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African Cuckoo Hawk
The African cuckoo-hawk, or African baza, (''Aviceda cuculoides'') is a medium-sized raptor in the family Accipitridae so named because it resembles the common cuckoo. It is found in sub-Saharan Africa and along the eastern parts of Southern Africa, preferring dense woodland and forest of either indigenous or exotic trees. Description The male is blackish-brown above with a grey mantle and chest with a blackish crest, the underparts are white marked with broad chestnut bars. The tail is black with three grey bars and grey and white tip. The females are browner with paler chestnut bars on the underparts. Distinctive in flight as a small raptor with a small head with broad, narrowly rounded wings and a medium length tail. Wingspan is just over double the body length, females are slightly larger than males. Distribution and subspecies The African cuckoo-hawk is found across much of sub-Saharan Africa, and the following subspecies are recognised: *''A. c.'' subsp. ''cuculoides ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William John Swainson
William John Swainson FLS, FRS (8 October 1789 – 6 December 1855), was an English ornithologist, malacologist, conchologist, entomologist and artist. Life Swainson was born in Dover Place, St Mary Newington, London, the eldest son of John Timothy Swainson the Second (1756–1824), an original fellow of the Linnean Society. He was cousin of the amateur botanist Isaac Swainson.Etymologisches Worterbuch der botanischen Pflanzennamen by H. Genaust. Review by Paul A. Fryxell ''Taxon'', Vol. 38(2), 245–246 (1989). His father's family originated in Lancashire, and both grandfather and father held high posts in Her Majesty's Customs, the father becoming Collector at Liverpool. William, whose formal education was curtailed because of an impediment in his speech, joined the Liverpool Customs as a junior clerk at the age of 14."William Swainson F.R.S, F.L.S., Naturalist and Artist: Diaries 1808–1838: Sicily, Malta, Greece, Italy and Brazil." G .M. Swainson, Palmerston, NZ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flap-necked Chameleon
The flap-necked chameleon (''Chamaeleo dilepis'') is a species of arboreal chameleon, a lizard in the family Chamaeleonidae. The species is native to sub-Saharan Africa. There are eight recognized subspecies, including the nominotypical subspecies. Subspecies The following subspecies of the flap-necked chameleon are recognized as being valid. www.reptile-database.org. *''Chamaeleo dilepis dilepis'' – flap-necked chameleon *''Chamaeleo dilepis idjwiensis'' – Idjwi Island flap-necked chameleon *''Chamaeleo dilepis isabellinus'' – Isabelline flap-necked chameleon *''Chamaeleo dilepis martensi'' – Pemba Island flap-necked chameleon *''Chamaeleo dilepis petersii'' – Peters' flap-necked chameleon *''Chamaeleo dilepis quilensis'' *''Chamaeleo dilepis roperi'' *''Chamaeleo dilepis ruspolii'' Etymology The subspecific name ''roperi'' is in honor of G.D. Trevor-Roper.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Birds Of Africa
This is a list of the bird species recorded in Africa. The area covered by this list is the Africa region defined by the American Birding Association's listing rules. In addition to the continent itself, the area includes Madagascar, Mauritius, Rodrigues, Seychelles, Cape Verde, the Comoro Islands, Zanzibar and the Canary Islands, São Tomé and Príncipe and Annobón in the Gulf of Guinea. It does not include Socotra in the Arabian Sea, Madeira or the Azores. This list is that of the African Bird Club (ABC) supplemented by ''Bird Checklists of the World'' (Avibase) and ''The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World''.Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2021. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2021. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/ Retrieved August 25, 2021 This list's taxonomic treatment (designation and sequenc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aviceda
The bazas, ''Aviceda'', are a genus of bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. The genus has a widespread distribution from Australia to southern Asia and across to Africa. The bazas are sometimes known as cuckoo-hawks. A prominent crest Crest or CREST may refer to: Buildings *The Crest (Huntington, New York), a historic house in Suffolk County, New York *"The Crest", an alternate name for 63 Wall Street, in Manhattan, New York *Crest Castle (Château Du Crest), Jussy, Switzerla ... is a feature of the bazas. They have two tooth-like indentations on the edge of the upper bill. Etymology ''Aviceda'': la, avis ″bird″; ''-cida'' ″killer″, from ''caedere'' ″to kill″ Species Notes References Bird genera Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Accipitriformes-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wahlberg's Eagle
Wahlberg's eagle (''Hieraaetus wahlbergi'') is a bird of prey that is native to sub-Saharan Africa, where it is a seasonal migrant in the woodlands and savannas. It is named after the Swedish naturalist Johan August Wahlberg. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Description It is cross-shaped in flight with straight-edged wings and a square tail. Wahlberg's eagle is a medium-sized raptor, and the sexes are similar. It is about in length with a wingspan of and a body mass of for males and for females on average. The head has a small crest, and the legs are yellow. The plumage tone is variable but may be dark brown except for dark-streaked grey undersides to the flight feathers, and a barred grey undertail. Light and dark plumage phases occur. A pale variant may be much lighter brown with whitish, rather than grey undertail and flight feather undersides. The pale variant is much less common than the darker variant. Distribution and habitat Wahlberg's eagle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Freshwater Crab
Around 1,300 species of freshwater crabs are distributed throughout the tropics and subtropics, divided among eight families. They show direct development and maternal care of a small number of offspring, in contrast to marine crabs, which release thousands of planktonic larvae. This limits the dispersal abilities of freshwater crabs, so they tend to be endemic to small areas. As a result, a large proportion are threatened with extinction. Systematics More than 1,300 described species of freshwater crabs are known, out of a total of 6,700 species of crabs across all environments. The total number of species of freshwater crabs, including undescribed species, is thought to be up to 65% higher, potentially up to 2,155 species, although most of the additional species are currently unknown to science. They belong to eight families, each with a limited distribution, although various crabs from other families are also able to tolerate freshwater conditions ( euryhaline) or are secon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mantid
Mantidae is one of the largest families in the order of praying mantises, based on the type species ''Mantis religiosa''; however, most genera are tropical or subtropical. Historically, this was the only family in the order, and many references still use the term "mantid" to refer to any mantis. Technically, however, "mantid" refers only to members of the family Mantidae, and not the 14 remaining families of mantises. Some of the most recent classifications have promoted a number of the mantid subfamilies to the rank of family, e.g. Iridopterygidae, Sibyllidae, Tarachodidae, Thespidae, and Toxoderidae, while other classifications have reduced the number of subfamilies without elevating to higher rank. Subfamilies and genera Following the major revision of the Mantodea in 2019, the ''Mantodea Species File'' includes ten subfamilies: Choeradodinae The Americas, Asia * '' Asiadodis'' Roy, 2004 * ''Choeradodis'' Serville, 1831 * †'' Prochaeradodis'' Piton, 1940 Derom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caterpillar
Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Symphyta) are commonly called caterpillars as well. Both lepidopteran and symphytan larvae have eruciform body shapes. Caterpillars of most species eat plant material ( often leaves), but not all; some (about 1%) eat insects, and some are even cannibalistic. Some feed on other animal products. For example, clothes moths feed on wool, and horn moths feed on the hooves and horns of dead ungulates. Caterpillars are typically voracious feeders and many of them are among the most serious of agricultural pests. In fact, many moth species are best known in their caterpillar stages because of the damage they cause to fruits and other agricultural produce, whereas the moths are obscure and do no direct harm. Conversely, various species of caterpi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Silverfish
The silverfish (''Lepisma saccharinum'') is a species of small, primitive, wingless insect in the order Zygentoma (formerly Thysanura). Its common name derives from the insect's silvery light grey colour, combined with the fish-like appearance of its movements. The scientific name (''L. saccharinum'') indicates that the silverfish's diet consists of carbohydrates such as sugar or starches. While the common name ''silverfish'' is used throughout the global literature to refer to various species of Zygentoma, the Entomological Society of America restricts use of the term solely for ''Lepisma saccharinum''. Description The silverfish is a nocturnal insect typically long. Its abdomen tapers at the end, giving it a fish-like appearance. The newly hatched are whitish, but develop a greyish hue and metallic shine as they get older. It has two long cerci and one terminal filament at the tip of the abdomen between the cerci. It also has two small compound eyes, although other mem ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orthoptera
Orthoptera () is an order of insects that comprises the grasshoppers, locusts, and crickets, including closely related insects, such as the bush crickets or katydids and wētā. The order is subdivided into two suborders: Caelifera – grasshoppers, locusts, and close relatives; and Ensifera – crickets and close relatives. More than 20,000 species are distributed worldwide. The insects in the order have incomplete metamorphosis, and produce sound (known as a "stridulation") by rubbing their wings against each other or their legs, the wings or legs containing rows of corrugated bumps. The tympanum, or ear, is located in the front tibia in crickets, mole crickets, and bush crickets or katydids, and on the first abdominal segment in the grasshoppers and locusts. These organisms use vibrations to locate other individuals. Grasshoppers and other orthopterans are able to fold their wings (i.e. they are members of Neoptera). Etymology The name is derived from the Greek ὀρθό ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fruit Bat
Megabats constitute the family Pteropodidae of the order Chiroptera (bats). They are also called fruit bats, Old World fruit bats, or—especially the genera ''Acerodon'' and ''Pteropus''—flying foxes. They are the only member of the superfamily Pteropodoidea, which is one of two superfamilies in the suborder Yinpterochiroptera. Internal divisions of Pteropodidae have varied since subfamilies were first proposed in 1917. From three subfamilies in the 1917 classification, six are now recognized, along with various tribes. As of 2018, 197 species of megabat had been described. The leading theory of the evolution of megabats has been determined primarily by genetic data, as the fossil record for this family is the most fragmented of all bats. They likely evolved in Australasia, with the common ancestor of all living pteropodids existing approximately 31 million years ago. Many of their lineages probably originated in Melanesia, then dispersed over time to mainland Asia, th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Southern Dwarf Chameleon
''Bradypodion ventrale'', the southern dwarf chameleon, occurs in the Eastern Cape, South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the .... It is also known as the eastern Cape dwarf chameleon. It is a relatively large species of dwarf chameleon, reaching lengths of . It has a very prominent casque on the back of its head and a long, beard-like throat crest. It lives in dense thickets and shrub, and is usually very difficult to spot because of its colouring. It adapts very well to living in suburban gardens, but domestic cats – being introduced predators – will usually kill all chameleons in the immediate area. Consequently, one should not bring chameleons into a garden which is frequented by cats. It gives birth to litters of between 10 and 20 babies in the summer. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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