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Fratercula
Puffins are any of three species of small alcids (auks) in the bird genus ''Fratercula''. These are pelagic seabirds that feed primarily by diving in the water. They breed in large colonies on coastal cliffs or offshore islands, nesting in crevices among rocks or in burrows in the soil. Two species, the tufted puffin and horned puffin, are found in the North Pacific Ocean, while the Atlantic puffin is found in the North Atlantic Ocean. All puffin species have predominantly black or black and white plumage, a stocky build, and large beaks that get brightly colored during the breeding season. They shed the colorful outer parts of their bills after the breeding season, leaving a smaller and duller beak. Their short wings are adapted for swimming with a flying technique underwater. In the air, they beat their wings rapidly (up to 400 times per minute) in swift flight, often flying low over the ocean's surface. Etymology The English name "puffin" – puffed in the sense of swollen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atlantic Puffin
The Atlantic puffin ('), also known as the common puffin, is a species of seabird in the auk family. It is the only puffin native to the Atlantic Ocean; two related species, the tufted puffin and the horned puffin is found in the northeastern Pacific. The Atlantic puffin breeds in Russia, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Greenland, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and the Faroe Islands, and as far south as Maine in the west and France in the east. It is most commonly found in the Westman Islands, Iceland. Although it has a large population and a wide range, the species has declined rapidly, at least in parts of its range, resulting in it being rated as vulnerable by the IUCN. On land, it has the typical upright stance of an auk. At sea, it swims on the surface and feeds on small fish and crabs, which it catches by diving underwater, using its wings for propulsion. This puffin has a black crown and back, pale grey cheek patches, and a white body and underparts. Its broad, bold ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alca Arctica
The Atlantic puffin ('), also known as the common puffin, is a species of seabird in the auk family. It is the only puffin native to the Atlantic Ocean; two related species, the tufted puffin and the horned puffin is found in the northeastern Pacific. The Atlantic puffin breeds in Russia, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Greenland, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and the Faroe Islands, and as far south as Maine in the west and France in the east. It is most commonly found in the Westman Islands, Iceland. Although it has a large population and a wide range, the species has declined rapidly, at least in parts of its range, resulting in it being rated as vulnerable by the IUCN. On land, it has the typical upright stance of an auk. At sea, it swims on the surface and feeds on small fish and crabs, which it catches by diving underwater, using its wings for propulsion. This puffin has a black crown and back, pale grey cheek patches, and a white body and underparts. Its broad, boldly ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dow's Puffin
Dow's puffin (''Fratercula dowi'') is an extinct seabird in the auk family described in 2000 from subfossil remains found in the Channel Islands of California. It was approximately as large as the modern horned puffin and its beak appared to have been an intermediate between the rhinoceros auklet and the horned puffin. It lived during the Late Pleistocene and Early Pleistocene on the Channel Islands, where it nested alongside the ancient murrelet, Cassin's auklet and ''Chendytes lawi''. History and naming The first remains of ''Fratercula dowi'' were discovered in late 1986 by G. L. Kennedy and D. R. Muhs. The subfossil, an articulated bird skeleton, was found in a Late Pleistocene eolianite outcrop on San Nicolas Island. This specimen was found lying on its belly with a bent neck and preserved beak tip. Most of the skull, alongside much of the legs and posterior torso had eroded away but a complete fossil egg was discovered closeby. Initial observations by paleornithologist Hi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Horned Puffin
The horned puffin (''Fratercula corniculata'') is an auk found in the North Pacific Ocean, including the coasts of Alaska, Siberia and British Columbia. It is a pelagic seabird that feeds primarily by diving for fish. It nests in colonies, often with other auks. It is similar in appearance to the Atlantic puffin, its closest relative of the North Atlantic, but differs by a "horn" of black skin located above the eye, present in adult birds. Etymology The binomial name of this species, ''Fratercula corniculata'', comes from the Medieval Latin ''fratercula'', meaning “friar”; their black-and-white plumage resembling the robes of monks. ''Corniculata'' means “horn-shaped” or “crescent-shaped”, in reference to the black horn above the bird's eye. The vernacular name ''puffin'' – puffed in the sense of swollen – was originally applied to the fatty, salted meat of young birds of the unrelated species, the Manx shearwater (''Puffinus puffinus''), formerly known as the "M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Horned Puffin
The horned puffin (''Fratercula corniculata'') is an auk found in the North Pacific Ocean, including the coasts of Alaska, Siberia and British Columbia. It is a pelagic seabird that feeds primarily by diving for fish. It nests in colonies, often with other auks. It is similar in appearance to the Atlantic puffin, its closest relative of the North Atlantic, but differs by a "horn" of black skin located above the eye, present in adult birds. Etymology The binomial name of this species, ''Fratercula corniculata'', comes from the Medieval Latin ''fratercula'', meaning “friar”; their black-and-white plumage resembling the robes of monks. ''Corniculata'' means “horn-shaped” or “crescent-shaped”, in reference to the black horn above the bird's eye. The vernacular name ''puffin'' – puffed in the sense of swollen – was originally applied to the fatty, salted meat of young birds of the unrelated species, the Manx shearwater (''Puffinus puffinus''), formerly known as the "M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tufted Puffin
The tufted puffin (''Fratercula cirrhata''), also known as crested puffin, is a relatively abundant medium-sized pelagic seabird in the auk family (Alcidae) found throughout the North Pacific Ocean. It is one of three species of puffin that make up the genus ''Fratercula'' and is easily recognizable by its thick red bill and yellow tufts. Description Tufted puffins are around in length with a similar wingspan and weigh about three quarters of a kilogram (1.6 lbs), making them the largest of all the puffins. Birds from the western Pacific population are somewhat larger than those from the eastern Pacific, and male birds tend to be slightly larger than females. They are mostly black with a white facial patch, and, typical of other puffin species, feature a very thick bill which is mostly red with some yellow and occasionally green markings. Their most distinctive feature and namesake are the yellow tufts ( la, cirri) that appear annually on birds of both sexes as the sum ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tufted Puffin
The tufted puffin (''Fratercula cirrhata''), also known as crested puffin, is a relatively abundant medium-sized pelagic seabird in the auk family (Alcidae) found throughout the North Pacific Ocean. It is one of three species of puffin that make up the genus ''Fratercula'' and is easily recognizable by its thick red bill and yellow tufts. Description Tufted puffins are around in length with a similar wingspan and weigh about three quarters of a kilogram (1.6 lbs), making them the largest of all the puffins. Birds from the western Pacific population are somewhat larger than those from the eastern Pacific, and male birds tend to be slightly larger than females. They are mostly black with a white facial patch, and, typical of other puffin species, feature a very thick bill which is mostly red with some yellow and occasionally green markings. Their most distinctive feature and namesake are the yellow tufts ( la, cirri) that appear annually on birds of both sexes as the sum ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beak
The beak, bill, or rostrum is an external anatomical structure found mostly in birds, but also in turtles, non-avian dinosaurs and a few mammals. A beak is used for eating, preening, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship, and feeding young. The terms ''beak'' and ''rostrum'' are also used to refer to a similar mouth part in some ornithischians, pterosaurs, cetaceans, dicynodonts, anuran tadpoles, monotremes (i.e. echidnas and platypuses, which have a beak-like structure), sirens, pufferfish, billfishes and cephalopods. Although beaks vary significantly in size, shape, color and texture, they share a similar underlying structure. Two bony projections – the upper and lower mandibles – are covered with a thin keratinized layer of epidermis known as the rhamphotheca. In most species, two holes called ''nares'' lead to the respiratory system. Etymology Although the word "beak" was, in the past, generally restricted to the sharpened bills o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Molecular Clocks
The molecular clock is a figurative term for a technique that uses the mutation rate of biomolecules to deduce the time in prehistory when two or more life forms diverged. The biomolecular data used for such calculations are usually nucleotide sequences for DNA, RNA, or amino acid sequences for proteins. The benchmarks for determining the mutation rate are often fossil or archaeological dates. The molecular clock was first tested in 1962 on the hemoglobin protein variants of various animals, and is commonly used in molecular evolution to estimate times of speciation or radiation. It is sometimes called a gene clock or an evolutionary clock. Early discovery and genetic equidistance The notion of the existence of a so-called "molecular clock" was first attributed to Émile Zuckerkandl and Linus Pauling who, in 1962, noticed that the number of amino acid differences in hemoglobin between different lineages changes roughly linearly with time, as estimated from fossil evidence. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhinoceros Auklet
The rhinoceros auklet (''Cerorhinca monocerata'') is a seabird and a close relative of the puffins. It is the only extant species of the genus ''Cerorhinca''. Given its close relationship with the puffins, the common name rhinoceros puffin has been proposed for the species. It ranges widely across the North Pacific, feeding on small fish and nesting in colonies. Its name is derived from a horn-like extension of the beak (the anatomic term for this extension is the rhamphotheca). This horn is only present in breeding adults, and like the elaborate sheath on the bill of puffins is shed every year. This horn also processes fluorescent properties, which is likely involved in reproductive signalling. The rhinoceros auklet (also known as the rhino auklet, horn-billed puffin, or unicorn puffin), is a medium-sized auk with a large, strong, orange/brown bill (with the 'horn' protruding from it). The plumage is dark on top and paler below; breeding adults (both male and female) possess wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monk
A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedicate their life to serving other people and serving God, or to be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live their life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many religions and in philosophy. In the Greek language, the term can apply to women, but in modern English it is mainly in use for men. The word ''nun'' is typically used for female monastics. Although the term ''monachos'' is of Christian origin, in the English language ''monk'' tends to be used loosely also for both male and female ascetics from other religious or philosophical backgrounds. However, being generic, it is not interchangeable with terms that denote particular kinds of monk, such as cenobite, hermit, anchor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pamela C
Pamela may refer to: *''Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded'', a novel written by Samuel Richardson in 1740 *Pamela (name), a given name and, rarely, a surname *Pamela Spence, a Turkish pop-rock singer. Known as her stage name "Pamela" * MSC ''Pamela'', a container ship launched in 2005 * ''Pamela'' (butterfly), a butterfly genus *''Perrhybris pamela'', a butterfly with the common name Pamela *Pamela hat, a straw hat named after Richardson's heroine, worn 1790s–1870s * ''Pamela'' (film), a 1945 French film * Super Typhoon Pamela, a typhoon in 1976 *''Una donna da guardare'', a 1990 Italian erotic movie *''P.A.M.E.L.A.'', a first-person survival video game Songs *"Pamela Pamela", a song recorded by Wayne Fontana that reached number 11 in the UK Singles Chart in 1967 * "Pamela" (song), a 1988 hit song for the band Toto *"Pamella", a song by Remmy Ongala from the album ''Songs For the Poor Man'' *"Pamela Wan", a song composed by Vhong Navarro in 2004, inspired by the movie Otso-Otso Pam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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