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Prionops
Helmetshrikes are a family uniting some smallish to mid-sized songbird species. They were included with the true shrikes in the family Laniidae, later on split between several presumably closely related groups such as bushshrikes ( Malaconotidae) and cuckooshrikes ( Campephagidae), but are now considered sufficiently distinctive to be separated from that group into the family Vangidae. Description and ecology This is an African group of species which are found in scrub or open woodland. They are similar in feeding habits to shrikes, hunting insects and other small prey from a perch on a bush or tree. Although similar in build to the shrikes, these tend to be colourful species with the distinctive crests or other head ornaments, such as wattles, from which they get their name. Helmetshrikes are noisy and sociable birds, some of which breed in loose colonies. They lay 2–4 eggs in neat, well-hidden nests. Systematics As the relationships of the shrike-like birds are increasin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prionops
Helmetshrikes are a family uniting some smallish to mid-sized songbird species. They were included with the true shrikes in the family Laniidae, later on split between several presumably closely related groups such as bushshrikes ( Malaconotidae) and cuckooshrikes ( Campephagidae), but are now considered sufficiently distinctive to be separated from that group into the family Vangidae. Description and ecology This is an African group of species which are found in scrub or open woodland. They are similar in feeding habits to shrikes, hunting insects and other small prey from a perch on a bush or tree. Although similar in build to the shrikes, these tend to be colourful species with the distinctive crests or other head ornaments, such as wattles, from which they get their name. Helmetshrikes are noisy and sociable birds, some of which breed in loose colonies. They lay 2–4 eggs in neat, well-hidden nests. Systematics As the relationships of the shrike-like birds are increasin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Retz's Helmetshrike
Retz's helmetshrike (''Prionops retzii'') is a species of bird in the helmetshrike family Vangidae, formerly usually included in the Malaconotidae. Subspecies Four subspecies are recognized: * ''P. r. nigricans'' (Neumann, 1899) – south central Africa * ''P. r. graculinus'' Cabanis, 1868 – East Africa * ''P. r. retzii'' Wahlberg, 1856 – northern parts of southern Africa * ''P. r. tricolor'' G.R. Gray, 1864 – eastern and southeastern Africa Range and habitat It is found in Angola, Botswana, DRC, Eswatini, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...s, subtropical or tropical mangrove forests, and subtropical or trop ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yellow-crested Helmetshrike
The yellow-crested helmetshrike (''Prionops alberti'') or King Albert's helmetshrike is a species of bird in the Vanga family Vangidae. This large, striking helmetshrike is unique in its black plumage and bright yellow crest. Though this species has been encountered broadly across the mountains of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, there is still much to learn about this species. It is rarely reported due to the majority of its distribution occurring in relatively remote regions within the Albertine Rift, an area with ongoing armed conflict. Description Appearance Adults are generally all black with a bright yellow or gold crest (sometimes described as a "helmet"), with the yellow extending across the entire top half of the head above the eyeline and extending backwards behind the eye. The greenish-yellow irides are surrounded by an orange eye-wattle; the bill, like the plumage, is black, though the legs and feet are reported to be light red. Individuals can be qui ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
White-crested Helmetshrike
The white-crested helmetshrike (''Prionops plumatus''), also known as the white helmetshrike, is a species of passerine bird in the Vanga family Vangidae, formerly usually included in the Malaconotidae. Distribution and habitat It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, dry savanna A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland- grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ..., moist savanna, and subtropical ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chestnut-fronted Helmetshrike
The chestnut-fronted helmetshrike (''Prionops scopifrons'') is a species of bird in the Vanga family Vangidae, formerly usually included in the Malaconotidae. It is found in Kenya, Mozambique, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, and subtropical or tropical moist shrubland found around the equator. References External links * Chestnut-fronted helmetshrike Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds chestnut-fronted helmetshrike Birds of East Africa chestnut-fronted helmetshrike chestnut-fronted helmetshrike The chestnut-fronted helmetshrike (''Prionops scopifrons'') is a species of bird in the Vanga family Vangidae, formerly usually included in the Malaconotidae. It is found in Kenya, Mozambique, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe. Its ... Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Corvoidea-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rufous-bellied Helmetshrike
The rufous-bellied helmetshrike or Gabon helmetshrike (''Prionops rufiventris'') is a passerine bird belonging to the Vanga family, Vangidae. It inhabits tropical forest in Central Africa. It is sometimes included within the chestnut-bellied helmetshrike (''P. caniceps'') of West Africa. Description It is 20–22 cm long. The adult has glossy black upperparts and throat and reddish-brown underparts with a narrow white breastband. The top and sides of the head and the chin are pale blue-grey and there are bushy whitish feathers on the forehead. The wings are broad and rounded with a white band across the primaries. The bill, legs and feet are orange-red and the eye is yellow with a bare orange-red ring around it. The eastern subspecies ''P. r. mentalis'' has darker underparts and a grey-brown eye. Juvenile birds are duller than the adults and have a pale buff-white breast and belly and a largely whitish head. The bill is blackish and the legs and feet are dark orange. It ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grey-crested Helmetshrike
The gray-crested helmetshrike (''Prionops poliolophus'') is a species of bird in the Vanga family Vangidae, formerly usually included in the Malaconotidae. It is found in Kenya and Tanzania. Its natural habitats are dry savanna and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland. It is threatened by habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby .... References grey-crested helmetshrike Birds of East Africa grey-crested helmetshrike grey-crested helmetshrike Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Corvoidea-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gabela Helmetshrike
The Gabela helmetshrike (''Prionops gabela'') is a species of bird in the Vanga family Vangidae, formerly usually included in the Malaconotidae. It is endemic to Angola. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threatened by habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby .... References External linksBirdLife Species Factsheet. Gabela helmetshrike Endemic birds of Angola Gabela helmetshrike Gabela helmetshrike Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Corvoidea-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Red-billed Helmetshrike
The red-billed helmetshrike or chestnut-bellied helmetshrike (''Prionops caniceps'') is a species of bird in the Vanga family, Vangidae, formerly usually included in the Malaconotidae. It is found in West Africa, occurring in Benin, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Togo. In Central Africa it is replaced by the rufous-bellied helmet-shrike (''P. rufiventris'') which is sometimes regarded as a subspecies of the chestnut-bellied Helmetshrike. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical moist shrubland. References * African Bird Club (2008) ABC African Checklist: Passerines' Accessed 20/08/08. red-billed helmetshrike Birds of West Africa red-billed helmetshrike red-billed helmetshrike The red-billed helmetshrike or chestnut-bellied helmetshrike (''Prionops caniceps'') is a species of bird in the Vanga family (biology), family, Vangidae, formerly usually included in the Malac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Evolutionary Radiation
An evolutionary radiation is an increase in taxonomic diversity that is caused by elevated rates of speciation, that may or may not be associated with an increase in morphological disparity. Radiations may affect one clade or many, and be rapid or gradual; where they are rapid, and driven by a single lineage's adaptation to their environment, they are termed adaptive radiations. Examples Perhaps the most familiar example of an evolutionary radiation is that of placental mammals immediately after the extinction of the non-avian dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous, about 66 million years ago. At that time, the placental mammals were mostly small, insect-eating animals similar in size and shape to modern shrews. By the Eocene (58–37 million years ago), they had evolved into such diverse forms as bats, whales, and horses. Other familiar radiations include the Avalon Explosion, the Cambrian Explosion, the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event, the Carboniferous-Earliest Perm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot
Louis Pierre Vieillot (10 May 1748, Yvetot – 24 August 1830, Sotteville-lès-Rouen) was a French ornithologist. Vieillot is the author of the first scientific descriptions and Linnaean names of a number of birds, including species he collected himself in the West Indies and North America and South American species discovered but not formally named by Félix de Azara and his translator Sonnini de Manoncourt. He was among the first ornithologists to study changes in plumage and one of the first to study live birds. At least 77 of the genera erected by Vieillot are still in use. Biography Vieillot was born in Yvetot. He represented his family's business interests in Saint-Domingue (Haiti) on Hispaniola, but fled to the United States during the Haitian rebellions that followed the French Revolution. On Buffon's advice, he collected material for the ''Histoire naturelle des oiseaux de l'Amérique Septentrionale,'' the first two volumes of which were published in France beginning i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
