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Owlet-nightjar
Owlet-nightjars are small crepuscular birds related to the nightjars and frogmouths. Most are native to New Guinea, but some species extend to Australia, the Moluccas, and New Caledonia. A flightless species from New Zealand is extinct. There is a single monotypic family Aegothelidae with the genus ''Aegotheles''. Owlet-nightjars are insectivores which hunt mostly in the air but sometimes on the ground; their soft plumage is a cryptic mixture of browns and paler shades, they have fairly small, weak feet (but larger and stronger than those of a frogmouth or a nightjar), a tiny bill that opens extraordinarily wide, surrounded by prominent whiskers. The wings are short, with 10 primaries and about 11 secondaries; the tail long and rounded. Systematics A comprehensive 2003 study analyzing mtDNA sequences Cytochrome b and ATPase subunit 8 suggests that 11 living species of owlet-nightjar should be recognized, as well as another that became extinct early in the second millennium AD. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cypselomorphae
Strisores ( ) is a clade of birds that includes the living families and orders Caprimulgidae (nightjars, nighthawks and allies), Nyctibiidae (potoos), Steatornithidae (oilbirds), Podargidae ( frogmouths), Apodiformes (swifts and hummingbirds), as well as the Aegotheliformes (owlet-nightjars) whose distinctness was only recently realized. The Apodiformes (which include the "Trochiliformes" of the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy) and the Aegotheliformes form the Daedalornithes. Description The material evidence for this group is very equivocal; the most ancient Strisores are quite nondescript tree-dwellers but already tend towards peculiarly apomorphic feet, and no Cretaceous fossils are known. Torpor and other metabolic peculiarities are very frequently found in this group, perhaps more often than in any other bird lineage. The synapomorphies that define this clade are the '' ossa maxillaria'' separated by a large cleft, a mandible with very short ''pars symphysialis'', and '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Barred Owlet-nightjar
The barred owlet-nightjar (''Aegotheles bennettii'') is a species of bird in the owlet-nightjar family Aegothelidae. It is found in New Guinea. The species was originally thought to be the same species as the Australian owlet-nightjar, until that species was found within the range of the barred owlet-nightjar. It was also considered to be the same species as the Vogelkop owlet-nightjar. There are three subspecies, the nominate, from south-eastern New Guinea, ''A. b. wiedenfeldi'' from northern New Guinea, and ''A. b. plumifer'' from the D’Entrecasteaux Islands.Holyoak, D.T. & Kirwan, G.M. (2017). Barred Owlet-nightjar (''Aegotheles bennettii''). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from http://www.hbw.com/node/55139 on 9 March 2017). The barred owlet-nightjar is and weighs . The back is dark grey with buff vermiculation Vermiculation is a surface ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daedalornithes
Apodimorphae is a clade of strisorean birds that include the extant families Trochilidae (hummingbirds), Hemiprocnidae (treeswifts), Apodidae (swifts), and Aegothelidae (owlet-nightjars), as well as many fossil families. This grouping of birds has been supported in a variety of recent studies. There are two higher classification schemes that have been proposed for the apodimorph families. One is all strisorean birds are classified in the order Caprimulgiformes, while the other is the strisorean birds are split into several distinct orders. In this case Apodimorphae is a subclade of Strisores that includes the orders Aegotheliformes (only including the owlet-nightjars of Australasia) and the Apodiformes (the swifts, treeswifts, and hummingbirds which have a global distribution). A similar name for the group Daedalornithes has been used for the owlet-night-apodiform clade, there is a difference between the two names with Apodimorphae defined as the total-group (the most inclusi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apodiformes
Traditionally, the bird order Apodiformes contained three living families: the swifts (Apodidae), the treeswifts (Hemiprocnidae), and the hummingbirds (Trochilidae). In the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, this order is raised to a superorder Apodimorphae in which hummingbirds are separated as a new order, Trochiliformes. With nearly 450 species identified to date, they are the most diverse order of birds after the passerines. Description As their name ("footless" in Greek) suggests, their legs are small and have limited function aside from perching. The feet are covered with bare skin rather than the scales (scutes) that other birds have. Another shared characteristic is long wings with short, stout humerus bones. The evolution of these wing characteristics has provided the hummingbird with ideal wings for hovering.Mayr, Gerald (2003): Phylogeny of early tertiary swifts and hummingbirds (Aves: Apodiformes). ''Auk'' 120(1): 145–151.PDF fulltext The hummingbirds, swifts, and cr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caprimulgiformes
Nightjars are medium-sized nocturnal or crepuscular birds in the family Caprimulgidae and order Caprimulgiformes, characterised by long wings, short legs, and very short bills. They are sometimes called goatsuckers, due to the ancient folk tale that they sucked the milk from goats (the Latin for goatsucker is ''caprimulgus''), or bugeaters, their primary source of food being insects. Some New World species are called nighthawks. The English word "nightjar" originally referred to the European nightjar. Nightjars are found all around the world, with the exception of Antarctica and certain island groups such as the Seychelles. They can be found in a variety of habitats, most commonly the open country with some vegetation. They usually nest on the ground, with a habit of resting and roosting on roads. The subfamilies of nightjars have similar characteristics, including small feet, of little use for walking, and long, pointed wings. Typical nightjars, though, have rictal bristle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bird
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. B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nightjar
Nightjars are medium-sized nocturnal or crepuscular birds in the family Caprimulgidae and order Caprimulgiformes, characterised by long wings, short legs, and very short bills. They are sometimes called goatsuckers, due to the ancient folk tale that they sucked the milk from goats (the Latin for goatsucker is ''caprimulgus''), or bugeaters, their primary source of food being insects. Some New World species are called nighthawks. The English word "nightjar" originally referred to the European nightjar. Nightjars are found all around the world, with the exception of Antarctica and certain island groups such as the Seychelles. They can be found in a variety of habitats, most commonly the open country with some vegetation. They usually nest on the ground, with a habit of resting and roosting on roads. The subfamilies of nightjars have similar characteristics, including small feet, of little use for walking, and long, pointed wings. Typical nightjars, though, have rictal bristles ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frogmouth
The frogmouths are a group of nocturnal birds related to owlet-nightjars, swifts, and hummingbirds. Species in the group are distributed in the Indomalayan and Australasian realms. Biology They are named for their large flattened hooked bill and huge frog-like gape, which they use to capture insects. The three ''Podargus'' species are large frogmouths restricted to Australia and New Guinea, that have massive flat broad bills. They are known to take larger prey such as small vertebrates (frogs, mice, etc.), which are sometimes beaten against a stone before swallowing. The ten ''Batrachostomus'' frogmouths are found in tropical Asia. They have smaller, more rounded bills and are predominantly insectivorous. Both ''Podargus'' and ''Batrachostomus'' have bristles around the base of the bill, and ''Batrachostomus'' has other, longer bristles which may exist to protect the eyes from insect prey. In April 2007, a new species of frogmouth was described from the Solomon Islands and placed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flightless Bird
Flightless birds are birds that through evolution lost the ability to fly. There are over 60 extant species, including the well known ratites (ostriches, emu, cassowaries, rheas, and kiwi) and penguins. The smallest flightless bird is the Inaccessible Island rail (length 12.5 cm, weight 34.7 g). The largest (both heaviest and tallest) flightless bird, which is also the largest living bird, is the ostrich (2.7 m, 156 kg). Many domesticated birds, such as the domestic chicken and domestic duck, have lost the ability to fly for extended periods, although their ancestral species, the red junglefowl and mallard, respectively, are capable of extended flight. A few particularly bred birds, such as the Broad Breasted White turkey, have become totally flightless as a result of selective breeding; the birds were bred to grow massive breast meat that weighs too much for the bird's wings to support in flight. Flightlessness has evolved in many different birds independently, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Crepuscular
In zoology, a crepuscular animal is one that is active primarily during the twilight period, being matutinal, vespertine, or both. This is distinguished from diurnal and nocturnal behavior, where an animal is active during the hours of daylight and of darkness, respectively. Some crepuscular animals may also be active by moonlight or during an overcast day. Matutinal animals are active only before sunrise, and vespertine only after sunset. A number of factors impact the time of day an animal is active. Predators hunt when their prey is available, and prey try to avoid the times when their principal predators are at large. The temperature at midday may be too high or at night too low. Some creatures may adjust their activities depending on local competition. Etymology and usage The word ''crepuscular'' derives from the Latin '' crepusculum'' ("twilight"). Its sense accordingly differs from diurnal and nocturnal behavior, which respectively peak during hours of daylight and da ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
ATPase
ATPases (, Adenosine 5'-TriPhosphatase, adenylpyrophosphatase, ATP monophosphatase, triphosphatase, SV40 T-antigen, ATP hydrolase, complex V (mitochondrial electron transport), (Ca2+ + Mg2+)-ATPase, HCO3−-ATPase, adenosine triphosphatase) are a class of enzymes that catalyze the decomposition of ATP into ADP and a free phosphate ion or the inverse reaction. This dephosphorylation reaction releases energy, which the enzyme (in most cases) harnesses to drive other chemical reactions that would not otherwise occur. This process is widely used in all known forms of life. Some such enzymes are integral membrane proteins (anchored within biological membranes), and move solutes across the membrane, typically against their concentration gradient. These are called transmembrane ATPases. Functions Transmembrane ATPases import metabolites necessary for cell metabolism and export toxins, wastes, and solutes that can hinder cellular processes. An important example is the sodium-potass ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Second Millennium AD
File:2nd millennium montage.png, From top left, clockwise: in 1492, Christopher Columbus reaches North America, opening the European colonization of the Americas; the American Revolution, one of the late 1700s Enlightenment-inspired Atlantic Revolutions; the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople; the Atomic Bomb from World War II; an alternate source of light, the light bulb; for the first time, a human being sets foot on the moon in 1969 during the Apollo 11 moon mission; airplanes enable widespread air travel; Napoleon Bonaparte, in the early 19th century, affects France and Europe with expansionism, modernization, and nationalism; Alexander Graham Bell's telephone; in 1348, the Black Death kills in just two years over 100 million people worldwide, and over half of Europe. (Background: An excerpt from the Gutenberg Bible, the first major book printed in the West using movable type, in the 1450s), 500px, thumb rect 3 3 253 191 European colonization of the Americas rect 259 5 438 123 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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