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Global Range: (>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)) BREEDING: south-coastal and southeastern Alaska, across much of Canada south through much of U.S. to central Mexico; also eastern Buenos Aires province, Argentina, in early 1980s (Ridgely and Tudor 1989); across Eurasia to Mediterranean region, northern Africa, China, Japan. NON-BREEDING: mainly South America, regularly from Costa Rica and West Indies to Tierra del Fuego (but in low numbers south of central Chile and northern Argentina, Ridgely and Tudor 1989); Africa and southern Asia; uncommon in Puerto Rico. Accidental in Hawaii.
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Barn swallows are native in all the biogeographic regions except Australia and Antarctica. The breeding range of barn swallows includes North America, northern Europe, northcentral Asia, northern Africa, the Middle East, southern China, and Japan. They winter in South America, South Asia, Indonesia, and Micronesia.
Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Native ); palearctic (Native ); oriental (Native ); neotropical (Native )
Other Geographic Terms: holarctic
- Terres, J. 1980. The Audubon Society Encyclopedia of North American Birds. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
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| Rights holder/Author | ©1995-2013, The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors |
| Source | http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/Hirundo_rustica/ |
The Sable Antelope formerly occurred widely in the savanna woodlands of southern and eastern Africa, with an isolated population (Giant Sable) in central Angola, between the Cuanza and Luando Rivers and immediately north of the Luando. They have been eliminated from large areas of their former range by meat hunting and loss of habitat to the expansion of agricultural settlement and livestock (East 1999). This range reduction has been most marked in Mozambique, where they survive only in good numbers in Niassa in the north, and in the western Gaza province, southeast DR Congo, and north-east Tanzania (East 1999; Estes in press). Sable have been reintroduced to many parts of their former range, but have also been introduced to areas where they never naturally occurred, including to Swaziland (East 1999).
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| Rights holder/Author | © International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources |
| Source | http://www.iucnredlist.org/apps/redlist/details/10170 |
IUCN lists Hippotragus niger as lower risk and conservation dependent, but declining numbers could lead to a threatened listing in the near future. The subspecies Hippotragus niger variani is listed as endangered due to habitat loss and trophy hunting. Studies in the past show that a complex blend of factors such as disease, malnutrition, and habitat quality compounded by interspecific competition and attempts to manipulate populations have limited sable antelope numbers. Historic data has demonstrated their tendency to be dense in some regions and practically nonexistent in others, even in well managed national parks (Wilson and Hirst 1977).
US Federal List: endangered
CITES: appendix i; no special status
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: least concern
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| Rights holder/Author | ©1995-2013, The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors |
| Source | http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/Hippotragus_niger/ |
The hamerkop (Scopus umbretta), also known as hammerkop, hammerkopf, hammerhead, hammerhead stork, umbrette, umber bird, tufted umber, or anvilhead, is a medium-sized wading bird 56 centimetres (22 in) in length with a weight of 470 grams (17 oz). The shape of its head with a long bill and crest at the back is reminiscent of a hammer, hence its name. It ranges from Africa, Madagascar to Arabia, in wetlands of a wide variety, including estuaries, lakesides, fish ponds, riverbanks and rocky coasts in Tanzania. The hamerkop, which is a sedentary bird that often show local movements, is not globally threatened and is locally abundant in Africa and Madagascar.[2]
Contents
Taxonomy and systematics[edit]
The hamerkop is usually included in the Ciconiiformes, but might be closer to the Pelecaniformes.[3] It constitutes a family (Scopidae) and genus (Scopus) all on its own because of its unique characteristics.[2]
Subspecies[edit]
There are two subspecies, Scopus umbretta umbretta and Scopus umbreta minor.[2]
- S. u. umbretta, live in most of tropical Africa, south-west Arabia and Madagascar.
- S. u. minor, found in coastal belt from Sierra Leone to east Nigeria.
Description[edit]
Its plumage is a drab brown with purple iridescence on the back (the subspecies S. u. minor is darker).[2] The bill is long, flat, and slightly hooked.[2] The neck and legs are shorter than those of most of the Ciconiiformes. The hamerkop has, for unknown reasons, partially webbed feet.[4] The middle toe is comb-like (pectinated) like a heron's.[2] Its tail is short and its wings are big, wide, and round-tipped; it soars well. When it does so, it stretches its neck forward like a stork or ibis, but when it flaps, it coils its neck back something like a heron.[4]
Vocalisations include cackles and a shrill call given in flight. Hamerkops are mostly silent except when in groups.[4]
Distribution and habitat[edit]
The hamerkop occurs in Africa south of the Sahara, Madagascar and coastal south-west Arabia in all wetland habitats, including irrigated land such as rice paddies, as well as in savannahs and forests. Most are sedentary within their territories, which are held by pairs, but some migrate into suitable habitat during the wet season only. Whenever new bodies of water are created, such as dams or canals, hamerkops quickly move in.[4]
Behaviour and ecology[edit]
The hamerkop's behaviour is unlike other birds. One unusual feature is that up to ten birds join in "ceremonies" in which they run circles around each other, all calling loudly, raising their crests, fluttering their wings. Another is "false mounting", in which one bird stands on top of another and appears to mount it, but they may not be mates and do not copulate.[2][4]
Breeding[edit]
The strangest aspect of hamerkop behaviour is the huge nest, sometimes more than 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) across, comprising perhaps 10,000 sticks and strong enough to support a man's weight. The birds decorate the outside with any bright-coloured objects they can find. When possible, they build the nest in the fork of a tree, often over water, but if necessary they build on a bank, a cliff, a human-built wall or dam, or on the ground. A pair starts by making a platform of sticks held together with mud, then builds walls and a domed roof. A mud-plastered entrance 13–18 centimetres (5.1–7.1 in) wide in the bottom leads through a tunnel up to 60 centimetres (24 in) long to a nesting chamber big enough for the parents and young.[4]
These birds are compulsive nest builders, constructing three to five nests per year whether they are breeding or not. Barn owls and eagle owls may force them out and take over the nests, but when the owls leave, the hamerkops may reuse the nests.[2] Snakes, small mammals such as genets, and various birds live in abandoned nests, and weaver birds, starlings, and pigeons may attach their nests to the outside.[4]
At the finished nest, a pair gives displays similar to those of the group ceremonies and mates, often on top of the nest. The clutch consists of three to seven eggs which start white but soon become stained. Both sexes incubate for 28 to 30 days. Both feed the young, often leaving them alone for long times; this unusual habit for wading birds may be made possible by the thick nest walls. The young hatch covered with grey down. By 17 days after hatching, their head and crest plumage is developed, and in a month, their body plumage. They leave the nest at 44 to 50 days but roost in it at night until about two months after hatching.[4]
Food and feeding[edit]
Hamerkops feed during the day, often taking a break at noon to roost. They normally feed alone or in pairs. The food is typical of long-legged wading birds, and the most important is amphibians. They also eat fish, shrimp, insects and rodents. They walk in shallow water looking for prey, shuffling one foot at a time on the bottom or suddenly opening their wings to flush prey out of hiding.[4] The same shuffling technique is used to locate food in middens of fish remains.
In culture[edit]
There are many legends about the hamerkop. In some regions, people state that other birds help it build its nest.[4] The ǀXam informants of Wilhelm Bleek said that when a hamerkop flew and called over their camp, they knew that someone close to them had died.[5]
It is known in some cultures as the lightning bird, and the Kalahari Bushmen believe or believed that being hit by lightning resulted from trying to rob a hamerkop's nest. They also believe that the inimical god Khauna would not like anyone to kill a hamerkop.[6] According to an old Malagasy belief, anyone who destroys its nest will get leprosy, and a Malagasy poem calls it an "evil bird".[7] Such beliefs have given the bird some protection.[8]
Scopus, a database of abstracts and citations for scholarly journal articles, received its name in honour of this bird, as the hamerkop is renowned for its superior navigation skills.
References[edit]
- ^ BirdLife International (2012). "Scopus umbretta". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- ^ a b c d e f g h del Hoyo, J. Elliott, A. & Sargatal, J. (editors). (1992) Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Ostrich to Ducks. Lynx Edicions. ISBN 84-87334-10-5
- ^ Van Tuinen, Marcel; Butvill, Dave Brian; Kirsch, John A. W. and Hedges, S. Blair (2001). "Convergence and divergence in the evolution of aquatic birds" (PDF). Proceedings of the Royal Society of London 26 (8): 1345–1350. Cite uses deprecated parameters (help)
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Shukla, Arvind N.; Tyagi, Rajiv (2004). Encyclopaedia of Birds. Anmol Publications PVT. LTD. p. 234. ISBN 81-261-0967-X. Retrieved September 25, 2008.
- ^ Schapera, Isaac (1965). The Khoisan Peoples of South Africa. G. Routledge and Paul. p. 167. Retrieved September 22, 2008.
- ^ Schapera op. cit., p. 189
- ^ Fox, Leonard (1990). Hainteny: The Traditional Poetry of Madagascar. Bucknell University Press. pp. 261, 422. ISBN 0-8387-5175-X.
- ^ Child, Graham; Chitsike, Langford (August 31, 2000). "'Ownership' of Wildlife". In Prins, Herbert H. T.; Grootenhuis, Jan Geu; Dolan, Thomas T., editors. Wildlife Conservation by Sustainable Use. Netherlands: Springer. p. 253. ISBN 0-412-79730-5.
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| Source | http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hamerkop&oldid=641718603 |
Major Threats
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| Source | http://www.iucnredlist.org/apps/redlist/details/22695289 |
地方性常见于高至海拔1000米。
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| Rights holder/Author | 马敬能,2000, EOL China Regional Center |
| Source | No source database. |
中等体型(20厘米，包括尾羽延长部)的辉蓝色及白色的燕。上体钢蓝色；胸偏红而具一道蓝色胸带，腹白；尾甚长，近端处具白色点斑。与洋斑燕的区别在腹部为较纯净的白色，尾形长，并具蓝色胸带。亚成鸟体羽色暗，尾无延长，易与洋斑燕混淆。
虹膜－褐色；嘴及脚－黑色。
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| Rights holder/Author | 约翰.马敬能,2000, EOL China Regional Center |
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夏时分布几遍中国
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| Rights holder/Author | 王香亭,1985, EOL China Regional Center |
| Source | No source database. |
Durante la migración y sobre ambas costas vuela cerca del suelo o del agua temprano por la mañana, al atardecer o durante el mal tiempo; generalmente asciende más alto al mediodía durante los días soleados. Los individuos pasan espaciados, a baja altura sobre las filas y a mayor altura sobre los valles. Durante el invierno prefiere las áreas abiertas como jardínes, potreros, arrozales, y pantanos.