Zitting cisticola

Cisticola juncidis

Common name:

zitting cisticola (en); fuinha-dos-juncos (pt); cisticole des joncs (fr); buitrón (es); cistensänger (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Cisticolidae

Range:

This species has a very wide breeding range, from southern Europe and North Africa, across Africa all the way to South Africa, along southern Asia and into northern Australia.

Size:

These small passerines are 10-12 cm long and have a wingspan of 12-14 cm. They weigh 8-12 g.

Habitat:

Zitting cisticolas are common in both open and seasonally flooded grasslands, in grassy wetlands with little or no drainage and in a variety of man-made habitats, including agricultural fields, golf courses and gardens.

Diet:

These insectivores eat a variety of invertebrates, which they glean from the bases of grass tufts and the bare soil. Their prey include grasshoppers, mantids, dragonflies, moths and caterpillars, mayflies, aphids, weevils, ants, spiders and snails.

Breeding:

The zitting cisticola breeds in April-September. The males are serially monogamous, mating with up to 11 females in a year. The male builds a show nest close to the ground and signals to females by singing. After copulating with the male, each female builds the real nest, a pear-shaped bag, constructed by weaving and sewing plant fibers and spider webs. The female lays 2-6 eggs which she incubates alone for 11-15 days. The chicks are mainly fed by the female, fledging 11-15 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least concern)

This species has an extremely large breeding range. Although the global population size is yet to be quantified, the European population alone includes 690.000-3.300.000 individuals, and represents less than 5% of their global range. The population is believed to be increasing and expanding in range.

Red-headed barbet

Eubucco bourcierii

Common name:

red-headed barbet (en); capitão-de-cabeça-vermelha (pt); cabézon à tête rouge (fr); torito cabecirrojo (es); Anden-bartvogel (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Piciformes

Family Capitonidae

Range:

These South American birds are found in Costa Rica and Panama, on both slopes of the western Andes of Colombia, on the west slope of the Andes of Ecuador, and on the eastern slope of the Andes of Colombia, Ecuador, and northern Peru.

Size:

The red-headed barbet is 15 cm long and weighs 34 g.

Habitat:

They occur in mountain evergreen forest, forest borders, and adjacent secondary-growth. They are found at altitudes of 400-2.400 m.

Diet:

Red-headed barbets eat a variety of insects and arthropods, including beetles, caterpillars, earwigs, flies and scorpions. They also consume fruits, including berries of Myrica, Ericacacea, Micronia, Ocotea tonzuzii, guava, and banana.

Breeding:

These birds breed in March-June. The nest is in a cavity in a tree or a fence post, where the female lays 2-5 white, unmarked eggs. The eggs are incubated for 15 days by both parents, although only the female incubates at night. The chicks are fed insects by their parents and fledge 31-42 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least concern)

This species has a large breeding range and, although the global population size has not been quantified, the species is described as fairly common. The overall population trend is believed to be one of decline, mostly owing to ongoing habitat destruction, but the current rate of decline is not thought to be a cause for concern.

Black drongo

Dicrurus macrocercus

Photo by Robin Newlin (Birds Korea)

Common name:

black drongo (en); drongo-real (pt); drongo royal (fr); drongo real (es); königsdrongo (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Dicruridae

Range:

This Asian species is found in much of tropical southern Asia, from south-west Iran, through India and Sri Lanka and east to southern China and Indonesia.

Size:

Black drongos are 26-32 cm long and weigh 40-60 g.

Habitat:

They are mostly found in open country, namely in savanna, agricultural fields and urban habitats.

Diet:

These birds are mostly aerial predators of insects but can also glean from the ground or off the vegetation. They tale a variety of insects including grasshoppers, cicadas, termites, wasps, bees, ants, moths, beetles and dragonflies. They occasionally hunt small birds, reptiles, bats and even fish and are also known to visit flowers of trees such as Erythrina and Bombax for nectar.

Breeding:

They mostly breed in February-August. The nest is a cup made with a thin layer of sticks placed in the fork of branch, and is built by both the male and female. The female lays 3-4 pale cream to red eggs which are incubated by both parents for 14-15 days. The chicks fledge 16-17 days after hatching , but continue to be fed and protected by the parents for another months.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)

This species has a very large breeding range and, although the global population size has not been quantified, the species is described as generally common throughout the Indian Subcontinent, although uncommon in Bhutan. This species is not considered threatened at present.

Iiwi

Vestiaria coccinea

Common name:

iiwi (en); iiwi (pt); iiwi rouge (fr); i-iwi (es); iiwi (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Drepanididae

Range:

This Hawaiian species was originally found on all the main islands in the Hawaiian Archipelago, but is now extinc on Lana'i and only relict populations remain in Moloka'i and O'ahu. It is still widespread in Hawai'i and Kaua'i.

Size:

The iiwi is 15 cm long and weighs 16-20 g.

Habitat:

This species was formerly found in forests at any elevation, and still occurs in a variety of native, disturbed and unnatural habitats at altitudes of 300-2.900 m, with some preference for wet and moderately wet forests above 1250 m.

Diet:

Iiwis are nectar feeders and their bill was originally adapted to exploit the nectar of the similar shaped flowers of Campanulaceae. A decline in these plant species forced them to feed on the nectar of other plants such as ohi'a (Metrosideros polymorpha) and the introduced banana poka (Passiflora mollissima). Iiwis are believed to be important plant pollinators.

Breeding:

These birds breed in February-September. The nest is built by both sexes, usually in an ohi'a tree, and is constructed from twigs, bark and lichens, lined with petals and down feathers. The female lays 2-3 bluish eggs which she incubates alone or 14 days. The chicks fledge 21-24 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - VU (Vulnerable)

The iiwi has a small and contracting breeding range and a global population estimated at 350.000 individuals. The population is declining, owing mostly to their susceptibility to avian malaria, carried at low elevations by introduced mosquitoes. Other factors which are likely to be contributing to this decline include habitat degradation and predation by introduced mammals such as cattle, pigs, cats and rats.

Band-tailed pigeon

Columba fasciata

Common name:

band-tailed pigeon (en); pombo-de-cauda-barreada (pt); pigeon à queue barrée (fr); paloma torcaza (es); schuppenhalstaube (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Columbiformes

Family Columbidae

Range:

This American species is found breeding for British Columbia, in Canada, trough the western parts of the United States, always west of the Rocky mountains, into Central America, and through the western parts of South America, all the way south to Argentina.

Size:

Band-tailed pigeons are 34-39 cm long and have a wingspan of 64-68 cm. They weigh 250-340 g.

Habitat:

This species breeds in wet coniferous forests along the Pacific Coast and in mixed evergreen forests. They are also found in dry mountain coniferous forests of the interior, and in urban and suburban areas. It is usually present at altitudes of 900-3.600 m.

Diet:

An omnivore, the band-tailed pigeon will eat the nuts, seeds, berries, blossoms, but also insects. When in season it is also known to eat domestic crops such as cherries, berries, oats, barley and wheat.

Breeding:

These birds breed in March-June. The female builds a flat, loose nest on the ground, in low bushes, or in the fork of lower tree branches. Nesting materials are provided by the male and consist mainly of twigs and pine needles. The female lays 1, rarely 2 eggs which are incubated by both parents for 18-20 days. The chicks fledge 28-30 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least concern)

This species has an extremely large breeding range and a global population estimated at 4 million individuals. This species was hunted to low numbers in the beginning of the 20th century, but since then recovered, following hunting regulations. The population is believed to be currently facing a very small decline, which is not sufficient to cause the species to be considered threatened.

Southern pied-babbler

Turdoides bicolor

Common name:

southern pied-babbler (en); zaragateiro-meridional (pt); cratérope bicolore (fr); turdoide bicolor (es); elsterdroßling (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Timaliidae

Range:

This African species is only found in northern Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and northern South Africa.

Size:

Southern pied-babblers are 23-26 cm long and weigh 75-95 g.

Habitat:

They are found in arid and semi-arid savanna woodlands.

Diet:

These birds eat a variety of insects, including beetles, caterpillars, grasshoppers, ants and termites. They also eat small frogs and reptiles.

Breeding:

They breed in August-April with a peak in September-November. Southern pied-babblers are cooperative breeder, living all year round in groups of 3-15 birds. Only the dominant pair breeds, but all group members help to build and defend the nest and feed the chicks. The nest is a large bowl built of creeper, grass stems and thin twigs, lined with finer material such as rootlets and hair. The nest is typically placed in a fork in the center of a thorny tree, such as a blue thorn Acacia erubescens, black thorn A. mellifera, scented thorn A. nilotica, umbrella thorn A. tortilis and buffalo-thorn Ziziphus mucronata. The dominant female lays 2-5 bluish eggs, which are incubated for roughly 16 days. The chicks are fed by all group members, fledging about 16 days after hatching, after which they remain dependent on the group for another 10 more weeks.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least concern)

This species has a very large breeding range and, although the global population size has not been quantified, the species is described as locally common to very common. The population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat destruction and fragmentation, but it is not considered threatened at present.

Royal sunangel

Heliangelus regalis

Photo by Nick Athanas (Antpitta)

Common name:

royal sunangel (en); beija-flor-real (pt); héliange royal (fr); colibrí real (es); blaue sonnennymphe (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Apodiformes

Family Trochilidae

Range:

This species is only found in northern Peru, in Cordillera Azul, Cordillera de Colán and Cordillera del Cóndor.

Size:

They are 11-12 cm long and weigh 3,5-4,5 g.

Habitat:

The royal sunangel inhabits subtropical elfin forest edge and shrubbery, often in areas of regular fire disturbance. They are found at altitudes of 1.450-2.200 m.

Diet:

They mostly eat nectar. Males seem to feed mostly on Brachyotum quinquenerve, and females feed mainly from Ericaceae flowers. They also eat small insects.

Breeding:

The royal sunangel breeds in July-September. The female lays 2 eggs, which she incubates alone for 16-19 days. Chicks fledge 23-26 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN status - EN (Endangered)

This species has a very small and severely fragmented range at only four locations. The population is currently estimated at just 2.500-10.000 individuals and suspected to be declining slowly, owing to on-going habitat destruction and alteration. Regular burning of páramo grasslands adjacent to the elfin forest, to promote the growth of fresh shoots for livestock, has lowered the tree-line by several hundred metres, and continues to destroy large areas of the species's habitat. Also, most of the forests in the southern Cordillera de Colán have already disappeared, with the remnants being rapidly cleared for cash-crops, particularly marijuana and coffee.