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Karthala Scops Owl
The Karthala scops owl (''Otus pauliani''), also known as the Grand Comoro scops owl or Comoro scops owl, is a small scops owl endemic to the island of Grande Comore in the Comoro Islands. Taxonomy The Karthala scops owl was formerly considered to be a subspecies of the Madagascar scops owl (''Otus rutilus''), but with the other Comoro Islands scops owls, it is now regarded as a separate species. Description The Karthala scops owl lacks ear-tufts and comes in two colour forms, a light morph and a dark morph. The light morph is dark greyish-brown on the upperparts with fine barring and pale spots along the scapulars. The underparts are reddish-buff with a dense pattern of fine barring on the flight feathers and tail. The dark morph is overall dark chocolate brown but no specimen of a dark morph individual has been taken. It measures approximately in length and the wingspan is . Voice Its call is a whistled "toot", which is given repeatedly with one second intervals. Distributi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Constantine Walter Benson
Constantine Walter Benson OBE (2 February 1909 – 21 September 1982) was a British ornithologist and author of over 350 publications. He is considered the last of a line of British Colonial officials that made significant contributions to ornithology. Education and career Constantine Walter Benson was born in 1909 near Taunton in Somerset, and educated at Eton and Magdalene College, Cambridge. He was to become head of the Cambridge Bird Club. He became an officer in the Colonial Service in 1932 and was posted to Nyasaland, modern Malawi, where he spent over 20 years as a District Commissioner. He was elected a member of the British Ornithologists' Union in 1932. On arrival in Malawi, he began the systematic study of Malawian birds, training and making use of his servant and collector Jali Makawa. He met his wife Florence Mary Lanham (Molly), while visiting the Transvaal Museum where she worked as a botanist and they co-authored several publications. It has been reported t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grande Comore
Grande Comore () is an island in Comoros off the coast of Africa. It is the largest island in the Comoros nation. Most of its population is of the Comorian ethnic group. Its population is about 316,600. The island's capital is Moroni, Comoros, Moroni, which is also the national capital. The island is made up of two shield volcanoes, with Mount Karthala being the country's highest point at above sea level. According to the 2009 revision of the constitution of 2002, it is governed by an elected Governor, as are the other islands, with the federal government being much reduced in power. The name Ngazidja is sometimes seen in the now nonstandard form Njazidja. History For several centuries, List of sultans on the Comoros, Grande Comore was divided into a number of sultanates, including Sultanate of Bambao, Bambao, Itsandra, Mitsamihuli, Mbajini, Hambuu, Washili, Hamahame, Mbwankuu, Mbude and Domba. The sultans were also known as ''mfaume''. In 1886, the ruler of Anjouan, Sultan Sa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Comoro Islands
The Comoro Islands or Comoros ( Shikomori ''Komori''; ar, جزر القمر , ''Juzur al-qamar''; french: Les Comores) form an archipelago of volcanic islands situated off the southeastern coast of Africa, to the east of Mozambique and northwest of Madagascar. The islands are politically divided between the Union of the Comoros, a sovereign country, and Mayotte, an Overseas Department of France. Geography The Comoro Islands are located in the Mozambique Channel to the north-west of Madagascar and facing Mozambique. These volcanic islands, covering a total area of 2034 km2, are as follows: * Ngazidja (also known as ''Grande Comore''): the largest island of the Union of the Comoros, with its capital Moroni * Ndzuwani (also known as ''Anjouan''): part of the Union of the Comoros * Mwali (also known as ''Mohéli''): part of the Union of the Comoros * Mayotte (also known as ''Maore''): a French overseas department. Mayotte is composed of two islands, Grande-Terre and Pe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Madagascar Scops Owl
The Madagascar scops owl (''Otus rutilus''), also known as the Malagasy scops owl or Rainforest scops owl, is a species of owl in the family Strigidae. It is found throughout Madagascar, now that is has recently been lumped with the Torotoroka scops owl (''O. r. madagascariensis''), with which it was long considered a separate species from. The nominate ''O. r. rutilus'' is referred to as Rainforest scops owl. Description The Madagascar scops owl is a relatively small owl with short, rounded wings and short erectile ear-tufts on top of the head. There are three morphs recorded of this species: a grey-plumaged morph, a brown-plumaged morph and a rufous-plumaged morph. Features which stand out from the main plumage color are the pale eyebrows, light spots on the scapulars and the barring on the wings and outer tail feathers. Sometimes the crown and the underparts are streaked. The bill has a black tip and may be dull green through to yellowish-grey and the eyes are yellow. They me ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mount Karthala
Mount Karthala or Karthola ( ar, القرطالة ''Al Qirṭālah'') is an active volcano and the highest point of the Comoros at above sea level. It is the southernmost and larger of the two shield volcanoes forming Grande Comore island, the largest island in the nation of Comoros. The Karthala volcano is very active, having erupted more than 20 times since the 19th century. Frequent eruptions have shaped the volcano's 3 km by 4 km summit caldera, but the island has largely escaped broad destruction. Eruptions on April 17, 2005 and May 29, 2006 ended a period of quiet. Volcanic activity April 2005 eruption The eruption, which carried a risk of lava flows and deadly volcanic gas, caused the evacuation of 30,000 residents. The crater was clearly changed by the eruption. A grey field of ash surrounds the crater and the caldera itself seems larger and deeper. The crater lake, which formed after Karthala's last eruption in 1991 and once dominated the caldera, is now go ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Volcano
A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates are diverging or converging, and most are found underwater. For example, a mid-ocean ridge, such as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, has volcanoes caused by divergent tectonic plates whereas the Pacific Ring of Fire has volcanoes caused by convergent tectonic plates. Volcanoes can also form where there is stretching and thinning of the crust's plates, such as in the East African Rift and the Wells Gray-Clearwater volcanic field and Rio Grande rift in North America. Volcanism away from plate boundaries has been postulated to arise from upwelling diapirs from the core–mantle boundary, deep in the Earth. This results in hotspot volcanism, of which the Hawaiian hotspot is an example. Volcanoes are usually not created where two tectonic plates slide ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Montane
Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial factor in shaping plant community, biodiversity, metabolic processes and ecosystem dynamics for montane ecosystems. Dense montane forests are common at moderate elevations, due to moderate temperatures and high rainfall. At higher elevations, the climate is harsher, with lower temperatures and higher winds, preventing the growth of trees and causing the plant community to transition to montane grasslands, shrublands or alpine tundra. Due to the unique climate conditions of montane ecosystems, they contain increased numbers of endemic species. Montane ecosystems also exhibit variation in ecosystem services, which include carbon storage and water supply. Life zones As elevation increases, the climate becomes cooler, due to a decrease in a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endangered
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and invasive species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List lists the global conservation status of many species, and various other agencies assess the status of species within particular areas. Many nations have laws that protect conservation-reliant species which, for example, forbid hunting, restrict land development, or create protected areas. Some endangered species are the target of extensive conservation efforts such as captive breeding and habitat restoration. Human activity is a significant cause in causing some species to become endangered. Conservation status The conservation status of a species indicates the likelihood that it will become extinct. Multiple factors are considered when assessing the s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Birdlife International
BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding important sites for birds, maintaining and restoring key bird habitats, and empowering conservationists worldwide. It has a membership of more than 2.5 million people across 116 country partner organizations, including the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, the Wild Bird Society of Japan, the National Audubon Society and American Bird Conservancy. BirdLife International has identified 13,000 Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas and is the official International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List authority for birds. As of 2015, BirdLife International has established that 1,375 bird species (13% of the total) are threatened with extinction ( critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable). BirdLife International p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Otus (bird)
Scops owls are typical owls in family Strigidae belonging to the genus ''Otus'' and are restricted to the Old World. ''Otus'' is the largest genus of owls with 59 species. Scops owls are colored in various brownish hues, sometimes with a lighter underside and/or face, which helps to camouflage them against the bark of trees. Some are polymorphic, occurring in a greyish- and a reddish-brown morph. They are small and agile, with both sexes being compact in size and shape. Female scops owls are usually larger than males. For most of the 20th century, this genus included the American screech owls, which are now again separated in ''Megascops'' based on a range of behavioral, biogeographical, morphological and DNA sequence data. Taxonomy The genus ''Otus'' was introduced in 1769 by the Welsh naturalist Thomas Pennant for the Indian scops owl (''O. bakkamoena''). The name is derived from the Latin word ' and the Greek word ''ōtos'' meaning horned or eared owl (cf. οὖς, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endemic Birds Of The Comoros
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, the Cape sugarbird is found exclusively in southwestern South Africa and is therefore said to be ''endemic'' to that particular part of the world. An endemic species can be also be referred to as an ''endemism'' or in scientific literature as an ''endemite''. For example '' Cytisus aeolicus'' is an endemite of the Italian flora. '' Adzharia renschi'' was once believed to be an endemite of the Caucasus, but it was later discovered to be a non-indigenous species from South America belonging to a different genus. The extreme opposite of an endemic species is one with a cosmopolitan distribution, having a global or widespread range. A rare alternative term for a species that is endemic is "precinctive", which applies to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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