Fork-tailed drongo

Dicrurus adsimilis

Photo by Dirk Daniels (Wikipedia)

Common name:
fork-tailed drongo (en); drongo-de-cauda-furcada (pt); drongo brillant (fr); drongo ahorquillado (es); trauerdrongo (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Dicruridae

Range:
This species is found throughout sub-Saharan Africa, only being absent from extremely arid areas.

Size:
These birds are 25 cm long and weigh 40-50 g.

Habitat:
Fork-tailed drongos are mostly found in dry savannas and riverine woodlands, but also in dry grasslands with scattered trees, forest edges, alien tree plantations, farmland, gardens and parks. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 2.200 m.

Diet:
They mostly eat insects, namely honey bees, paper wasps, larval beetles, caterpillars, ticks and termites, but also small lizards, fishes, eggs, chicks and adult birds, and occasionally the nectar of Aloe plants.

Breeding:
Fork-tailed drongos breed in August-January. The nest is a small cup made of twigs, leaf petioles and tendrils, strongly bound together with spider web strands. It is usually placed like a hammock between the branches of a tree fork, 4-6 m above ground. There the female lays 2-5 eggs which are incubated by both sexes for 15-18 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 16-22 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has an extremely large breeding range and, although the global population size has not been quantified, it is believed to be large as the species is described as common in at least parts of its range. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Hamerkop

Scopus umbretta

Photo by Joachim Huber (Wikipedia)

Common name:
hamerkop (en); ave-martelo (pt); ombrette africaine (fr); ave martillo (es); hammerkopf (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Ciconiiformes
Family Scopidae


Range:
This species is found throughout sub-Saharan Africa, including Madagascar, as well as along the south-western coast of the Arabian Peninsula.


Size:
The hamerkop is 55-60 cm long and weighs 400-470 g.


Habitat:
These birds are found in any wetland habitat, including lakes, swamps, rivers, marshes, streams, seasonally flooded ponds, irrigated land such as rice paddies, and even small puddles in gravel roads. They are also found in savannas and forests located near wetlands. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 2.400 m.


Diet:
They mostly eat frogs and tadpoles, small fresh water fishes, insects such as grasshoppers, aquatic bugs, beetles and dragon flies, small mammals, the eggs and chicks of other birds, earthworms and shrimps.


Breeding:
Hamerkops can breed all year round, but with a peak in July-January. They are monogamous, with each pair building a solitary nest consisting of a large pile of material, namely sticks, stalks, reeds, grasses, leaves, bark and man-made materials like cardboard and plastic. The nest is typically placed in a tree over or next to water, occasionally on a bridge, dam, wall, house or even on the ground. The female lays 3-9 eggs which are incubated by both sexes for 26-30 days. The chicks are fed by bpth parents and fledge 44-50 days after hatching.


Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least concern)
This species has an extremely large breeding range and the global population is estimated at 170.000-1.100.000 individuals. The population trend is stable or increasing, but some populations have unknown trends and, although it may be potentially threatened by a deterioration in wetland water quality caused by the excessive use of pesticides, it has probably benefited from the introduction of man-made impoundments.

Acorn woodpecker

Melanerpes formicivorus

Photo by Steve Ryan (Wikipedia)

Common name:
acorn woodpecker (en); pica-pau-das-bolotas (pt); pic glandivore (fr); carpintero bellotero (es); eichelspecht (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Piciformes
Family Picidae


Range:
This species is found from north- western Oregon and California, in the United States, through western Mexico and across Central America down to northern Colombia.


Size:
These birds are 19-24 cm long and have a wingspan of 35-43 cm. They weigh 65-90 g.


Habitat:
The acorn woodpecker is mostly found in oak and pine-oak woodlands, but also in riparian corridors, Douglas firs, redwood and tropical hardwood forests as long as oaks are available nearby. They can also be found in urban parks with plenty of oak trees. They typically occur at altitudes of 1.000-3.300 m, but may be found at lower altitudes.


Diet:
These birds are omnivorous. They eat various insects, including ants, butterflies, flies, aphids, leafhoppers, beetles and bugs. They also eat the acorns of various oaks, which are form the bulk of their winter diet. Other items in their diet include sap, oak catkins, fruits, flower nectar and even small lizards, mammals and bird eggs and chicks.


Breeding:
Acorn woodpeckers breed in April-June. Some populations are monogamous while others are polygynous, in which case all females lay their eggs in the same nest cavity. The nest is a cavity drilled into a large dead or living limb of a tree, up to 7,5 m above the ground. Each female lays 2-4 white eggs which are incubated by both parents for 11 days. All group members provide food for the chicks, who fledge 30-32 days after hatching.


Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and a global population estimated at 4 million individuals. In North America, the population has undergone a small increase over the last four decades.

Stone-curlew

Burhinus oedicnemus

Photo by Aeschlimann Ruedi (Schweizerische Vogelwarte)

Common name:
stone-curlew (en); alcaravão (pt); œdicnème criard (fr); alcaraván (es); triel (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Charadriiformes
Family Burhinidae


Range:
This species is found breeding in southern Europe, from Portugal and Spain to southern England, through Italy and the Balkans, around the Black Sea and into the Caucasus and southern Russia. They also breed in northern Africa and in southern Asia from the Middle East to India, southern China and Myanmar. Some population migrate south to winter in southern Europe, southern Asia and northern Africa down to the Sahel.


Size:
These birds are 38-44 cm long and have a wingspan of 76-88 cm. They weigh 300-540 g.


Habitat:
The stone-curlew is typically found in dry rocky areas with very little vegetation. It often breeds in fallow land and set-aside fields, on grass heath, dry scrubland or sometimes in sand dunes.


Diet:
They mostly collect invertebrates from the ground, taking beetles, woodlice, earthworms, snails and spiders. They sometimes hunt small reptiles, bird eggs and chicks and small mammals.


Breeding:
Stone curlews breed in March-June. The nest is a simple scrape on bare ground, sometimes near a small bush, where the female lays 2 sand or clay-coloured eggs. The eggs are incubated by both parents for 25-27 days. The chicks leave the nest soon after hatching, but remain with the parents until they are able to fly, 5-6 weeks after hatching.


Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least concern)
This species has an extremely large breeding range and the global population is estimated at 130.000-310.000 individuals. The overall population trend is decreasing, although some populations have unknown trends and, in Europe, some populations are increasing.

Green-headed tanager

Tangara seledon

Photo by Dario Sanches (Wikipedia)

Common name:
green-headed tanager (en); saíra-sete-cores (pt); calliste à tête verte (fr); tángara regia (es); dreifarbentangare (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Thraupidae


Range:
This species is found in south-eastern Brazil and adjacent parts of Paraguay and Argentina.


Size:
The green-headed tanager is 13-13,5 cm long and weighs 16-20 g.


Habitat:
They are mostly found in humid Atlantic forest, but can also be found in orchards, parks and gardens. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 1.100 m.


Diet:
They eat fruits, including those of palm trees, guava, papaya, cashew and berries from Bromeliads. They also eat insects and other arthropods.


Breeding:
Green-headed tanagers breed in November-February. The nest is a compact cup built by both adults with grass and leaves, and lined with soft materials. It is hidden within the foliage of a tree or scrub. The female lays 2-4 pale pinkish eggs with brown and grey markings, which she incubates alone for 13-14 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 14-18 days after hatching, but only become fully independent several weeks later.


Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least concern)
This species has a large breeding range and, although the global population size has not been quantified, it is described as common. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Willie wagtail

Rhipidura leucophrys

Photo by Jason Girvan (Animal Pictures Archive)

Common name:
willie wagtail (en); cauda-de-leque-de-garganta-preta (pt); rhipidure hochequeue (fr); abanico lavandera (es); gartenfächerschwanz (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Rhipiduridae


Range:
This species is found throughout mainland Australia, and also in New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, the Bismarck Archipelago and the Moluccas.


Size:
These birds are 18-22 cm long and weigh 20 g.


Habitat:
These birds are mostly found in open woodlands and forests, but also in scrublands, second growths, areas along rivers, bogs and marshes, in plantations and urban areas.


Diet:
They mostly catch insects by hawking from low branches or fences, but also glean insects from foliage and collect soil invertebrates. They are known to eat butterflies, moths, flies, gnats, beetles, dragonflies, bugs, spiders, centipedes, and millipedes, and have been recorded killing small lizards such as skinks and geckos.


Breeding:
Willie wagtails can breed all year round, but with a peak in August-February. The nest is a neatly woven cup of grasses, covered with spider webs on the outside and lined internally with soft grasses, hair or fur. The nest is placed in an horizontal branch or similar structure. The female lays 2-4 pale cream eggs with brownish markings, which are incubated by both sexes for 14 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 14 days after hatching.


Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is reported to be common to very common. The population is suspected to be increasing as ongoing habitat degradation is creating new areas of suitable habitat.

White-chinned sapphire

Hylocharis cyanus

(Photo from Animales)

Common name:
white-chinned sapphire (en); beija-flor-roxo (pt); saphir azuré (fr); zafiro de cabeza azul (es); weißkinn-saphirkolibri (de)


Taxonomy:
Order Apodiformes
Family Trochilidae


Range:
This South American species is found from Venezuela and Colombia to south-eastern Brazil and northern Argentina.


Size:
These birds are 8-9 cm long and weigh just 4 g.


Habitat:
These birds are mostly found in rainforests, but also in dry forests, dry scrublands, plantations and urban parks and gardens. They occur at altitudes of 200-1.000 m.


Diet:
They eat the nectar of various flowers, from the ground to the tree canopy, and will also take insects and spiders.


Breeding:
The white-chinned sapphire nests in a small cup made of plant fibres, placed in scrub, tree or root up to 4 m above the ground. The female lays 2 white eggs, which she incubates alone for  14-15 days. The chicks are fed by the female alone and fledge 20-26 days after hatching.


Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as fairly common. The population trend is not known, but the population is not believed to be decreasing at a significant rate.