specific to types of birds, although they are rarely more specific than "parrot." These periodicals contain articles on breeding, care, companionship, choosing a bird, health effects, and usually several on an individual species or genus.
Links
- American Society of Aviculture
- American Federation of Aviculture
- Softbills in Aviculture
- Model Aviculture Program
- Society for Conservation in Aviculture
- Galliformes - Conservation & Aviculture
- Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) website - Threats to wild bird populations
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Domesticated birds
Domesticated birds
Australian Spotted
The name Australian Spotted is something of a misnomer, as the Australian Spotted duck is one of the few breeds of domesticated ducks that originated in the United States. John C. Kriner and Stanley Mason of Pennsylvania developed this breed by allowing Calls, Mallards, Pintails, and various Australian wild ducks to crossbreed for several years before selecting the desired specimens. The first exhibit of the Australian Spotted began in 1928.
Many duck enthusiasts don't believe that Pintails contributed to the acculturation, because a Mallard dirivative X Pintail renders a sterile duck due to chromosomal differences. However, it is possible for a rare mutant Mallard-Pintail cross to pass on its genes to generations to come, leaving it possible that the Pintail did indeed contribute to the specimens. David Holderread, one of the top waterfowl breeders in the United States, has said that he has observed various traits in the Australian Spotted that are distinct to Pintails.
Links
Photographs
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Bird migration
Many species of birds undertake seasonal journeys of various lengths, a phenomenon known as Bird migration.
Study techniques
Bird migration has been studied by a variety of techniques of which ringing is the oldest. Color marking, use of radar, satellite tracking and stable hydrogen isotopes are some of the other techniques being used to study the migration of birds.
Migration conditioning
It has been possible to teach a new migration route to a flock of birds, for example in re-introduction schmes. After a trial with Canada Geese, microlites were used in the US to teach safe migration routes to reintroduced Whooping Cranes [1].
References
- Alerstam, T. (2001). Detours in bird migration. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 209, 319-331.
- Berthold, Peter (2001) Bird Migration: A General Survey. Second Edition. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-850787-9
- Weidensaul, Scott. Living On the Wind: Across the Hemisphere With Migratory Birds. Douglas & McIntyre, 1999.
- Dingle, Hugh. Migration: The Biology of Life on The Move. Oxford Univ. Press, 1996.
Links
- Migration counts and ringing records The Netherlands, Belgium, Great Britain and France
- Canadian Migration Monitoring Network (Co-ordinates bird migration monitoring stations across Canada)
- Bird Research by Science Daily- includes several articles on bird migration
- The Nature Conservancy's Migratory Bird Program
- The Compasses of Birds - a review from the Science Creative Quarterly
- BBC Supergoose - satellite tagging of light-bellied brent geese
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Land bird migration
Long-distance land bird migration
Many species of land migratory birds migrate very long distances, the most common pattern being for birds to breed in the temperate or arctic northern hemisphere and winter in warmer regions, often in the tropics or the temperate zones of the southern hemisphere.
There is a strong genetic component to migration in terms of timing and route, but this may be modified by environmental influences. An interesting example where a change of migration route has occurred because of such a geographical barrier is the trend for some Blackcaps in central Europe to migrate west and winter in Britain rather than cross the Alps. Theoretical analyses, summarised by Alerstam (2001), show that detours that increase flight distance by up to 20% will often be adaptive on aerodynamic grounds - a bird that loads itself with food in order to cross a long barrier flies less efficiently. However some species show circuitous migratory routes that reflect historical range expansions and are far from optimal in ecological terms. An example is the migration of continental populations of Swainson's Thrush, which fly far east across North America before turning south via Florida to reach northern South America; this route is believed to be the consequence of a range expansion that occurred about 10,000 years ago. Detours may also be caused by differential wind conditions, predation risk, or other factors.
The advantage of the migration strategy is that, in the long days of the northern summer, breeding birds have more hours to feed their young on often abundant food supplies, particularly insects. As the days shorten in autumn and food supplies become scarce, the birds can return to warmer regions where the length of the day varies less and there is an all year round food supply. Most of the passerine migrants fly by night in small flocks. During dusk prior to migration, they show a restlessness which is termed zugunruhe. They may also sing at night during this period of pre-migration restlessness.
The downside of migration is the hazards of the journey, especially when difficult habitats such as deserts and oceans must be crossed, and weather conditions may be adverse.
The risks of predation are also high. The Eleonora's Falcon which breeds on Mediterranean islands has a very late breeding season, timed so that autumn passerine migrants can be hunted to feed its young.
Whether a particular species migrates depends on a number of factors. The climate of the breeding area is important, and few species can cope with the harsh winters of inland Canada or northern Eurasia. Thus the Blackbird Turdus merula is migratory in Scandinavia, but not in the milder climate of southern Europe.
The nature of the staple food is also important. Most specialist insect eaters are long-distance migrants, and have little choice but to head south in winter.
Sometimes the factors are finely balanced. The Whinchat Saxicola rubetra of Europe and the Siberian Stonechat Saxicola maura of Asia are a long-distance migrants wintering in the tropics, whereas their close relative, the European Stonechat Saxicola rubicola is a resident bird in most of its range, and moves only short distances from the colder north and east.
Certain areas, because of their location, have become famous as watchpoints for migrating birds. Examples are the Point Pelee National Park in Canada, and Spurn in England. Drift migration of birds blown off course by the wind can result in "falls" of large numbers of migrants at coastal sites.
Another cause of birds occurring outside their normal ranges is the "spring overshoot" in which birds returning to their breeding areas overshoot and end up further north than intended.
A mechanism which can lead to great rarities turning up as vagrants thousands of kilometres out of range is reverse migration, where the genetic programming of young birds fails to work properly.
Recent research suggests that long-distance passerine migrants are of South American and African, rather than northern hemisphere, evolutionary origins. They are effectively southern species coming north to breed rather than northern species going south to winter.
Broad-winged long distance migrants
Some large broad-winged birds rely on thermal columns of rising hot air to enable them to soar. These include many birds of prey such as vultures, eagles and buzzards, but also storks.
Migratory species in these groups have great difficulty crossing large bodies of water, since thermals can only form over land, and these birds cannot maintain active flight for long distances.
The Mediterranean and other seas therefore present a major obstacle to soaring birds, which are forced to cross at the narrowest points. This means that massive numbers of large raptors and storks pass through areas such as Gibraltar, Falsterbo and the Bosphorus at migration times. Commoner species, such as the Honey Buzzard, can be counted in hundreds of thousands in autumn.
Other barriers, such as mountain ranges, can also cause funnelling, particularly of large diurnal migrants.
Short-distance land bird migration
The long-distance migrants in the previous section are effectively genetically programmed to respond to changing lengths of days. However many species move shorter distances, but may do so only in response to harsh weather conditions.
Thus mountain and moorland breeders, such as Wallcreeper and White-throated Dipper, may move only altitudinally to escape the cold higher ground. Other species such as Merlin and Skylark will move further to the coast or to a more southerly region.
Species like the Chaffinch are not migratory in Britain, but will move south or to Ireland in very cold weather. Interestingly, in Scandinavia, the female of this species migrates, but not the male, giving rise to the specific name coelebs, a bachelor.
Short-distance passerine migrants have two evolutionary origins. Those which have long-distance migrants in the same family, such as the Chiffchaff, are species of southern hemisphere origins which have progressively shortened their return migration so that they stay in the northern hemisphere.
Those species which have no long-distance migratory relatives, such as the waxwings, are effectively moving in response to winter weather, rather than enhanced breeding opportunities.
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Wildfowl and waders
The typical image of migration is of northern landbirds such as swallows and birds of prey making long flights to the tropics. Many northern-breeding ducks, geese and swans are also long-distance migrants, but need only to move from their arctic breeding grounds far enough south to escape frozen waters.
The Lesser Striped Swallow is a partial migrant within Africa
This means that most wildfowl remain in the Northern hemisphere, but in milder countries. For example, the Pink-footed Goose migrates from Iceland to Britain and neighbouring countries. Usually wintering grounds are traditional and learned by the young when they migrate with their parents.
Some ducks, such as the Garganey, do move completely or partially into the tropics.
A similar situation occurs with waders (called "shorebirds" in North America). Many species, such as Dunlin and Western Sandpiper, undertake long movements from their arctic breeding grounds to warmer locations in the same hemisphere, but others such as Semipalmated Sandpiper travel huge distances to the tropics.
Dunlin (Calidris alpina)
Most of the wildfowl are large and powerful, and even the waders are strong fliers. This means that birds wintering in temperate regions have the capacity to make further shorter movements in the event of particularly inclement weather.
The same considerations about barriers and detours that apply to long-distance land-bird migration apply to water birds, but in reverse: a large area of land without bodies of water that offer feeding sites is a barrier to a water bird. Open sea may also be a barrier to a bird that feeds in coastal waters. Detours avoiding such barriers are observed: for example, Brent Geese migrating from the Taymyr Peninsula to the Wadden Sea travel via the White Sea coast and the Baltic Sea rather than directly across the Arctic Ocean and northern Scandinavia.
For some species of waders, migration success depends on the availability of certain key food resources at stopover points along the migration route. This gives the migrants an opportunity to "refuel" for the next leg of the voyage. Some examples of important stopover locations are the Bay of Fundy and Delaware Bay.
Some Alaskan Bar-tailed Godwits have the longest non-stop flight of any migrant, flying 11,000 km to their New Zealand wintering grounds (BTO News 258: 3, 2005). Prior to migration, 55% of their bodyweight is stored fat to fuel this uninterrupted journey.
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Seabirds
Some seabirds, such as the Black Guillemot and some gulls, are quite sedentary; others, such as most of the terns and auks breeding in the temperate northern hemisphere, move south varying distances in winter. The Arctic Tern has the longest-distance migration of any bird, and sees more daylight than any other, moving from its arctic breeding grounds to the antarctic wintering areas. One Arctic Tern, ringed (banded) as a chick on the Farne Islands off the British east coast, reached Melbourne, Australia in just three months from fledging, a sea journey of over 22,000 km (14,000 miles). Seabirds, of course, have the advantage that they can feed on migration.
The most pelagic species, mainly in the 'tubenose' order Procellariiformes, are great wanderers, and the albatrosses of the southern oceans may circle the globe as they ride the "roaring forties" outside the breeding season. The tubenoses in general spread thinly over large areas of open ocean, but congregate when food becomes available. Many of them are also among the longest-distance migrants; Sooty Shearwaters nesting on the Falkland Islands migrate 14,000 km (9,000 miles) between the breeding colony and the North Atlantic Ocean off Norway, and some Manx Shearwaters do the same journey in reverse. As they are long-lived birds, they may cover enormous distances during their lives; one record-breaking Manx Shearwater is calculated to have flown 8 million km (5 million miles) during its over-50 year lifespan.
Pelagic birding trips attract petrels and other procellarids by tipping "chum", a mixture of fish oil and offal, into the sea. Within minutes, a previously apparently empty ocean is full of petrels, fulmars and shearwaters attracted by the food.
A few seabirds, such as Wilson's Petrel and Great Shearwater, breed in the southern hemisphere and migrate north in the southern winter.
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Birds migration in the tropics and Australasia
Some migration routes
The tropics
In the tropics there is little variation in the length of day throughout the year, and it is always warm enough for an adequate food supply. Apart from the seasonal movements of northern hemisphere wintering species, most species are in the broadest sense resident. However many species undergo movements of varying distances depending on the rainfall.
Many tropical regions have wet and dry seasons, the monsoons of India being perhaps the best known example. An example of a bird whose distribution is rain associated is the Woodland Kingfisher of west Africa.
There are a few species, notably cuckoos, which are genuine long-distance migrants within the tropics. An example is the Lesser Cuckoo, which breeds in India and winters in Africa.
In the high mountains, such as the Himalayas and the Andes, there are also seasonal altitudinal movements in many species.
Australasia
Bird migration is primarily, but not entirely, a Northern-Hemisphere phenomenon. In the Southern Hemisphere, seasonal migration tends to be much less marked. There are several reasons for this.
First, the largely uninterrupted expanses of land mass or ocean tend not to funnel migrations into narrow and obvious pathways, making them less obvious to the human observer. Second, at least for terrestrial birds, climatic regions tend to fade into one another over a long distance rather than be entirely separate: this means that rather than make long trips over unsuitable habitat to reach particular destinations, migrant species can usually travel at a relaxed pace, feeding as they go. Short of banding studies it is often not obvious that the birds seen in any particular locality as the seasons change are in fact different members of the same species passing through, gradually working their way north or south.
Relatively few Australasian birds migrate in the way that so many European and North American species do. This is largely a matter of geography: the Australasian climate has seasonal extremes no less compelling than those of Europe; however, they are far less predictable and tend to take place over periods both shorter and longer. A couple of weeks of heavy rain in one part or another of the usually dry centre of Australia, for example, produces dramatic plant and invertebrate growth, attracting birds from all directions. This can happen at any time of year, summer or winter and, in any given area, may not happen again for a decade or more.
Broader climatic extremes are highly unpredictable also: expected seasonal heat or rain arrives or does not arrive, depending on the vagaries of El Niño. It is commonplace to have stretches of five or ten years at a time when winter rains do not eventuate during the El Niño cycle, and equally common to have La Niña periods which turn arid zones into areas of lush grass and shallow lakes. Long distance migration requires a heavy investment in time and body mass—and, given the random nature of El Niño, an investment with an uncertain return.
In broad terms, Australasian birds tend to be sedentary or nomadic, moving on whenever conditions become unfavourable to whichever area happens to be more suitable at the time.
There are many exceptions, however. Some species make the long haul to breed in far distant northern climes every year, notably swifts, and a great many wading birds that breed in the Arctic Circle during the southern winter.
Many others arrive for the southern spring and summer to breed, then fly to tropical northern Australia, New Guinea, or the islands of South East Asia for the Southern winter. Examples include cuckoos, the Satin Flycatcher, the Dollarbird, and the Rainbow Bee-eater.
Others again are altitudinal migrants, moving to higher country during summer, returning to warmer areas in winter such as several robins, or travel north and south with the seasons but within a relatively restricted range. The tiny 10 cm Silvereye is an example: most of the southernmost Tasmanian race crosses the 200 miles of Bass Strait after breeding to disperse into Victoria, South Australia, New South Wales and even southern Queensland, replacing the normal residents who fly still further north, following the band of fertile country along the coast, feeding through the day and travelling mostly at night. The northernmost populations, however, are nomadic rather than migratory, as are the Silvereyes of southern Western Australia, which is bounded by thousands of miles of desert to the north and east, and sea to the south and west.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Bird topography
Bird topography
Beak
The bill of a scavenger—the vulture.
The beak—otherwise known as the bill or rostrum—is an external anatomical structure which serves as the mouth in some animals. It is a distinctive feature of birds and, in addition to eating, is used by them for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, probing for food, courtship, and feeding their young.
The bill and knob of a domesticated Chinese goose, highly exaggerated by farm selection.
Billing
Northern Gannets (Morus bassanus) billing.
During courtship, mated pairs of a variety of bird species touch and clasp each other's bills. This is called billing, and appears to strengthen the pair bond (Terres, 1980). Gannets raise their bills high and repeatedly clatter them (pictured); the male puffin nibbles at the female's beak; the male waxwing puts his bill in the female's mouth; and ravens hold each other's beaks in a prolonged "kiss".
The bill of the Greater Flamingo, Phoenicopterus roseus.
References
The beak of a Brown Falcon, Falco berigora.
- Gilbertson, Lance; Zoology Lab Manual; McGraw Hill Companies, New York; ISBN 0-07-237716-X (fourth edition, 1999)
- Terres, John. K. The Audubon Society Encyclopedia of North American Birds, New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1980. ISBN 0394466519
Comparison of different types of bird beaks, displaying the different shapes that are a result of different feeding adaptations. Bird heads are not shown to scale.
Links
The beak of an African Penguin, Spheniscus demersus.
- http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=15&cat=1829&articleid=2752
- http://www.birdsnways.com/wisdom/ww53eiv.htm
- http://qp-society.com/qpserc/beak.html
- Photo of a male budgie's cere
The long white beak of a Long-billed Corella (Cacatua (Licmetis) tenuirostris) is used to dig for roots and seeds.
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Video: Beauty and the Beak
Birds classification
This page lists living orders and families of birds, class Aves. The links below should then lead to family accounts and hence to individual species.
Taxonomy is very fluid in the age of DNA analysis, so comments are made where appropriate, and all numbers are approximate. In particular see Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy for a very different classification.
This article and the descendant family articles follow the taxonomy of the Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds (HANZAB) for families largely endemic to that region, and otherwise the Handbook of Birds of the World (HBW).
Paleognathae
The flightless and mostly giant Struthioniformes lack a keeled sternum and are collectively known as ratites. Together with the Tinamiformes, they form the Paleognathae (or 'old jaws'), one of the two evolutionary "super orders".
- Struthioniformes: mainly southern hemisphere; 12 species, 2 extinct
- Struthionidae: Ostrich
Casuariidae: emus and cassowaries
Apterygidae: kiwis
Rheidae: rheas
- Struthionidae: Ostrich
- Tinamiformes: South America; 45 species
- Tinamidae: tinamous
Neognathae
Nearly all living birds belong to the super order of Neognathae— or 'new jaws'. With their keels, unlike the ratites, they are known as carinates. The passerines alone account for well over 5000 species.
- Anseriformes: worldwide; 150 species
- Anhimidae: screamers
Anseranatidae: Magpie-goose
Anatidae: swans, geese and ducks
- Anhimidae: screamers
- Galliformes: worldwide except northern Eurasia; 256 species.
- Megapodidae: mound-builders
Cracidae: chachalacas, guans and curassows
Tetraonidae: grouse
Phasianidae: partridges, pheasants, quail and allies
Odontophoridae: New World quails
Numididae: guineafowl
Meleagrididae: turkeys
Mesitornithidae: mesites
- Megapodidae: mound-builders
- Sphenisciformes: Antarctic and southern waters; 16 species
- Spheniscidae: penguins
- Gaviiformes: North America, Eurasia; 5 species
- Gaviidae loons or divers
- Podicipediformes: worldwide; 20 species
- Podicipedidae: grebes
- Procellariiformes: pan-oceanic; 93 species
- Diomedeidae: albatrosses
Procellariidae: fulmars, prions, shearwaters, gadfly and other petrels
Pelecanoididae: diving petrels
Hydrobatidae: storm petrels
- Diomedeidae: albatrosses
- Pelecaniformes: worldwide; 57 species
- Pelecanidae: pelicans
Sulidae: gannets and boobies
Phalacrocoracidae: cormorants
Fregatidae: frigatebirds
Anhingidae: Anhinga and darters
Phaethontidae: tropicbirds
- Pelecanidae: pelicans
- Ciconiiformes: all continents; 115 species.
- Ardeidae: herons and bitterns
Cochlearidae: Boatbill
Balaenicipitidae: Shoebill
Scopidae: Hammerkop
Ciconiidae: storks
Threskiornithidae: ibises and spoonbills
Phoenicopteridae flamingos
- Ardeidae: herons and bitterns
- Accipitriformes: worldwide; about 226 species. Some classifications also include the Falconidae.
- Cathartidae: New World vultures and Condors
Pandionidae: Osprey
Accipitridae: hawks, eagles, buzzards and Old World vultures, harriers, kites, and allies
Sagittaridae: Secretary Bird
- Cathartidae: New World vultures and Condors
- Falconiformes: worldwide; 60 species. Sometimes included in the Accipitriformes.
- Falconidae: falcons
- Turniciformes: Old World, 15 species
- Turnicidae: buttonquail
- Gruiformes: worldwide; 196 species
- Gruidae: cranes
Aramidae: Limpkin
Psophiidae: trumpeters
Rallidae: rails, crakes, coots and allies
Heliornithidae: finfoots and Sungrebe
Rhynochetidae: Kagu
Eurypigidae: Sunbittern
Cariamidae: seriemas
Otidae: bustards
- Gruidae: cranes
- Charadriiformes: worldwide; 305 species
- Jacanidae: jacanas
Rostratulidae: painted snipe
Haematopodidae: oystercatchers
Charadriidae: plovers
Pluvianellidae: Magellanic Plover
Ibidorhynchidae: Ibisbill
Recurvirostridae: avocets and stilts
Scolopacidae: typical waders or shorebirds
Dromadidae: Crab Plover
Burhinidae: thick-knees
Glareolidae: coursers and pratincoles
Thinocoridae: seedsnipe
Pedionomidae: Plains Wanderer
Chionididae: sheathbill
Stercorariidae: skuas
Laridae: gulls
Sternidae: terns
Rhynchopidae: skimmers
Alcidae: auks
- Jacanidae: jacanas
- Pterocliformes: Africa, Europe, Asia; 16 species
- Pteroclidae: sandgrouse
- Columbiformes: worldwide; 300 species
- Raphidae: dodos
Columbidae: pigeons and doves
- Raphidae: dodos
- Psittaciformes: pan-tropical, southern temperate zones; 330 species
- Cacatuidae: cockatoos
Psittacidae: parrots
- Cacatuidae: cockatoos
- Cuculiformes: worldwide; 151 species
- Musophagidae: turacos and allies
Cuculidae: cuckoos
Opisthocomidae: Hoatzin
- Musophagidae: turacos and allies
- Strigiformes: worldwide; 134 species
- Tytonidae: barn owls
Strigidae: typical owls
- Tytonidae: barn owls
- Caprimulgiformes: worldwide; 96 species
- Steatornithidae: Oilbird
Podargidae: frogmouths
Nyctibiidae: potoos
Aegothelidae: owlet-nightjars
Caprimulgidae: nightjars
- Steatornithidae: Oilbird
- Apodiformes: worldwide; 403 species
- Apodidae: swifts
Hemiprocnidae: tree swifts
- Apodidae: swifts
- Trochiliformes
- Trochilidae: hummingbirds
- Coliiformes: Sub-Saharan Africa; 6 species
- Coliidae: mousebirds
- Trogoniformes: Sub-Saharan Africa, Americas, Asia; 35 species
- Trogonidae: trogons and quetzals
- Coraciiformes: worldwide; 192 species
- Alcedinidae: river kingfishers
Halcyonidae: tree kingfishers
Cerylidae: water or belted kingfishers
Todidae: todies
Momotidae: motmots
Meropidae: bee-eaters
Leptosomatidae: Cuckoo Roller
Brachypteraciidae: ground rollers
Coraciidae: rollers
Upupidae: Hoopoe
Phoeniculidae: woodhoopoes
Bucerotidae: hornbills
- Alcedinidae: river kingfishers
- Piciformes: worldwide except Australasia; 376 species
- Galbulidae: jacamars
Bucconidae: puffbirds
Capitonidae: barbets
Indicatoridae: honeyguides
Ramphastidae: toucans
Picidae: woodpeckers
- Galbulidae: jacamars
- Passeriformes: worldwide; about 5200 species
- Suborder Tyranni ("suboscines")
- Tyrannidae: tyrant flycatchers
Acanthisittidae: New Zealand wrens
Pittidae: pittas
Eurylaimidae: broadbills
Dendrocolaptidae: woodcreepers
Furnariidae: ovenbirds
Thamnophilidae: antbirds
Formicariidae: antpittas and antthrushes
Conopophagidae: gnateaters
Rhinocryptidae: tapaculos
Cotingidae: cotingas
Pipridae: manakins
Philepittidae: asities - Suborder Passeri ("oscines")
- Atrichornithidae: scrub-birds
Menuridae: lyrebirds
Turnagridae: Piopio
Alaudidae: larks
Hirundinidae: swallows
Motacillidae: wagtails and pipits
Campephagidae: cuckoo-shrikes
Pycnonotidae: bulbuls
Regulidae: kinglets
Chloropseidae: leafbirds
Aegithinidae: ioras
Ptilogonatidae: silky-flycatchers
Bombycillidae: waxwings
Hypocoliidae: hypocolius
Dulidae: Palmchat
Cinclidae: dippers
Troglodytidae: wrens
Mimidae: mockingbirds, thrashers and Gray Catbird
Prunellidae: accentors
Turdidae: thrushes and allies
Cisticolidae: cisticolas and allies
Sylviidae: Old World warblers
Polioptilidae: gnatcatchers
Muscicapidae: Old World flycatchers
Platysteiridae: wattle-eyes
Petroicidae: Australasian robins
Pachycephalidae: whistlers and allies
Picathartidae: rockfowl
Timaliidae: babblers
Pomatostomidae: pseudo-babblers
Paradoxornithidae: parrotbills
Orthonychidae: logrunner and chowchilla
Cinclosomatidae: whipbirds and quail-thrushes
Aegithalidae: long-tailed tits
Maluridae: fairy-wrens, emu-wrens and grasswrens
Neosittidae: sitellas
Climacteridae: Australasian treecreepers
Paridae: chickadees and tits
Sittidae: nuthatches
Tichodromidae: Wallcreeper
Certhiidae: treecreepers
Rhabdornithidae: Philippine creepers
Remizidae: penduline tits
Nectariniidae: sunbirds and spiderhunters
Melanocharitidae: berrypeckers and longbills
Paramythiidae: tit berrypecker and crested berrypeckers
Dicaeidae: flowerpeckers
Pardalotidae: pardalotes, thornbills and alies
Zosteropidae: white-eyes
Promeropidae: sugarbirds
Meliphagidae: honeyeaters and chats
Oriolidae: Old World orioles
Irenidae: fairy-bluebirds
Laniidae: shrikes
Malaconotidae: bushshrikes and allies
Prionopidae: helmetshrikes
Vangidae: vangas
Dicruridae: drongos
Callaeidae: wattlebirds
Corcoracidae: White-winged Chough and Apostlebird
Artamidae: currawongs, woodswallows, butcherbirds & allies
Pityriaseidae: bristlehead
Paradisaeidae: birds-of-paradise
Ptilonorhynchidae: bowerbirds
Corvidae: crows, jays and magpies
Sturnidae: starlings
Passeridae: Old World sparrows
Ploceidae: weavers and allies
Estrildidae: waxbills and allies
Viduidae: indigobirds
Vireonidae: vireos and allies
Fringillidae: finches, crossbills and allies
Drepanididae: Hawaiian honeycreepers
Peucedramidae: Olive Warbler
Parulidae: New World warblers
Coerebidae: Bananaquit
Thraupidae: tanagers and allies
Emberizidae: buntings, seedeaters and allies
Cardinalidae: saltators, cardinals and allies
Icteridae: troupials and allies
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Video: Bird Classification (Order) (The Bird classification from Ratites to Passerines)
Bird families
Bird families
Accipitridae
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 Swallow-tailed Kite
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The Accipitridae is one of the two major families within the order Falconiformes (the diurnal birds of prey). Many well-known birds like hawks, eagles, kites, harriers and Old World vultures are included in this group. Most, but not all, other raptors belong to the Falconidae, or falcon family, which is often considered a distinct order, in which case the present group would belong to the order Accipitriformes.)
The Osprey is usually placed in a separate family (Pandionidae), as is the Secretary bird (Sagittariidae), and the New World vultures are also usually now regarded as a separate family or order. Karyotype data (Amaral & Jorge, 2003) indicated that the accipitrids hitherto analyzed are indeed a distinct monophyletic group, but whether this group should be considered a family of the Falconiformes or an order on its own is a matter of taste.
Species
- Subfamily Elaninae
- Black-winged Kite, Elanus caeruleus
Black-shouldered Kite, Elanus axillaris
White-tailed Kite, Elanus leucurus
Letter-winged Kite, Elanus scriptus
Scissor-tailed Kite, Chelictinia riocourii
Bat Hawk, Machaerhamphus alcinus
Pearl Kite, Gampsonyx swainsonii
Swallow-tailed Kite, Elanoides forficatus
- Black-winged Kite, Elanus caeruleus
- Subfamily Perninae
- African Baza, Aviceda cuculoides
Madagascar Baza, Aviceda madagascariensis
Jerdon's Baza, Aviceda jerdoni
Pacific Baza, Aviceda subcristata
Black Baza, Aviceda leuphotes
Long-tailed Honey Buzzard, Hernicopernis longicauda
Black Honey Buzzard, Hernicopernis infuscatus
European Honey Buzzard, Pernis apivorus
Oriental Honey Buzzard, Pernis ptilorhynchus
Barred Honey-buzzard, Pernis celebensis
Grey-headed Kite, Leptodon cayanensis
White-collared Kite, Leptodon forbesi
Hook-billed Kite, Chondrohierax uncinatus
- African Baza, Aviceda cuculoides
- Subfamily Milvinae
- Double-toothed Kite, Harpagus bidentatus
Rufous-thighed Kite, Harpagus diodon
Mississippi Kite, Ictinia mississippiensis
Plumbeous Kite, Ictinia plumbea
Snail Kite, Rostrhamus sociabilis
Slender-billed Kite, Rostrhamus hamatus
Whistling Kite, Haliastur sphenurus
Brahminy Kite, Haliastur indus
Red Kite, Milvus milvus
Black Kite, Milvus migrans
Black-eared Kite, Milvus lineatus
Square-tailed Kite, Lophoictinia isura
Black-breasted Buzzard, Hamirostra melanosternon
- Double-toothed Kite, Harpagus bidentatus
- Subfamily Accipitrinae
- Goshawk, Accipiter gentilis
Sparrowhawk, Accipiter nisus
Grey-bellied Goshawk, Accipiter poliogaster
Crested Goshawk, Accipiter trivirgatus
Sulawesi Goshawk, Accipiter griseiceps
Red-chested Goshawk, Accipiter toussenelii
African Goshawk, Accipiter tachiro
Chinese Goshawk, Accipiter soloensis
Frances' Goshawk, Accipiter francesii
Spot-tailed Goshawk, Accipiter trinotatus
Grey Goshawk, Accipiter novaehollandiae
Brown Goshawk, Accipiter fasciatus
Black-mantled Goshawk, Accipiter melanochlamys
Pied Goshawk, Accipiter albogularis
Fiji Goshawk, Accipiter rufitorques
White-bellied Goshawk, Accipiter haplochrous
Moluccan Goshawk, Accipiter henicogrammus
Grey-headed Goshawk, Accipiter poliocephalus
New Britain Goshawk, Accipiter princeps
Black Goshawk, Accipiter melanoleucus
Henst's Goshawk, Accipiter henstii
Meyer's Goshawk, Accipiter meyerianus
Chestnut-flanked Sparrowhawk, Accipiter castanilius
Nicobar Sparrowhawk, Accipiter butleri
Levant Sparrowhawk, Accipiter brevipes
Slaty-mantled Sparrowhawk, Accipiter luteoschistaceus
Imitator Sparrowhawk, Accipiter imitator
Red-thighed Sparrowhawk, Accipiter erythropus
Little Sparrowhawk, Accipiter minullus
Japanese Sparrowhawk, Accipiter gularis
Small Sparrowhawk, Accipiter nanus
Rufous-necked Sparrowhawk, Accipiter erythrauchen
Collared Sparrowhawk, Accipiter cirrocephalus
New Britain Sparrowhawk, Accipiter brachyurus
Vinous-breasted Sparrowhawk, Accipiter rhodogaster
Madagascar Sparrowhawk, Accipiter madagascariensis
Ovampo Sparrowhawk, Accipiter ovampensis
Rufous-chested Sparrowhawk, Accipiter rufiventris
Shikra, Accipiter badius
Tiny Hawk, Accipiter superciliosus
Semicollared Hawk, Accipiter collaris
Sharp-shinned Hawk, Accipiter striatus
White-breasted Hawk, Accipiter chionogaster
Plain-breasted Hawk, Accipiter ventralis
Rufous-thighed Hawk, Accipiter erythronemius
Cooper's Hawk, Accipiter cooperii
Gundlach's Hawk, Accipiter gundlachi
Bicoloured Hawk, Accipiter bicolor
Besra, Accipiter virgatus
Gabar Goshawk, Micronisus gabar
Dark Chanting Goshawk, Melierax metabates
Eastern Chanting Goshawk, Melierax poliopterus
Pale Chanting Goshawk, Melierax canorus
Long-tailed Hawk, Urotriorchis macrourus
Red Goshawk, Erythrotriorchis radiatus
Chestnut-shouldered Goshawk, Erythrotriorchis buergersi
Doria's Goshawk, Megatriorchis doriae
- Goshawk, Accipiter gentilis
- Subfamily Buteoninae
- Black-chested Buzzard-eagle, Geranoaetus melanoleucus
Common Buzzard, Buteo buteo
Red-tailed Hawk, Buteo jamaicensis
Long-legged Buzzard, Buteo rufinus
Rough-legged Buzzard, Buteo lagopus
Ferruginous Hawk, Buteo regalis
Red-shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus
Broad-winged Hawk, Buteo platypterus
Swainson's Hawk, Buteo swainsoni
Roadside Hawk, Buteo magnirostris
Ridgway's Hawk, Buteo ridgwayi
White-rumped Hawk, Buteo leucorrhous
Short-tailed Hawk, Buteo brachyurus
White-throated Hawk, Buteo albigula
White-tailed Hawk, Buteo albicaudatus
Galápagos Hawk, Buteo galapagoensis
Red-backed Hawk, Buteo polyosoma
Puna Hawk, Buteo poecilochrous
Gray Hawk, Buteo nitidus
Zone-tailed Hawk, Buteo albonotatus
Hawaiian Hawk, Buteo solitarius
Rufous-tailed Hawk, Buteo ventralis
Mountain Buzzard, Buteo oreophilus
Madagascar Buzzard, Buteo brachypterus
Upland Buzzard, Buteo hemilasius
Red-necked Buzzard, Buteo auguralis
Augur Buzzard, Buteo augur
Archer's Buzzard, Buteo archeri
Jackal Buzzard, Buteo rufofuscus
Harris' Hawk, Parabuteo unicinctus
Common Black Hawk, Buteogallus anthracinus
Mangrove Black Hawk, Buteogallus subtilis
Great Black Hawk, Buteogallus urubitinga
Rufous Crab Hawk, Buteogallus aequinoctialis
Savanna Hawk, Buteogallus meridionalis
Black-collared Hawk, Busarellus nigricollis
Plumbeous Hawk, Leucopternis plumbea
Slate-coloured Hawk, Leucopternis schistacea
Barred Hawk, Leucopternis princeps
Black-faced Hawk, Leucopternis melanops
White-browed Hawk, Leucopternis kuhli
White-necked Hawk, Leucopternis lacernulata
Semiplumbeous Hawk, Leucopternis semiplumbea
White Hawk, Leucopternis albicollis
Grey-backed Hawk, Leucopternis occidentalis
Mantled Hawk, Leucopternis polionota
Lizard Buzzard, Kaupifalco monogrammicus
Grasshopper Buzzard, Butastur rufipennis
White-eyed Buzzard, Butastur teesa
Rufous-winged Buzzard, Butastur liventer
Grey-faced Buzzard, Butastur indicus
Crowned Solitary Eagle, Harpyhaliaetus coronatus
Solitary Eagle, Harpyhaliaetus solitarius
Crested Eagle, Morphnus guianensis
Harpy Eagle, Harpia harpyja
Philippine Eagle, Pithecophaga jefferyi
New Guinea Eagle, Harpyopsis novaeguineae
Black-and-chestnut Eagle, Oroaetus isidori
Black-and-white Hawk Eagle, Spizastur melanoleucus
Cassin's Hawk Eagle, Spizaetus africanus
Changeable Hawk Eagle, Spizaetus cirrhatus
Mountain Hawk Eagle, Spizaetus nipalensis
Blyth's Hawk Eagle, Spizaetus alboniger
Javan Hawk Eagle, Spizaetus bartelsi
Sulawesi Hawk Eagle, Spizaetus lanceolatus
Philippine Hawk Eagle, Spizaetus philippensis
Wallace's Hawk Eagle, Spizaetus nanus
Black Hawk Eagle, Spizaetus tyrannus
Ornate Hawk Eagle, Spizaetus ornatus
Long-crested Eagle, Lophaetus occipitalis - possibly belongs into Ictinaetus
Crowned Hawk Eagle, Stephanoaetus coronatus
Martial Eagle, Polemaetus bellicosus
Little Eagle, Hieraaetus morphnoides
Ayres' Hawk-eagle, Hieraaetus ayresii
Rufous-bellied Hawk-eagle, Hieraaetus kienerii
Bonelli's Eagle, Aquila fasciata - formerly Hieraaetus fasciatus
Booted Eagle, Aquila pennata - formerly Hieraaetus pennatus
African Hawk-eagle, Aquila spilogastra - formerly Hieraaetus spilogaster
Golden Eagle, Aquila chrysaetos
Eastern Imperial Eagle, Aquila heliaca
Spanish Imperial Eagle, Aquila adalberti
Steppe Eagle, Aquila nipalensis
Tawny Eagle, Aquila rapax
Greater Spotted Eagle, Aquila clanga - to be moved to Lophaetus or Ictinaetus
Lesser Spotted Eagle, Aquila pomarina - to be moved to Lophaetus or Ictinaetus
Verreaux's Eagle, Aquila verreauxii
Gurney's Eagle, Aquila gurneyi
Wahlberg's Eagle, Aquila wahlbergi
Wedge-tailed Eagle, Aquila audax
Black Eagle, Ictinaetus malayensis
White-tailed Eagle, Haliaeetus albicilla
Bald Eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Steller's Sea-eagle, Haliaeetus pelagicus
African Fish-eagle, Haliaeetus vocifer
White-bellied Sea-eagle, Haliaeetus leucogaster
Sanford's Fish-eagle, Haliaeetus sanfordi
Madagascar Fish-eagle, Haliaeetus vociferoides
Pallas' Sea-eagle, Haliaeetus leucoryphus
Lesser Fish-eagle, Ichthyophaga humilis
Grey-headed Fish-eagle, Ichthyophaga ichthyaetus
- Black-chested Buzzard-eagle, Geranoaetus melanoleucus
- Subfamily Aegypiinae: old world vultures
- Red-headed Vulture, Sarcogyps calvus
Eurasian Black Vulture or Monk Vulture, Aegypius monachus
Lappet-faced Vulture, Torgos tracheliotus
White-headed Vulture, Trigonoceps occipitalis
Common Griffon Vulture, Gyps fulvus
Rüppell's Vulture or Rüppell's Griffon, Gyps rueppellii
Himalayan Griffon Vulture, Gyps himalayensis
Cape Griffon, Gyps coprotheres
White-backed Vulture, Gyps africanus
Indian White-rumped Vulture, Gyps bengalensis
Long-billed Vulture, Gyps indicus
Egyptian Vulture, Neophron percnopterus
Hooded Vulture, Necrosyrtes monachus
Palm Nut Vulture, Gypohierax angolensis
Lammergeier or Bearded Vulture, Gypaetus barbatus
- Red-headed Vulture, Sarcogyps calvus
- Subfamily Circinae: harriers
- Montagu's Harrier, Circus pygargus
Northern Harrier, Circus cyaneus
Western Marsh Harrier, Circus aeruginosus
Eastern Marsh Harrier, Circus spilonotus
African Marsh Harrier, Circus ranivorus
Swamp Harrier, Circus approximans
Madagascar Marsh Harrier, Circus maillardi
Long-winged Harrier, Circus buffoni
Spotted Harrier, Circus assimilis
Black Harrier, Circus maurus
Cinereous Harrier, Circus cinereus
Pallid Harrier, Circus macrourus
Pied Harrier, Circus melanoleucos
Madagascar Harrier-hawk, Polyboroides radiatus
African Harrier-hawk, Polyboroides typus
Crane Hawk, Geranospiza caerulescens
- Montagu's Harrier, Circus pygargus
- Subfamily Circaetinae: snake-eagles
- Bateleur, Terathopius ecaudatus
Short-toed Eagle, Circaetus gallicus
Black-chested Snake-eagle, Circaetus pectoralis
Brown Snake-eagle, Circaetus cinereus
Fasciated Snake-eagle, Circaetus fasciolatus
Banded Snake-eagle, Circaetus cinerascens
Crested Serpent-eagle, Spilornis cheela
Nicobar Serpent-eagle, Spilornis minimus
Mountain Serpent-eagle,Spilornis kinabaluensis
Sulawesi Serpent-eagle, Spilornis rufipectus
Philippine Serpent-eagle, Spilornis holospilus
Andaman Serpent-eagle, Spilornis elgini
Madagascar Serpent-eagle, Eutriorchis astur
- Bateleur, Terathopius ecaudatus
References
- Amaral, Karina Felipe & Jorge, Wilham (2003): The chromosomes of the Order Falconiformes: a review. Ararajuba 11(1): 65-73. PDF fulltext
Links
- Accipitridae videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- Accipitridae sounds in the xeno-canto collection
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Extinct birds
Dodo, based on Roelant Savery's 1626 painting of a stuffed specimen– note the two same-side feet.
Since 1500, over 100 species of birds have become extinct, and this rate of extinction seems to be increasing. The situation is exemplified by Hawai‘i, where 30% of all known recently extinct species originally lived. Other areas, such as Guam, have also been hard hit; Guam has lost over 60% of its native species in the last 30 years, many of them to the introduced Brown Tree Snake.
There are today about 10,000 species of birds, with roughly 1200 considered to be under threat of extinction. Except for a dozen or so species the threat is man-made.
Island species in general, and flightless island species in particular are most at risk. The disproportionate number of rails in the list reflects the tendency of that family to lose the ability to fly when geographically isolated. Even more rails became extinct before they could be described by scientists; these taxa are listed in Later Quaternary Prehistoric Birds.
The extinction dates are usually approximations of the actual date of extinction. In some cases, more exact dates are given as it is sometimes possible to pinpoint the date of extinction to a specific year or even day (the San Benedicto Rock Wren is possibly the most extreme example - its extinction could be timed with an accuracy of maybe half an hour). Extinction dates in the literature are usually the dates of the last verified record (credible observation or specimen taken); in many Pacific birds which became extinct shortly after European contact, however, this leaves an uncertainty period of over a century because the islands on which they used to occur were only rarely visited by scientists.
Links and references
- The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
- Extinct Birds Stock Photography
- Extinct Birds from John James Audubon's Birds of America
- Utrotade faaglar (in Swedish)
- New Zealand Extinct Birds List
- Extinct bird forum
- The Extinction Website
List adapted, expanded and updated from that in Extinct Birds, Fuller, ISBN 0-19-850837-9 (Extinct Birds is an absorbing study of the world's recently extinct bird species, the first complete survey since Walter Rothschild's classic work of 1907)
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Subfamilies of birds
Subfamilies of birds
Bucorvinae
| Ground-hornbill | ||||||||||||||
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 Southern Ground Hornbill
(Bucorvus leadbeateri) |
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| Bucorvus leadbeateri Bucorvus abyssinicus |
The Ground-hornbills (Bucorvinae) are a subfamily of the hornbill family Bucerotidae, with a single genus Bucorvus and two extant species:
- Abyssinian Ground-hornbill Bucorvus abyssinicus (also known as Northern Ground-hornbill)
Southern Ground-hornbill Bucorvus leadbeateri
The subfamily is endemic to sub-Saharan Africa - Abyssinian Ground-hornbill being found in a belt from Senegal east to Ethiopia, with Southern Ground-hornbill occurring in the south and east of the continent.
A prehistoric ground-hornbill, Bucorvus brailloni, has been described from fossil bones.
Ground hornbills are large, with adults around a metre tall. Both species are ground-dwelling, unlike other hornbills. Some ornithologists raise the Ground-hornbills to family level on account of this and other distinctive features.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Suborders of birds
Suborders of birds
Corvida
| Corvida | ||||||||||||
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 Superb Lyrebird
as painted by John Gould of a British Museum specimen ( in real life, the Lyrebird's tail is different ) |
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| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||
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| Many, see text |
Corvida is under the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, one of two parvorders contained within the suborder Passeri. More recent research suggests that it is not a distinct clade but an evolutionary grade instead. As such the usage of this parvorder is likely to be subject to further revision.
Families
- Menuridae: lyrebirds
Atrichornithidae: scrub birds
Climacteridae: Australian treecreepers
Maluridae: fairy-wrens, emu-wrens and grasswrens
Meliphagidae: honeyeaters and chats
Pardalotidae: pardalotes, scrubwrens, thornbills, and gerygones
Petroicidae: Australian robins
Orthonychidae: logrunners
Pomatostomidae: Australasian babblers
Cinclosomatidae: whipbirds and allies
Neosittidae: sittellas
Pachycephalidae: whistlers, shrike-thrushes, pitohuis and allies
Dicruridae: monarch flycatchers and allies
Campephagidae: cuckoo shrikes and trillers
Oriolidae: orioles and Figbird
Icteridae: American blackbirds and orioles, grackles and cowbirds
Artamidae: wood swallows, butcherbirds, currawongs and Australian Magpie
Paradisaeidae: birds of paradise
Corvidae: crows, ravens, and jays
Corcoracidae: White-winged Chough and Apostlebird
Irenidae: fairy-bluebirds
Laniidae: shrikes
Vireonidae: vireos
Ptilonorhynchidae: bowerbirds
Turnagridae: Piopio
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Passerida
| Passerida | ||||||||||||
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The Golden-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia atricapilla) belongs to the bunting family, not the true sparrows.
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Families |
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| Many, see text |
Passerida is under the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, one of two parvorders contained within the suborder Passeri. While more recent research suggests that its sister parvorder, Corvida is not a singular grouping, the existence of Passerida as a distince clade is well accepted.
Families
Alaudidae: larks
Chloropseidae: leafbirds
Aegithinidae: ioras
Picathartidae: rockfowl
Bombycillidae: waxwings and allies
Ptilogonatidae: silky flycatchers
Cinclidae: dippers
Motacillidae: wagtails and pipits
Prunellidae: accentor
Melanocharitidae: berrypeckers and longbills
Paramythiidae: tit berrypecker and crested berrypeckers
Passeridae: true sparrows
Estrildidae: estrildid finches (waxbills, munias, etc)
Parulidae: New World warblers
Thraupidae: tanagers and allies
Peucedramidae: Olive Warbler
Fringillidae: true finches
Drepanididae: Hawaiian honeycreepers
Emberizidae: buntings and American sparrows
Nectariniidae: sunbirds
Dicaeidae: flowerpeckers
Mimidae: mockingbirds and thrashers
Sittidae: nuthatches
Certhiidae: treecreepers
Troglodytidae: wrens
Polioptilidae: gnatcatchers
Paridae: tits, chickadees and titmice
Aegithalidae: long-tailed tits
Hirundinidae: swallows and martins
Regulidae: kinglets
Pycnonotidae: bulbuls
Sylviidae: Old World warblers
Hypocoliidae: Hypocolius
Cisticolidae: cisticolas and allies
Zosteropidae: White-eyes
Timaliidae: babblers
Muscicapidae: Old World flycatchers and chats
Turdidae: thrushes and allies
Sturnidae: starlings
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Tyranni
| Attachment | Size |
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Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Suborder: Tyranni
Families: Tyrannidae, Pittidae, Eurylaimidae, Dendrocolaptidae, Furnariidae, Thamnophilidae, Formicariidae, Conopophagidae, Rhinocryptidae, Cotingidae, Pipridae, Philepittidae, Acanthisittidae
The suborder Tyranni (the suboscines) of passerine birds include about 1,000 fairly primitive species, the large majority of which are South American.
These have a less developed vocal structure than the songbirds in the suborder Passeri, the oscine passerines. Mitochondrial DNA studies have confirmed that the Tyranni and Passeri suborders are genetically distinct.
Families
-
Tyrannidae: tyrant flycatchers
Pittidae: pittas
Eurylaimidae: broadbills
Dendrocolaptidae: woodcreepers
Furnariidae: ovenbirds
Thamnophilidae: antbirds
Formicariidae: antpittas and antthrushes
Conopophagidae: gnateaters
Rhinocryptidae: tapaculos
Cotingidae: cotingas
Pipridae: manakins
Philepittidae: asities
Acanthisittidae: New Zealand "wrens"
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia
Tribes of birds
Tribes of birds
Nestorini
| Nestor | ||||||||||||||
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 Norfolk Island Kākā
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| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||
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| N. notabilis N. meridionalis N. productus |
The genus Nestor, the only genus of the Nestorinae subfamily, contains two parrot species from New Zealand and one species from Norfolk Island, Australia. The Norfolk Island Kākā is extinct.
- Kea, Nestor notabilis
- Kākā, Nestor meridionalis
- North Island Kākā, Nestor meridionalis septentrionalis
- South Island Kākā, Nestor meridionalis meridionalis
- Norfolk Island Kākā, Nestor productus (extinct)
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Bird diseases
Bird diseases
Angel Wing
Angel Wing or Slipped Wing is a disease that affects waterfowl, primarily geese and ducks. There are two basic theories concerning the cause of angel wing, both of which may be correct and both suppose the root cause to be overfeeding waterfowl. The first involves too much protein and the second involves too many sugars. Angel wing is not generally observed in waterfowl not residing near humans, and the disease can often be observed in areas where geese or ducks are excessively fed bread. To prevent angel wing, waterfowl should not be fed bread, popcorn or other human foodstuffs.
The disease manifests as an incurable anatomical condition which is acquired in young birds. Due to a high-calorie diet, especially one high in proteins and/or low in vitamin D, vitamin E and manganese, one or both carpus (wrist) joints are retarded in their development relative to the rest of the wing; for reasons unknown, if only one wing is affected it is usually the left one. The result is a wrist which is twisted outwards and unable to perform its usual function.
Angel wing symptoms include stripped remiges (flight feathers) in the wrist area, or remiges protruding from wings at odd angles. In extreme cases, the stripped feathers may resemble sickly blue straw protruding from wings. In adult birds the disease is incurable and usually leads to an early death as affected birds are rendered effectively or totally flightless. In young birds wrapping the wing and binding it against the bird's flank, together with feeding the bird a more natural diet, can reverse the damage.
Links
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Birds by geography
Birds by geography
Endemism in birds
This article is a parent page for a series of articles providing information about endemism among birds in the World's various zoogeographic zones.
The term endemic, in the context of bird endemism, refers to any species found only in a specific area. There is no upper size limit for the geographical area. It would not be incorrect to refer to all bird species as endemic to Earth; in practice, however, the largest areas for which the term is in common use are countries (e.g. New Zealand endemics) or zoogeographical regions and subregions (West Indies endemics).
Birdlife International has defined the term restricted-range endemic as any species whose historical range is less than 50,000km².
Patterns of endemism
Endemism is particularly notable when not just a particular species is confined to given areas, but a whole higher-level taxon (e.g. genus, family or even order).
Almost all orders are represented on at least two continents. The orders with the most-restricted range are the mousebirds (Coliiformes), found only in sub-Saharan Africa and the tinamous, found only in South and Central America.
At the level of family, endemism is exhibited widely. Examples include:
- The Kagu, a monotypic family found only on New Caledonia in the south Pacific Ocean
The Palmchat, another monotypic family, found only on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean
The kiwis, a family of five species found only in New Zealand
The todies, a family of five species found only on the Greater Antilles
The Hawaiian honeycreepers, a family found only on the Hawaian islands - see Endemism in the Hawaiian Islands and Endemic birds of Hawaii
Australia has many endemic families - see Endemic birds of Australia
Madagascar has a number of endemic families (plus others found only on Madagascar and nearby island groups) - see Endemic birds of Madagascar and western Indian Ocean islands
Endemic Bird Areas
Birdlife International has defined the concept of an Endemic Bird Area (EBA). This is a region of the world which contains two or more restricted range species.
To support this, they have also introduced the Secondary Area concept, for areas which contain one or more restricted-range species.
Publications in Bird Endemism
Birdlife International has produced two publications on endemism in birds:
- Putting biodiversity on the map: priority areas for global conservation C. J. Bibby, N. J. Collar, M. J. Crosby, M.F. Heath, Ch. Imboden, T. H. Johnson, A. J. Long, A. J. Stattersfield and S. J. Thirgood (1992) ISBN 0-946888-24-8
- Endemic Bird Areas of the World: Priorities for Biodiversity Conservation Alison J. Stattersfield, Michael J. Crosby, Adrian J. Long and David C. Wege (1998) ISBN 0-946888-33-7
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Video: Endemic Bolivian Birds
Birds of prey
An Osprey
Birds of prey
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Orders
Accipitriformes: Pandionidae, Accipitridae, Sagittariidae
Falconiformes: Falconidae
A bird of prey or raptor is a bird that hunts for food primarily using its talons. They display a characteristic curved tip to their beak and have superb vision.
Diurnal birds of prey belong to the orders Accipitriformes and Falconiformes in several groups including:
- Accipitriformes
- Pandionidae: Osprey
- Accipitridae: hawks, eagles, buzzards, kites and Old World vultures
- Sagittariidae: Secretary Bird
- Falconiformes
- Falconidae: falcons
For an alternative taxonomy, see also Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy.
Nocturnal birds of prey—the owls—are separate from the diurnal families, and are in the order Strigiformes. The term "raptor" includes owls.
Although other bird groups may fill similar ecological roles and sometimes appear closely related at first sight, this is largely because of convergent evolution.
Bald Eagle
Raptor names
Eagles are large birds with long, broad wings and massive legs. Booted eagles have feathered legs and build large stick nests.
- Kites have long wings and weak legs. They spend much of their time soaring. They will take live prey but mostly feed on carrion.
- Falcons are small to medium sized birds of prey with long pointed wings. Unlike most other raptors, they belong to the Falconidae rather than the Accipitridae. Many are particularly swift flyers. Instead of building their own nests, falcons appropriate old nests of other birds but sometimes they lay their eggs on cliff ledges or in tree hollows.
- Owls are variable-sized nocturnal hunting birds. They fly soundlessly and have very acute senses of hearing and sight.
- Harriers are large, slender hawk-like birds with long tails and long thin legs. Most hunt by gliding and circling low over grasslands and marshes on their long broad wings.
- Hawks are medium-sized birds of prey that belong to the genus Accipiter. They are mainly woodland birds that hunt by sudden dashes from a concealed perch. They usually have long tails.
- Buzzards are raptors with a robust body and broad wings, or, alternatively, any bird of the genus Buteo (also commonly known as Hawks in North America).
Links
- Birds of prey videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- Helydon Show Dogs and Birds of Prey
- Bird of Prey Pictures
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Video: Birds of Prey-Land Between the Lakes
Birdwatching
Birdwatching or birding is the observation and study of birds. The term birding is of American origin; birdwatching is the more commonly used word in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Most birders or birdwatchers pursue this activity for recreational or social reasons, unlike ornithologists, who are engaged in the formal scientific study of birds. Ornithologists can, however, study birds using the same methods as birders.
Birding organizations
Prominent national organizations concerned with birding include the B.T.O. and RSPB in the United Kingdom (over 1 million members), and the National Audubon Society and American Birding Association in the United States. Many statewide or local Audubon organizations are also quite active in the U.S. BirdLife International is an important global alliance of bird conservation organisations.
Socio-psychology of birdwatching
It has been suggested that birdwatching is a form of expression of the innate need for human connection to the environment. Ethologist Nikolaas Tinbergen considered birdwatching an expression of the male hunting instinct. Indeed, most birders (especially those below middle-age) are male; however, one of the top world listers was a woman, Phoebe Snetsinger. The idea of birding as a completely male-oriented activity is not accurate, though twitching in the UK is heavily male dominated.
Another intriguing connection has been that of the interest in birds by spies. There have been several cases of spies who were serious ornithologists such as Sidney Dillon Ripley, St. John Philby and Richard Meinertzhagen.
Birding vs. birdwatching
In the U.S., birders differentiate themselves from birdwatchers. At the most basic level, the (possibly elitist) distinction is one of dedication or intensity. Generally, self-described birders are more versed in minutiae such as molt, distribution, migration timing, and habitat usage. Whereas dedicated birders may travel widely, bird watchers have a more limited scope, perhaps to their own yards.
Famous birders/ornithologists
Famous for birding/ornithology
- Kenn Kaufman
Ted Parker
Roger Tory Peterson
Pete Dunne
Jon Dunn
Clay Sutton
Phoebe Snetsinger
David Allen Sibley
John James Audubon
Salim Ali
Induchoodan
Susanth
Otherwise famous
- Members of the band British Sea Power
Alan Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke
Sir Anthony Galsworthy, former UK Ambassador to China
Kenneth Clarke MP
Ian Fleming, who named his most famous character after the ornithologist James Bond
Billy Fury
Trevor Harrison
Princess Takamado of Japan
Eric Morecambe
Bill Oddie
Harold Wilson, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Jimmy Carter
Charley Harper
Iolo Williams
Sir Kenneth Dover, famous British classicist
Birders in fiction
- Stephen Maturin in the Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey–Maturin series
Links
- eBird - A database for birding in North America & Central America
- Cusco Peru - The National Reserve Allpahuayo - Mishana: A Paradise in Peril
- GeoBirds - Online bird identification and tracking
- Birdwatching-Bliss.com - Birding info for happy birders.
- American Birding Association - The primary association for North American birders
- National Audubon Society
- Birding in India and South Asia
- Birdingonthe.net
- BirdLife International - Alliance of conservation organizations
- Fatbirder
- Birding Optics Blog
- Travellingbirder.com
- Worldtwitch - Rare bird news around the world
- The Nature Conservancy - Protecting habitat for birds and birders around the world
- The Cornell's University Lab of Ornithology
- Peru: The Best Route for Birdwatchers
- Bird Banding Laboratory - The North American Bird Banding Program
References
- Dunne, Pete (2003). Pete Dunne on Bird Watching. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0-395-90686-5.
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Video: BIRD WATCHING IN CANADA
Famous birds
Alex the Parrot
This is a list of historical birds.
Famous birds
- The African grey parrot Alex, who, in studies by Dr. Irene Pepperberg, has demonstrated an ability to count; differentiate categories involving objects, colors, shapes, and materials; and understand the concept of same and different
- The Capitoline geese, who warned of an imminent attack on Rome's hill of the Capitol by the Gauls in 390 B.C.
- Cher Ami, British-bred homing pigeon (autumn of 1918) – delivers twelve messages for the U.S. Army during World War I, among other things helping to save the Lost Battalion.
- Incas, the last Carolina parakeet, who died in 1918 at the Cincinnati Zoo, reportedly of grief after his mate Lady Jane died a few months before him, in 1917
- Martha, the last of the American passenger pigeons, who died at the Cincinnati Zoo in 1914. Species Requiem Day, September 1, marks Martha's passing.
- Mike, the Wyandotte rooster of Fruita, Colorado who lived for 18 months after his head was cut off. The botched decapitation in 1945 missed his brain stem and jugular vein. His owners fed him thereafter with an eyedropper, and took him on tours of the West Coast. He died in 1947.
- The ducks of the Peabody Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee, who, in a tradition dating back to the 1930s, are escorted from their penthouse palace down the elevator every day of the year at 11:00 a.m., cross a red carpet to a Sousa march, and spend the day in the lobby fountain, returning home with equal ceremony at 5:00 p.m.
- The ravens of the Tower of London, whose continuing presence there is said to maintain the general safety of the kingdom. qand
Birds owned by famous people
- Mrs. Ballard's parrots, whose owner, Alba Ballard, dressed them up in costumes and had them photographed in miniature scenes she made. Sherlock Holmes, General Patton, and Sonny and Cher were just a few of the people portrayed. They appeared on several American late-night television shows in the 1970s and 1980s.
- The parrot who sailed with Thor Heyerdahl on the raft Kon-Tiki
- Ulysses, Gerald Durrell's pet owl when he was growing up in Corfu. Ulysses appeared frequently in Durrell's books about living on the Greek island.
Famous extinct birds
- Carolina parakeet
- Dodo
- Great Auk
- Moa
- Passenger pigeon
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Video: The Tower of London's ravens playing in the snow
Feathers
Feathers are one of the epidermal growths that form the distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on birds. They are the outstanding characteristic that distinguishes the Class Aves from all other living groups. Other Theropoda also had feathers.
Evolution
Feathers most likely originated as a filamentous insulation structure, or possibly as markers for mating, with flight emerging only as a secondary purpose. It has been thought that feathers evolved from the scales of reptiles, but recent research suggests that while there is a definite relationship between these structures, it remains uncertain the exact process. (see Quarterly Review of Biology 77:3 (September 2002): 261-95). Experiments show that the same protein (when missing before birth) that causes bird feet to stay webbed, causes bird scutes and scales to become feathers. [1]
Feathered dinosaurs
Although birds use feathers primarily for flight, several dinosaurs have been discovered with feathers on their limbs that would not have functioned for flight. One theory is that feathers originally developed on dinosaurs as a means of insulation; those small dinosaurs that then grew longer feathers may have found them helpful in gliding, which would have begun the evolutionary process that resulted in some proto-birds like Archaeopteryx and Microraptor zhaoianus. Other dinosaurs discovered with feathers include Pedopenna daohugouensis, Sinosauropteryx, and Dilong paradoxus. Currently the question is whether birds are deinonychosaurians or dromaeosaurids, not whether birds are dinosaurs. It has been suggested that Pedopenna is older than Archaeopteryx, however, their age remains doubted by some experts. Dilong is a tyrannosauroid which predates Tyrannosaurus rex by 60 to 70 million years.
Human uses
Feathers have a number of utilitarian and cultural and religious uses.
Utilitarian Functions
Feathers are both soft and excellent at trapping heat; thus, they are sometimes used in high-class bedding, especially pillows, blankets, and mattresses. They are also used as filling for winter clothing, such as quilted coats and sleeping bags; goose down especially has great loft, the ability to expand from a compressed, stored state to trap large amounts of compartmentalized, insulating air. Bird feathers have long been used for fletching arrows and in the past were used for ink pens. They have also been put to use as sexual aids; see feather-dancing. Another human use is tickling for their soft feeling. Colorful feathers such as those belonging to pheasants have been used in the past to decorate hats and fishing lures. During the late 19th and early 20th Centuries a booming international trade in plumes, to satisfy market demand in North America and Europe for extravagant head-dresses as adornment for fashionable women, caused so much destruction (for example, to egret breeding colonies) that a major campaign against it by conservationists caused the fashion to change and the market to collapse.
Cultural and Religious Uses
Eagle feathers have great cultural and spiritual value to American Indians as religious objects. The religious use of eagle and hawk feathers are governed by the eagle feather law (50 CFR 22), a federal law limiting the possession of eagle feathers to certified and enrolled members of federally-recognized Native American tribes.
Various birds and their plumages serve as cultural icons throughout the world, from the hawk in ancient Egypt to the bald eagle and the turkey in the United States. In Greek mythology, Icarus tried to escape his prison by attaching feathered wings to his shoulders with wax, which melted near the Sun.
References
- McGraw, K. J. 2005. Polly want a pigment? Cracking the chemical code to red coloration in parrots. Australian Birdkeeper Magazine 18:608-611.
- DeMeo, Antonia M. Access to Eagles and Eagle Parts: Environmental Protection v. Native American Free Exercise of Religion (1995) [2]
- Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (e-CFR), Title 50: Wildlife and Fisheries PART 22—EAGLE PERMITS [3]
- Stokes, DaShanne. (In Press) Legalized Segregation and the Denial of Religious Freedom
- U.S. v. Thirty Eight Golden Eagles (1986) [4]
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Flightless birds
Penguins are a well-known example of flightless birds
Flightless birds evolved from flying ancestors; there are about forty species in existence today. The best-known flightless birds are the ostrich, emu, cassowary, rhea and penguins. Most flightless birds evolved in the absence of predators, on islands, and lost the power of flight because they had few enemies. A notable exception, the ostrich, which lives in the African savannas, has claws on its feet to use as a weapon against predators.
Two key differences between flying and flightless birds are the smaller wing bones of flightless birds and the absent (or greatly reduced) keel on their breastbone. The keel anchors muscles needed for wing movement[1]. Flightless birds also have more feathers than flying birds.
New Zealand has more species of flightless birds (including the kiwis, several species of penguins, and the takahe) than any other country. One reason is that until the arrival of humans roughly 1000 years ago, there were no land mammals in New Zealand other than three species of bat; the main predators of flightless birds were larger birds[2].
Some flightless variety of island birds are closely related to flying varities, impling flight is a signifcant biological cost.
With the introduction of mammals (among them humans) to the habitats of flightless birds, many have become extinct, including the Great Auk, the Dodo, and the Moas.
The smallest flightless bird is the Inaccessible Island Rail (length 12.5 cm, weight 34.7 g). The largest (both heaviest and tallest) flightless bird, which is also the largest living bird, is the Ostrich (2.7 m, 156 kg)[3].
Flightless birds are the easiest to take care of in captivity because they do not have to be caged. Ostriches were once farmed for their decorative feathers. Today they are raised for meat and for their skins, which are used to make leather.
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Heraldic birds
Heraldic birds
American Robin
American Robin
Conservation status Least concern
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Turdidae
Genus: Turdus
Species: T. migratorius
Binomial name
Turdus migratorius (Linnaeus, 1766)
The American Robin (Turdus migratorius) is a migratory songbird of the thrush family.
The American Robin is 25–28 cm (10–11 in) long. It has gray upperparts and head, and orange underparts, usually brighter in the male; the similarity between this coloring and that of the smaller and unrelated European Robin (Erithacus rubecula) led to its common name. There are seven races, but only T. m. confinus in the southwest is particularly distinctive, with pale gray-brown underparts.
During the breeding season, the adult males grow distinctive black feathers on their heads; after the breeding season they lose this eye-catching plumage.
This bird breeds throughout Canada and the United States. While Robins occasionally overwinter in the northern part of the United States and southern Canada, most winter in the southern parts of the breeding range and beyond, from the southern U.S.A. to Guatemala. Most depart south by the end of August and begin to return north in February and March. (Exact dates vary with latitude and climate, of course.)
This species is a very rare vagrant to western Europe. In autumn 2003, migration was displaced eastwards leading to massive movements through the eastern USA. Presumably this is what led to no fewer than three American Robins being found in Great Britain, with two attempting to overwinter in 2003–4, one eventually being taken by a Sparrowhawk.
As with many migratory birds, the males return to the summer breeding grounds before the females and compete with each other for nesting sites. The females then select mates based on the males' songs, plumage, and territory quality. The females build the nest and lay three or four blue eggs in the lined cup. Incubation, almost entirely by the female is 11-14 days to hatching, with another 15–16 days to fledging. Two broods in a season are common. The adult male looks after the fledged chicks while female incubates her second clutch. Some people enjoy the Robin's presence, and want to protect the chicks; they do this by building nesting shelves for the Robin's use. Bird banders found that only 25% of young robins survive the first year.
The American Robin's habitat is all sorts of woodland and more open farmland and urban areas. Food is the typical thrush mixture consisting largely of insects and earthworms. Robins are also fond of some berries, including those of the black cherry tree; they will fly in especially to feed on them during the period when they ripen.
Robins are frequently seen running across lawns, picking up earthworms by sight. In fact, the running and stopping behavior is a distinguishing characteristic. When stopping, they are believed to be listening for the movement of prey.
Without showing symptoms, the American Robin is sometimes a carrier of the West Nile virus in the Western hemisphere.
This is the state bird of Connecticut, Michigan, and Wisconsin.
Song and calls
The American Robin, like many thrushes, has a beautiful and complex song, and in contrast to other thrushes, its song is almost continuous. Its song is commonly described as a cheerily carol song. The song is made of discrete units, often repeated, and spliced together into a string with brief pauses in between. The song varies regionally, and its style varies by time of day. American Robins will often be among the last songbirds singing as the evening sets in.
In addition to its song, the American Robin has a number of calls used for communicating specific information. When a ground predator approaches but does not directly threaten, Robins will make a PEEK!! tut tut tut tut... warning call. When a nest or Robin is being directly threatened, another call is used, which sounds like a horse's whinny. Even during nesting season, when Robins exhibit mostly competitive and territorial behaviour, they may still band together to drive away a predator. Robins also make a very high-pitched sound when a hawk or other bird of prey is seen; other robins will repeat the sound, seek cover, and stop moving. During the colder parts of the year, the American Robin gathers in flocks around food sources, and there is yet another call that is heard in such flocks.
Trivia
- Crayola has a crayon color, robin's egg blue named after the color of the eggs.
- The American Robin was depicted on the 1986 series Canadian $2 note.
- The Disney film Mary Poppins, set in London, incorrectly portrayed American Robins singing by an open window, despite the fact that the European Robin is the only bird named as a robin to be commonly found in the United Kingdom. Additionally, both robins building the nest in that film are males.
References
- BirdLife International (2004). Turdus migratorius. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
- Thrushes by Clement and Hathaway, ISBN 0-7136-3940-7
- Design for human-built nesting shelves
Links
- Albinism in Robins
- American Robin Facts - natural history, maps, and photos
- American Robin Nesting Behavior - photos and observations
- American Robin Photos - male, female, nestling, and fledgling photos
- American Robin Vocalizations
- American Robin videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- American_Robin.wav - .wav file of the bird's song.
- Burroughs Observes a Gourmet Robin. The naturalist John Burroughs marvels over a robin with a curious menu item.
- Getting Sturdy with the American Robin - Informative but non-scholarly essay on the American Robin.
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Oology
Oology, or oölogy is the branch of zoology that deals with the study of eggs, especially birds' eggs. It can also be applied to the hobby of collecting wild birds' eggs (which is now illegal in many jurisdictions). Oology includes the study of the breeding habits of birds, and the study of their nests. (The study of birds' nests is sometimes called caliology).
Birds' eggs are conveniently classified as marked or unmarked, according to the ground color. Birds which lay their eggs in holes in trees or in the ground almost always have white, unspotted eggs. Birds which build in trees generally have blue or greenish eggs, either spotted or unspotted, while birds that build in bushes, near the ground, are likely to lay speckled eggs.
Publications
- Thomas Mayo Brewer, (1814-80), an American ornithologist, wrote most of the biographical sketches in the History of North American Birds, by Baird, Brewer, and Ridgway (1874-84). He has been called "the father of American oölogy". He wrote North American Oölogy which was partially-published in 1857.
- T. G. Gentry, Nests and Eggs of the Birds of the United States, (Philadelphia, 1885).
- Oliver Davie, Nests and Eggs of North American Birds, (fifth edition, Columbus, 1898).
- William Chapman Hewitson, Illustrations of Eggs of British Birds, (third edition, London, 1856).
- Alfred Newton, Dictionary of Birds, (New York, 1893-96).
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Poultry
Poultry is the class of domesticated fowl (birds) used for food or for their eggs. These most typically are members of the orders Galliformes (such as chickens and turkeys), and Anseriformes (waterfowl such as ducks and geese).
The word poultry is often used to refer to the meat of these birds. In a more general sense, it may refer to the meat of other birds, such as pigeons or doves, or game birds like pheasants.
Types of poultry
| Bird | Wild ancestor | Domestication | Uses |
|---|---|---|---|
| chicken | red junglefowl | China, c. 3000 BC | meat, eggs |
| duck | various | various | meat, feathers, eggs |
| goose | various | various | meat, feathers, eggs
|
| ostrich | wild ostrich | Africa | meat, feathers, labour |
| turkey | Wild Turkey | Mexico | meat |
Cuts of poultry
The meatiest parts of a bird are the flight muscles on its chest, called breast meat, and the walking muscles on the first and second segments of its legs, called the thigh and drumstick respectively.
In chickens and turkeys, the flight muscles, not adapted for sustained use, have less oxygen-carrying myoglobin than the walking muscles, and are thus lighter in color. This is the distinction between "white meat" and "dark meat". Waterfowl are adapted for sustained flight, and their breast meat is dark.
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Seabirds
The Sooty Tern is highly aerial and marine and will spend months flying at sea, returning to land only for breeding.
Seabirds are birds that have adapted to life in the marine environment. Whilst seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same environmental problems and feeding niches have resulted in similar adaptations. The first seabirds evolved in the Cretaceous, and modern seabird families emerged in the Paleogene.
Seabirds live longer, breed later and have fewer young than other birds do, but they invest a great deal of time in those young that they do have. Most species nest in colonies, which can vary in size from a few dozen birds to many millions. They are famous for undertaking long annual migrations, crossing the equator or circumnavigating the Earth in some cases. They feed both at the ocean's surface and below it, and even feed on each other. Seabirds can be highly pelagic, coastal, or in some cases spend a part of the year away from the sea entirely.
Seabirds and humans have a long history together: they have provided food to hunters, guided fishermen to fishing stocks and led sailors to land. Many species are currently threatened by human activities, and conservation efforts are underway.
Classification of species as seabirds
There exists no one definition of which groups, families and species are seabirds, and most definitions are in some way arbitrary. In the words of two seabird scientists, "The one common characteristic that all seabirds share is that they feed in saltwater; but, as seems to be true with any statement in biology, some do not."[1] However, by convention all of the penguins and procellariiformes, all of the Pelecaniformes except the darters, and some of the Charadriiformes (the skuas, gulls, terns, auks and skimmers) are classified as seabirds. The phalaropes are usually included as well, since although they are waders ("shorebirds" in North America), two of the three species are oceanic for nine months of the year, crossing the equator to feed pelagically.
Loons and grebes, which nest on lakes but winter at sea, are usually categorised as water birds, not seabirds. Although there are a number of sea ducks in the family Anatidae which are truly marine in the winter, by convention they are usually excluded from the seabird grouping. Many waders (or shorebirds) and herons are also highly marine, living on the sea's edge, but are also not treated as seabirds.
References
- ^ a Schreiber, Elizabeth A. & Burger, Joanne.(2001.) Biology of Marine Birds, Boca Raton:CRC Press, ISBN 0-8493-9882-7
Links
- Project Titi; a collaboration between the Māori of Stewart Island and the University of Otago to manage Sooty Shearwater harvests
- BirdLife International; Save the Albatross Campaign
- Marine Ornithology, the Journal of Seabird Science and Conservation
- www.seabird.org, official site of the Scottish Seabird Centre
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Shorebirds
| Waders | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Semipalmated Sandpiper (Calidris pusilla)
|
||||||||||
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||
|
||||||||||
| Scolopacidae Rostratulidae Jacanidae Thinocoridae Pedionomidae Burhinidae Chionididae Pluvianellidae Ibidorhynchidae Recurvirostridae Haematopodidae Charadriidae |
Waders, called Shorebirds in North America (where "wader" is used to refer to long-legged wading birds such as storks and herons), are members of the order Charadriiformes, excluding the more marine web-footed seabird groups. The latter are the skuas (Stercoraracidae), gulls (Laridae), terns (Sternidae), skimmers (Rhynchopidae), and auks (Alcidae). Also, the pratincoles (Glareolidae) and the Crab Plover (Dromadidae), which look more similar to waders, are closely related to the seabirds.
This leaves about 210 species, most of which are associated with wetland or coastal environments. Many species of Arctic and temperate regions are strongly migratory, but tropical birds are often resident, or move only in response to rainfall patterns. Some of the Arctic species, such Little Stint are amongst the longest distance migrants, wintering in the southern hemisphere.
The majority of species eat small invertebrates picked out of mud or exposed soil. Different lengths of bills enable different species to feed in the same habitat, particularly on the coast, without direct competition for food. Many waders have sensitive nerve endings at the end of their bills which enable them to detect prey items hidden in mud or soft soil. Some larger species, particularly those adapted to drier habitats will take larger prey including insects and small reptiles.
Many of the smaller species found in coastal habitats, particularly but not exclusively the calidrids, are often named as "Sandpipers", but this term does not have a strict meaning, since the Upland Sandpiper is a grassland species.
In the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, waders and many other groups are subsumed into a greatly enlarged Ciconiiformes order. However, the classification of the Charadriiformes is one of the weakest points of the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, as DNA-DNA hybridization has turned out to be incapable of properly resolving the interrelationships of the group. Formerly, the waders formed the suborder Charadrii, but this has turned out to be a "wastebin" taxon, uniting no less than four charadriiform lineages in a paraphyletic assemblage. Following recent studies (Ericson et al., 2003; Paton et al., 2003; Thomas et al., 2004a, b; van Tuinen et al., 2004; Paton & Baker, 2006), the waders may be more accurately subdivided as follows:
- Suborder Scolopaci
- Family Scolopacidae: snipe, sandpipers, phalaropes, and allies
- Suborder Thinocori
- Family Rostratulidae: painted snipe
Family Jacanidae: jacanas
Family Thinocoridae: seedsnipe
Family Pedionomidae: Plains Wanderer
- Family Rostratulidae: painted snipe
- Suborder Chionidi
- Family Burhinidae: thick-knees
Family Chionididae: sheathbills
Family Pluvianellidae: Magellanic Plover
- Family Burhinidae: thick-knees
- Suborder Charadrii
- Family Ibidorhynchidae: Ibisbill
Family Recurvirostridae: avocets
Family Haematopodidae: oystercatchers
Family Charadriidae: plovers and lapwings
- Family Ibidorhynchidae: Ibisbill
In keeping more in line with the traditional grouping, the Thinocori could be included in the Scolopaci, and the Chionidi in the Charadrii. However, the increasing knowledge about the early evolutionary history of modern birds suggests that the assumption of Paton et al. (2003) and Thomas et al. (2004b) of 4 distinct "wader" lineages (= suborders) already being present around the C-T boundary is correct.
References
- Ericson, P. G. P.; Envall, I.; Irestedt, M. & Norman, J. A. (2003): Inter-familial relationships of the shorebirds (Aves: Charadriiformes) based on nuclear DNA sequence data. BMC Evol. Biol. 3: 16. DOI:10.1186/1471-2148-3-16 PDF fulltext
- Paton, Tara A. & Baker, Allan J. (2006): Sequences from 14 mitochondrial genes provide a well-supported phylogeny of the Charadriiform birds congruent with the nuclear RAG-1 tree. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 39(3): 657–667. DOI:10.1016/j.ympev.2006.01.011 (HTML abstract)
- Paton, T. A.; Baker, A. J.; Groth, J. G. & Barrowclough, G. F. (2003): RAG-1 sequences resolve phylogenetic relationships within charadriiform birds. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 29: 268-278. DOI:10.1016/S1055-7903(03)00098-8 (HTML abstract)
- Thomas, Gavin H.; Wills, Matthew A. & Székely, Tamás (2004a): Phylogeny of shorebirds, gulls, and alcids (Aves: Charadrii) from the cytochrome-b gene: parsimony, Bayesian inference, minimum evolution, and quartet puzzling. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 30(3): 516-526. DOI:10.1016/S1055-7903(03)00222-7 (HTML abstract)
- Thomas, Gavin H.; Wills, Matthew A. & Székely, Tamás (2004b): A supertree approach to shorebird phylogeny. BMC Evol. Biol. 4: 28. DOI:10.1186/1471-2148-4-28 PDF fulltext Supplementary Material
- van Tuinen, Marcel; Waterhouse, David & Dyke, Gareth J. (2004): Avian molecular systematics on the rebound: a fresh look at modern shorebird phylogenetic relationships. Journal of Avian Biology 35(3): 191-194. PDF fulltext
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Swifts
Common Swift, Apus apus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Apodiformes
Family: Apodidae
Hartert, 1897
The swifts are birds superficially similar to swallows but are actually not closely related to those passerine species at all; swifts are in the separate order Apodiformes, which they formerly shared with the hummingbirds.
The resemblances between the swifts and swallows are due to convergent evolution reflecting similar life styles based on catching insects in flight.
The family scientific name comes from the Greek απους, apous, meaning "without feet", since swifts have very short legs and never settle voluntarily on the ground, perching instead on vertical surfaces. The tradition of depicting swifts without feet continued into the Middle Ages, as seen in the heraldic martlet.
Swifts are the most aerial of birds and some, like the Common Swift, even sleep and mate on the wing. Larger species, such as white-throated needletail, are amongst the fastest flyers in the animal kingdom. One group, the Swiftlets or Cave Swiftlets have developed a form of echolocation for navigating through dark cave systems where they roost. One species, Aerodramus papuensis has recently been discovered to use this navigation at night outside its cave roost also.
Like swallows and martins, the swifts of temperate regions are strongly migratory and winter in the tropics.
Many swifts have a characteristic shape, with a short forked tail and very long swept-back wings that resemble a crescent or a boomerang. The flight of some species is characterised by a distinctive "flicking" action quite different from swallows.
The nest of many species is glued to a vertical surface with saliva, and the genus Aerodramus use only that substance, which is the basis for bird's nest soup.
Systematics and evolution
The treeswifts are closely related to the true swifts, but form a separate family, the Hemiprocnidae.
In the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, the old order Apodiformes is split. Swifts remain in that order, but hummingbirds are put into a new order, Trochiliformes. This might be correct, but further research on the interrelationships and evolutionary history of the Apodiformes is necessary.
The taxonomy of this group is in general complicated, with genus and species boundaries widely disputed, especially amongst the swiftlets. Analysis of behavior and vocalizations is marred by common parallel evolution, while analyses of different morphological traits and of various DNA sequences have yielded equivocal and partly contradictory results (Thomassen et al., 2005).
The Apodiformes diversified during the Eocene, at the end of which the extant families were present; fossil genera are known from all over temperate Europe, between today's Denmark and France, such as the primitive Scaniacypselus (Early - Middle Eocene) and the more modern Procypseloides (Late Eocene/Early Oligocene - Early Miocene). A prehistoric genus sometimes assigned to the swifts, Primapus (Early Eocene of England), might also be a more distant ancestor.
Species list: Family Apodidae
Tribe Cypseloidini
- Genus Cypseloides
- Chestnut-collared Swift, Cypseloides rutilus
Tepui Swift, Cypseloides phelpsi
Black Swift, Cypseloides niger
White-chested Swift, Cypseloides lemosi
Rothschild's Swift, Cypseloides rothschildi
Sooty Swift, Cypseloides fumigatus
Spot-fronted Swift, Cypseloides cherriei
White-chinned Swift, Cypseloides cryptus
White-fronted Swift, Cypseloides storeri
Great Dusky Swift, Cypseloides senex
- Chestnut-collared Swift, Cypseloides rutilus
- Genus Streptoprocne
- White-collared Swift, Streptoprocne zonaris
Biscutate Swift, Streptoprocne biscutata
White-naped Swift, Streptoprocne semicollaris
- White-collared Swift, Streptoprocne zonaris
Tribe Collocaliini - swiftlets
- Genus Collocalia
- Glossy Swiftlet, Collocalia esculenta
- Grey-rumped Swiftlet, Collocalia (esculenta) marginata
- Cave Swiftlet, Collocalia linchi
Pygmy Swiftlet, Collocalia troglodytes
- Glossy Swiftlet, Collocalia esculenta
- Genus Aerodramus
- Seychelles Swiftlet, Aerodramus elaphrus
Mascarene Swiftlet, Aerodramus francicus
Indian Swiftlet, Aerodramus unicolor
Philippine Swiftlet, Aerodramus mearnsi
Moluccan Swiftlet, Aerodramus infuscatus
Mountain Swiftlet, Aerodramus hirundinaceus
White-rumped Swiftlet, Aerodramus spodiopygius
Australian Swiftlet, Aerodramus terraereginae
Himalayan Swiftlet, Aerodramus brevirostris
Indochinese Swiftlet, Aerodramus rogersi
Volcano Swiftlet, Aerodramus vulcanorum
Whitehead's Swiftlet, Aerodramus whiteheadi
Bare-legged Swiftlet, Aerodramus nuditarsus
Mayr's Swiftlet, Aerodramus orientalis
Palawan Swiftlet, Aerodramus palawanensis
Mossy-nest Swiftlet, Aerodramus salangana
Uniform Swiftlet, Aerodramus vanikorensis
Palau Swiftlet, Aerodramus pelewensis
Guam Swiftlet, Aerodramus bartschi
Caroline Islands Swiftlet, Aerodramus inquietus
Mangaia Swiftlet, Aerodramus manuoi (prehistoric)
Atiu Swiftlet, Aerodramus sawtelli
Polynesian Swiftlet, Aerodramus leucophaeus
Marquesan Swiftlet, Aerodramus ocistus
Black-nest Swiftlet, Aerodramus maximus
Edible-nest Swiftlet, Aerodramus fuciphagus
German's Swiftlet, Aerodramus germani
Papuan Swiftlet, Aerodramus papuensis (probably a distinct genus)
- Seychelles Swiftlet, Aerodramus elaphrus
- Genus Hydrochous
- Waterfall Swift, Hydrochous gigas
- Genus Schoutedenapus
- Scarce Swift, Schoutedenapus myoptilus
Schouteden's Swift, Schoutedenapus schoutedeni
- Scarce Swift, Schoutedenapus myoptilus
Tribe Chaeturini - needletails
- Genus Mearnsia
- Philippine Spinetail, Mearnsia picina
Papuan Spinetail, Mearnsia novaeguineae
- Philippine Spinetail, Mearnsia picina
- Genus Zoonavena
- Malagasy Spinetail, Zoonavena grandidieri
Sao Tome Spinetail, Zoonavena thomensis
White-rumped Needletail, Zoonavena sylvatica
- Malagasy Spinetail, Zoonavena grandidieri
- Genus Telacanthura
- Mottled Spinetail, Telacanthura ussheri
Black Spinetail, Telacanthura melanopygia
- Mottled Spinetail, Telacanthura ussheri
- Genus Rhaphidura
- Silver-rumped Needletail, Rhaphidura leucopygialis
Sabine's Spinetail, Rhaphidura sabini
- Silver-rumped Needletail, Rhaphidura leucopygialis
- Genus Neafrapus
- Cassin's Spinetail, Neafrapus cassini
Bat-like Spinetail, Neafrapus boehmi
- Cassin's Spinetail, Neafrapus cassini
- Genus Hirundapus
- White-throated Needletail, Hirundapus caudacutus
Silver-backed Needletail, Hirundapus cochinchinensis
Brown-backed Needletail, Hirundapus giganteus
Purple Needletail, Hirundapus celebensis
- White-throated Needletail, Hirundapus caudacutus
- Genus Chaetura
- Band-rumped Swift, Chaetura spinicauda
Lesser Antillean Swift, Chaetura martinica
Gray-rumped Swift, Chaetura cinereiventris
Pale-rumped Swift, Chaetura egregia
Chimney Swift, Chaetura pelagica
Vaux's Swift, Chaetura vauxi
Chapman's Swift, Chaetura chapmani
Short-tailed Swift, Chaetura brachyura
Ashy-tailed Swift, Chaetura andrei
- Band-rumped Swift, Chaetura spinicauda
Tribe Apodini - typical swifts
- Genus Aeronautes
- White-throated Swift, Aeronautes saxatalis
White-tipped Swift, Aeronautes montivagus
Andean Swift, Aeronautes andecolus
- White-throated Swift, Aeronautes saxatalis
- Genus Tachornis
- Tachornis uranoceles (fossil; Late Pleistocene of Puerto Rico)
- Antillean Palm Swift, Tachornis phoenicobia
Pygmy Swift, Tachornis furcata
Fork-tailed Palm Swift, Tachornis squamata
- Genus Panyptila
- Lesser Swallow-tailed Swift, Panyptila cayennensis
Great Swallow-tailed Swift, Panyptila sanctihieronymi
- Lesser Swallow-tailed Swift, Panyptila cayennensis
- Genus Cypsiurus
- Asian Palm Swift, Cypsiurus balasiensis
African Palm Swift, Cypsiurus parvus
- Asian Palm Swift, Cypsiurus balasiensis
- Genus Apus
- Apus gaillardi (fossil)
- Apus wetmorei (fossil)
- Alpine Swift, Apus melba
Mottled Swift, Apus aequatorialis
Alexander's Swift, Apus alexandri
Common Swift, Apus apus
Plain Swift, Apus unicolor
Nyanza Swift, Apus niansae
Pallid Swift, Apus pallidus
African Swift, Apus barbatus
Forbes-Watson's Swift, Apus berliozi
Bradfield's Swift, Apus bradfieldi
Madagascar Swift, Apus balstoni
Pacific Swift, Apus pacificus
Dark-rumped Swift, Apus acuticauda
Little Swift, Apus affinis
House Swift, Apus nipalensis
Horus Swift, Apus horus
White-rumped Swift, Apus caffer
Bates' Swift Apus batesi
References
- Chantler, Phil & Driessens, Gerald (2000): Swifts : a guide to the swifts and treeswifts of the world. Pica Press, Mountfield, East Sussex. ISBN 1-873403-83-6
- Thomassen, Henri A.; Tex, Robert-Jan; Bakker, Merijn A.G. & Povel, G. David E. (2005): Phylogenetic relationships amongst swifts and swiftlets: A multi locus approach. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 37(1): 264-277. DOI:10.1016/j.ympev.2005.05.010 (HTML abstract)
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