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Hildebrandt's Starling
Hildebrandt's starling (''Lamprotornis hildebrandti'') is a species of starling in the family Sturnidae. It forms a superspecies with and has previously been included in the same species as Shelley's starling, a migratory species ranging from Ethiopia and Somalia to Kenya. Both of these species have also been combined into a superspecies with the chestnut-bellied starling of West Africa. It was originally placed in the now defunct genus ''Notauges''. The species is named for Johann Maria Hildebrandt, a German collector who was the first European to obtain specimens. Distribution and habitat Hildebrandt's starling is found in Kenya and Tanzania, where it occupies open country between . Its habitat is open woodland and open thornbrush country. The species is often recorded as being uncommon, but it varies from being fairly common to fairly uncommon. It is not considered threatened by the IUCN, and is listed as least concern. Its habitat is not threatened and it occurs in a number of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to the south; Zambia to the southwest; and Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest mountain, is in northeastern Tanzania. According to the United Nations, Tanzania has a population of million, making it the most populous country located entirely south of the equator. Many important hominid fossils have been found in Tanzania, such as 6-million-year-old Pliocene hominid fossils. The genus Australopithecus ranged across Africa between 4 and 2 million years ago, and the oldest remains of the genus ''Homo'' are found near Lake Olduvai. Following the rise of '' Homo erectus'' 1.8 million years ago, humanity spread ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Superb Starling
The superb starling (''Lamprotornis superbus'') is a member of the starling family of birds. It was formerly known as ''Spreo superbus''. Distribution This species has a very large range and can commonly be found in East Africa, including Ethiopia, Somalia, Uganda, Kenya, South Sudan, and Tanzania.Living the scientific life Habitat The superb starling lives in savanna, in thornbush and acacia arid areas, open woodland, lakeshore woodlands, gardens and cultivated fields, at an elevation of above sea level.Hand Book of the Birds of the World/ref> Descr ...
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Birds Of East Africa
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight skeleton. Birds live worldwide and range in size from the bee hummingbird to the ostrich. There are about ten thousand living species, more than half of which are passerine, or "perching" birds. Birds have whose development varies according to species; the only known groups without wings are the extinct moa and elephant birds. Wings, which are modified forelimbs, gave birds the ability to fly, although further evolution has led to the loss of flight in some birds, including ratites, penguins, and diverse endemic island species. The digestive and respiratory systems of birds are also uniquely adapted for flight. Some bird species of aquatic environments, particularly seabirds and some waterbirds, have further evolved for swimming. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lamprotornis
''Lamprotornis'' is a large genus of glossy-starlings all of which occur in Africa south of the Sahara. They have glossy blue or green upper parts, which is due to hollow melanin granules arranged in a single layer near the feather barbule's surface. This unique arrangement led to some glossy starlings formerly placed in the genus ''Spreo'' being transferred to ''Lamprotornis'', since they shared this feature (but see also below). The genus ''Lamprotornis'' was introduce by the Dutch zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck in 1820. The type species was subsequently designated as the long-tailed glossy starling. The under parts of these species lack iridescence. They may be blue, purple, yellow or brown. Most ''Lamprotornis'' starlings have striking yellow or red irides and some have long tails. These glossy starlings are found in a variety of habitats from forests to open woodland and gardens. They nest in tree holes, either natural, or made by woodpeckers or barbets, and some will ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Spotted Cuckoo
The great spotted cuckoo (''Clamator glandarius'') is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the roadrunners, the anis and the coucals. It is widely spread throughout Africa and the Mediterranean Basin. It is a brood parasite that lays its eggs in the nests of corvids, in particular the Eurasian magpie. Taxonomy In 1747 the English naturalist George Edwards included an illustration and a description of the great spotted cuckoo in the second volume of his ''A Natural History of Uncommon Birds''. He used the English name "The Great Spotted Cuckow". Edwards based his hand-coloured etching on a specimen that had been shot in Gibraltar and sent to the English naturalist Mark Catesby in London. When in 1758 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his ''Systema Naturae'' for the tenth edition, he placed the great spotted cuckoo with the other cuckoos in the genus ''Cuculus''. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name ''C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brood Parasite
Brood parasites are animals that rely on others to raise their young. The strategy appears among birds, insects and fish. The brood parasite manipulates a host, either of the same or of another species, to raise its young as if it were its own, usually using egg mimicry, with eggs that resemble the host's. The evolutionary strategy relieves the parasitic parents from the investment of rearing young. This benefit comes at the cost of provoking an evolutionary arms race between parasite and host as they coevolve: many hosts have developed strong defenses against brood parasitism, such as recognizing and ejecting parasitic eggs, or abandoning parasitized nests and starting over. It is less obvious why most hosts do care for parasite nestlings, given that for example cuckoo chicks differ markedly from host chicks in size and appearance. One explanation, the mafia hypothesis, proposes that parasitic adults retaliate by destroying host nests where rejection has occurred; there is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clutch (eggs)
__NOTOC__ A clutch of eggs is the group of eggs produced by birds, amphibians, or reptiles, often at a single time, particularly those laid in a nest. In birds, destruction of a clutch by predators (or removal by humans, for example the California condor breeding program) results in ''double-clutching''. The technique is used to double the production of a species' eggs, in the California condor case, specifically to increase population size. The act of putting one's hand in a nest to remove eggs is known as "dipping the clutch". Size Clutch size differs greatly between species, sometimes even within the same genus. It may also differ within the same species due to many factors including habitat, health, nutrition, predation pressures, and time of year. Clutch size variation can also reflect variation in optimal reproduction effort. In birds, clutch size can vary within a species due to various features (age and health of laying female, ability of male to supply food, and abundan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greater Blue-eared Glossy-starling
The greater blue-eared starling or greater blue-eared glossy-starling (''Lamprotornis chalybaeus'') is a bird that breeds from Senegal east to Ethiopia and south through eastern Africa to northeastern South Africa and Angola. It is a very common species of open woodland bird, and undertakes some seasonal migration. Subspecies There are four accepted subspecies: * ''Lamprotornis chalybaeus chalybaeus'' — Sahel region * ''Lamprotornis chalybaeus cyaniventris'' — northeastern Africa * ''Lamprotornis chalybaeus nordmanni'' — southern Africa * ''Lamprotornis chalybaeus scyobius'' — central and East Africa Description The greater blue-eared starling is a 22 cm long, short tailed bird. This starling is glossy blue-green with a purple-blue belly and blue ear patch. Its iris is bright yellow or orange. The sexes are similar, but the juvenile is duller and has blackish brown underparts. The populations from southern Kenya southwards are smaller than northern birds and are sometim ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Woodpecker
Woodpeckers are part of the bird family Picidae, which also includes the piculets, wrynecks, and sapsuckers. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar, and the extreme polar regions. Most species live in forests or woodland habitats, although a few species are known that live in treeless areas, such as rocky hillsides and deserts, and the Gila woodpecker specialises in exploiting cacti. Members of this family are chiefly known for their characteristic behaviour. They mostly forage for insect prey on the trunks and branches of trees, and often communicate by drumming with their beaks, producing a reverberatory sound that can be heard at some distance. Some species vary their diet with fruits, birds' eggs, small animals, tree sap, human scraps, and carrion. They usually nest and roost in holes that they excavate in tree trunks, and their abandoned holes are of importance to other cavity-nesting birds. They sometimes com ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apodytes Dimidiata
''Apodytes dimidiata'' (white pear or umDakane) is a bushy tree with white flowers bearing a fragrance reminiscent of fresh coconut, and small black and red fruits. It is usually about 5 m tall (but reaches a height of 20 m when growing in deep forest), and it is indigenous to Southern Africa. The taxonomical family placement for this and other ''Apodytes'' was uncertain; it is now placed in the Metteniusaceae. Its English common name is in reference to the timber which is similar in appearance to that of the European pear tree of the northern hemisphere. Description In the open, this evergreen species grows as a tall shrub or small tree of about 5 m in height. However, in a more shady environment, such as deep afro-montane forest, it can reach a height of over 20 m. Its dense, shiny foliage is bright-green and it has smooth, gray bark. It frequently produces masses of tiny, white, bisexual blossoms which have a sweet fragrance. These are followed by strang ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhus
Sumac ( or ), also spelled sumach, is any of about 35 species of flowering plants in the genus ''Rhus'' and related genera in the cashew family (Anacardiaceae). Sumacs grow in subtropical and temperate regions throughout the world, including East Asia, Africa, and North America. Sumac is used as a spice, as a dye, and in medicine. Description Sumacs are dioecious shrubs and small trees in the family Anacardiaceae that can reach a height of . The leaves are usually pinnately compound, though some species have trifoliate or simple leaves. The flowers are in dense panicles or spikes long, each flower very small, greenish, creamy white or red, with five petals. The fruits are reddish, thin-fleshed drupes covered in varying levels of hairs at maturity and form dense clusters at branch tips, sometimes called sumac bobs. Sumacs propagate both by seed (spread by birds and other animals through their droppings), and by new shoots from rhizomes, forming large clonal colonies. Taxonomy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Euclea
''Euclea'', from the Greek '' eukleia'' meaning "glory and fame", denotes a group of flowering plants in the Ebenaceae or ebony family. They were described as a genus by Linnaeus in 1774. The genus includes evergreen trees and shrubs, native to Africa, the Comoro Islands and Arabia. Several species are used for timber, producing a hard, dark heartwood timber similar to ebony. Species There are some 16 to 18 species, including: *'' Euclea acutifolia'' E.Mey. ex A.DC. – Cape Province *'' Euclea angolensis'' Gürke – Angola *'' Euclea asperrima'' E.Holzh. – Namibia *'' Euclea balfourii'' Hiern ex Balf.f. *'' Euclea coriacea'' A.DC. – Lesotho, South Africa *''Euclea crispa'' (Thunb.) Gürke – southern Africa *'' Euclea dewinteri'' Retief – Limpopo *'' Euclea divinorum'' Hiern – from Ethiopia to KwaZulu-Natal *'' Euclea lancea'' Thunb. – Cape Province *'' Euclea laurina'' Hiern ex Balf.f. *'' Euclea natalensis'' A.DC. – from Somalia to KwaZulu-Natal *'' Euclea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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