Turtle dove

Streptopelia turtur

Photo by Roger Wyatt (Focusing on Wildlife)

Common name:

turtle dove (en); rola-comum (pt); tourterelle des bois (fr); tórtola europaea (es); turteltaube (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Columbiformes

Family Columbidae

Range:

The turtle dove breeds in most of Europe, with the main exceptions being Ireland and Scotland, Iceland, Scandinavia and northern Russia. They are also found breeding around the Mediterranean basin, throughout Turkey and the Caucasus and into the Middle East. They winter in Africa south of the Sahara, mostly in Senegal and Mali and other countries of the Sahel.

Size:

They are 25-27 cm long and have a wingspan of 49-55 cm. Both males and females weigh around 140 g.

Habitat:

They breed in open lowland deciduous woods and copses with rich undergrowth, mainly in agricultural areas but also in more open country with dense scrubs and isolated trees. They winter in dry scrubland and savanna.

Diet:

Turtle doves mostly eat the seeds of cereals and weeds. They also eat fruits and berries and may occasionally take insects and their larvae.

Breeding:

They breed in April-September. These birds mate for live, each year both male and female collaborate to build the nest, a simple platform made of twigs and roots, lined with softer materials such as grass and leaves. The nest is placed on tree or scrub, at an height of 2-3 m. The clutch consists of 1-2 white eggs which both parents incubate for 13-16 days. The chicks fledge after 20 days and become independent soon afterwards.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least concern)

With a global population of 20-100 million and an extremely large breeding range, the species is not considered threatened at present. Still, the turtle dove may have declined by as much as 67% in parts of its range, and the species is affected by habitat loss and unsustainable levels of hunting in southern Europe and northern Africa.

Yellow-throated longclaw

Macronyx croceus

Photo by David Nowell (Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:

yellow-throated longclaw (en); sentinela-de-garganta-amarela (pt); sentinelle à gorge jaune (fr); bisbita gorgigualdo (es); gelbkehlpieper (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Motacillidae

Range:

This African species is found from Senegal and Gambia eastwards to Cameroon and the southern Central African Republic, southern Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Somalia then southwards to north-west Angola, Zaire, Burundi and Tanzania. From there it extends southwards to eastern South Africa.

Size:

The yellow-throated longclaw is 20-22 cm long and weighs up to 64 g.

Habitat:

It generally prefers medium to tall wet or flooded grasslands, but may also be found in dry savannas and sandy shores.

Diet:

The yellow-throated longclaw forages on the ground, taking invertebrates from grass. They mostly eat grasshoppers, moths, beetles, mantids, ants, millipedes and mollusks.

Breeding:

They breed in September-March, with a peak in November-January. The female builds the nest, a thick-walled cup of coarse grass blades and stems, lined with fine grass and rootlets. It is typically concealed in grass. The female lays 1-4 eggs, which she mostly incubates alone for 13-14 days. The chicks are fed by both parents, leaving the nest after about 16-17 days, when they are able to run fast but have yet to fly properly.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)

Although the species is described as scarce to rare in most its range, the very large breeding range and the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats justifies the species is not considered threatened at present.

Banded bay cuckoo

Cacomantis sonneratii

Photo by Koshy Koshy (Oriental Bird Images)

Common name:

banded bay cuckoo (en); cuco-listado (pt); coucou de Sonnerat (fr); cuco bayo (es); Sonneratkuckuck (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Cuculiformes

Family Cuculidae

Range:

This Asian species is found in India and Sri Lanka, north to Nepal, and east to Bangladesh, Myanmar, Laos Cambodja, Thailand and Vietnam. They are also found in Malaysia and in Indonesia in Borneo, Sumatra and Java.

Size:

This small cuckoo is 22 cm long and has a wingspan of 25-27 cm. Males and females are similar in size, weighing 35 g.

Habitat:

They are found in well wooded habitats, mostly tropical and sub-tropical moist lowland forests, bur also in dense scrubland.

Diet:

Their diet is essentially insectivorous, hunting a variety of insects found in the foliage or in flight.

Breeding:

The breeding season varies widely between different parts of their range, so much that they can breed all year round. They are brood parasites, laying the eggs on the nests of other species, namely bulbuls and small babblers. The banded bay cuckoo chick hatches earlier than the chicks of the host and evicts the other eggs, or chicks from the nest as soon as possible. The hosts will then feed the chick until fledging.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)

The species is described as common throughout their very large breeding range. Since there is no evidence for any declines or substantial threats, the species is not considered threatened at present.

Great rufous woodcreeper

Xiphocolaptes major

Photo by Peter Schoen (Flickr)

Common name:

great rufous woodcreeper (en); arapaçu-do-campo (pt); grand grimpar (fr); trepatroncos colorado (es); fuchsroter baumsteiger (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Dendrocolaptidae

Range:

This South American species is found in northern Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia and south-western Brazil.

Size:

This large woodcreeper is 35 cm long and weighs 155 g.

Habitat:

They are found in tropical and subtropical dry forests and in tropical and subtropical moist lowland forests.

Diet:The great rufous woodcreeper feeds on insects, spiders, and other invertebrates, for which they search in clefts in bark and among mosses, lichens, and epiphytic plants growing on tree-limbs.

Breeding: Both parents build the nest either in old woodpecker holes or in natural cavities in trees. The nest is made of fine rootlets, pieces of bark, lichens, and strands of plant fibres. The female lays 2-3 white eggs which are incubated by both parents for 15-21 days. Both parents rear the young until fledging, which takes place 19-23 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status: LC (Least Concern)

The population size has not been quantified, but the species in described as uncommon. Still, they have a very large breeding range and there is no evidence for any declines or substantial threats, so the species is not threatened at present.

Snow petrel

Pagodroma nivea

(Photo from Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:

snow petrel (en); petrel-das-neves (pt); pétrel des neiges (fr); petrel blanco (es); schneesturmvogel (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Procellariiformes

Family Procellariidae

Range:

This species is confined to the pack ice of Antarctica and the adjacent Antarctic seas. They breed in the islands of South Georgia, South Shetland, South Sandwich, South Orkney, Bouvet and Scott, and in several location on the Antarctic mainland.

Size:

The snow petrel is 30-40 cm long and has a wingspan 75-95 cm. They weigh up to 570 g.

Habitat:

They are typically found over the pack ice or out at sea, often seen flying in between icebergs. Although mostly staying near the breeding colonies, they may wander the seas north to 55º S.

Diet:

They mostly take their food on the wing, but will also forage from the edges of the pack ice. They feed mainly on fish, some cephalopods, mollusks and krill as well as carrion.

Breeding:

Snow petrels breed in November-May. The nests are simple pebble-lined scrapes usually in a deep rock crevices with overhanging protection. The female lay a single white egg which is incubated by both parents for 41-49 days. The chick is fed by both parents and fledges 7 weeks after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)

With a population of 4 million and a very large breeding range, the species is not considered threatened at present.

Fiscal flycatcher

Sigelus silens

Photo by Lip Kee Yap (Wikipedia)

Common name:

fiscal flycatcher (en); papa-moscas-fiscal (pt); gobemouche fiscal (fr); papamoscas fiscal (es); würgerschnäpper (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Muscicapidae

Range:

They are found throughout South Africa, Swaziland and Lesotho. They are also present in south-eastern Botswana and southern Mozambique.

Size:

The fiscal flycatcher is 17-20 cm long. They weigh 26 g.

Habitat:

They are mostly found in open habitats with scattered trees or bushes. These include moist and semi-arid grassland, fynbos, bushveld, dry savanna and Acacia scrubland.

Diet:

It mostly hunts insects, namely ants, termites, grasshoppers, moths and Hemiptera. Their diet is sometimes supplemented with fruits and nectar.

Breeding:

Fiscal flycatchers breed in July-February, with a peak in October December. They female builds the nest alone, on a thick forked branch, among dead leaves or inside a dead stump. The nest consists of a bulky, open cup built of stems of dry grass combined with other plants. The interior is usually thickly lined with material such as soft plant down, feathers, rootlets. The female lays 2-4 brown eggs, which she incubates alone for 13-16 days while being fed by the male. The female feeds the chicks alone until fledging, which takes place 15-17 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)

These birds have a very large breeding range. Although the population size is unknown, they are described as widespread and common, and there is no evidence for any substantial threats.

Coppery-headed emerald

Elvira cupreiceps

Photo by Ferran Vaquero (Internet Bird Colection)

Common name:

coppery-headed emerald (en); beija-flor-de-cabeça-acobreada (pt); colibri à tête cuivrée (fr); esmeralda capirotada (es); bronzekopf-elvirakolibri (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Apodiformes

Family Trochilidae

Range:

This bird is endemic to Costa Rica. It is only found in the mountain ranges in the north and central parts of the country, in Cordillera de Guanacaste and Cordillera de Tilarán.

Size:

These small hummingbirds are 7,5 cm long and weigh just 3,2 g.

Habitat:

They are found in the canopies and edges of tropical and sub-tropical mountain moist forests at altitudes of 700-1500 m.

Diet:

The coppery-headed emerald mostly eats nectar and small beetles.

Breeding:

Males take no part in the nesting process. The female build a nest cup in a tree, typically made of lichens and spider webs. There she lays 2 white eggs which she incubates alone for 14-19 days.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)

Although they have a small breeding range, the coppery-headed emerald is described as fairly common within that range. Despite some concern regarding local habitat loss this species is not considered threatened at present.