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Antbird
The antbirds are a large passerine bird family, Thamnophilidae, found across subtropical and tropical Central and South America, from Mexico to Argentina. There are more than 230 species, known variously as antshrikes, antwrens, antvireos, fire-eyes, bare-eyes and bushbirds. They are related to the antthrushes and antpittas (family Formicariidae), the tapaculos, the gnateaters and the ovenbirds. Despite some species' common names, this family is not closely related to the wrens, vireos or shrikes. Antbirds are generally small birds with rounded wings and strong legs. They have mostly sombre grey, white, brown and rufous plumage, which is sexually dimorphic in pattern and colouring. Some species communicate warnings to rivals by exposing white feather patches on their backs or shoulders. Most have heavy bills, which in many species are hooked at the tip. Most species live in forests, although a few are found in other habitats. Insects and other arthropods from the most imp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bicolored Antbird
The bicolored antbird (''Gymnopithys bicolor'') is a species of bird in the family Thamnophilidae. It is found in Honduras south to Panama, western Colombia and Ecuador. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest. It is dark brown with a white belly and grey and black facial markings. Taxonomy The bicolored antbird was described by the American amateur ornithologist George Newbold Lawrence in 1863 and given the binomial name ''Pithys bicolor''. There are five recognised subspecies: * ''G. b. olivascens'' ( Ridgway, 1891) – Honduras to west Panama * ''G. b. bicolor'' (Lawrence, 1863) – east Panama and northwest Colombia * ''G. b. daguae'' Hellmayr Carl Eduard Hellmayr (29 January 1878 in Vienna, Austria – 24 February 1944 in Orselina, Switzerland) was an Austrian ornithologist. Biography Hellmayr was born in Vienna and studied at the University of Vienna, although he did not complete hi ..., 1906 – west Colombia * ''G. b. aequatorialis'' (He ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Army Ant
The name army ant (or legionary ant or ''marabunta'') is applied to over 200 ant species in different lineages. Because of their aggressive predatory foraging groups, known as "raids", a huge number of ants forage simultaneously over a limited area. Another shared feature is that, unlike most ant species, army ants do not construct permanent nests; an army ant colony moves almost incessantly over the time it exists. All species are members of the true ant family, Formicidae, but several groups have independently evolved the same basic behavioural and ecological syndrome. This syndrome is often referred to as "legionary behaviour", and may be an example of convergent evolution. Most New World army ants belong to the genera '' Cheliomyrmex'', ''Neivamyrmex'', ''Nomamyrmex'', ''Labidus'', and ''Eciton''. The largest genus is ''Neivamyrmex'', which contains more than 120 species; the most predominant species is ''Eciton burchellii''; its common name "army ant" is considered to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Formicariidae
Formicariidae is a family of smallish passerine birds of subtropical and tropical Central and South America known as formicariids. They are between in length, and are related to the antbirds, Thamnophilidae, and gnateaters, Conopophagidae. This family contains probably (see below) some 12 species in two fairly small genera. These are forest birds that tend to feed on insects at or near the ground. Most are drab in appearance with shades of (rusty) brown, black, and white being their dominant tones. Compared to other birds that specialize in following ants, this family is the most tied to the ground. The long, powerful legs (which lend the birds a distinctive upright posture) and an essentially vestigial tail aid this lifestyle. They lay two or three eggs in a nest in a tree, both sexes incubating. Systematics The antthrushes in the genera ''Formicarius'' and ''Chamaeza'' are similar in appearance to small rails. Their sexes are alike in plumage, and they walk like starlings. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Formicariidae
Formicariidae is a family of smallish passerine birds of subtropical and tropical Central and South America known as formicariids. They are between in length, and are related to the antbirds, Thamnophilidae, and gnateaters, Conopophagidae. This family contains probably (see below) some 12 species in two fairly small genera. These are forest birds that tend to feed on insects at or near the ground. Most are drab in appearance with shades of (rusty) brown, black, and white being their dominant tones. Compared to other birds that specialize in following ants, this family is the most tied to the ground. The long, powerful legs (which lend the birds a distinctive upright posture) and an essentially vestigial tail aid this lifestyle. They lay two or three eggs in a nest in a tree, both sexes incubating. Systematics The antthrushes in the genera ''Formicarius'' and ''Chamaeza'' are similar in appearance to small rails. Their sexes are alike in plumage, and they walk like starlings. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tapaculo
The tapaculos or tapacolos are a family, Rhinocryptidae, of small suboscine passerine birds, found mainly in South America and with the highest diversity in the Andean regions. Three species ( Chocó, Tacarcuna, and the silvery-fronted) are found in southern Central America. Description Tapaculos are small to medium-sized birds, with a total length ranging from 10–24 cm (4–9½ in). These are terrestrial species that fly only poorly on their short wings. They have strong legs, well-suited to their habitat of grassland or forest undergrowth. The tail is cocked and pointed towards the head, and the name ''tapaculo'' probably derives from Spanish for loincloth (literally "cover your behind" --because it ought to). Another possible explanation is that it originates from the Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ant Follower
Ant followers are birds that feed by following swarms of army ants and take prey flushed by those ants. The best-known ant-followers are 18 species of antbird in the family Thamnophilidae, but other families of birds may follow ants, including thrushes, chats, ant-tanagers, cuckoos, motmots, and woodcreepers. Ant followers may be obligate, meaning that they derive most of their diet by following ant swarms, or non-obligate, meaning they derive only some of their diet from this behaviour. Some species may feed extensively at ant swarms yet may not be obligate ant followers, being able to and regularly feeding away from the swarms as well. Many species of tropical ants form large raiding swarms, but the swarms are often nocturnal or raid underground. While birds visit these swarms when they occur, the species most commonly attended by birds is the Neotropical species ''Eciton burchellii'', which is both diurnal and surface-raiding. It was once thought that attending birds were ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Syrinx (bird Anatomy)
The syrinx (from the Greek word "σύριγξ" for ''pan pipes'') is the vocal organ of birds. Located at the base of a bird's trachea, it produces sounds without the vocal folds of mammals. The sound is produced by vibrations of some or all of the ''membrana tympaniformis'' (the walls of the syrinx) and the '' pessulus'', caused by air flowing through the syrinx. This sets up a self-oscillating system that modulates the airflow creating the sound. The muscles modulate the sound shape by changing the tension of the membranes and the bronchial openings. The syrinx enables some species of birds (such as parrots, crows, and mynas) to mimic human speech. Unlike the larynx in mammals, the syrinx is located where the trachea forks into the lungs. Thus, lateralization is possible, with muscles on the left and right branch modulating vibrations independently so that some songbirds can produce more than one sound at a time. Some species of birds, such as New World vultures, lack a sy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gnateater
The gnateaters are a bird family, Conopophagidae, consisting of ten small passerine species in two genera, which occur in South and Central America. The family was formerly restricted to the gnateater genus ''Conopophaga''; analysis of mtDNA cytochrome ''b'' and NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2 sequences (Rice 2005a,b) indicates that the "antpittas" of the genus ''Pittasoma'' also belong in this family. The association between this genus and ''Conopophaga'' is also supported by traits in their natural history, morphology, and vocalizations (Rice, 2005a). The members of this family are very closely related to the antbirds and less closely to the antpittas and tapaculos. Due to their remote and dim habitat, gnateaters are a little-studied and poorly known family of birds, though they are often sought after by birdwatchers. Description They are round, short-tailed, and long-legged birds, about 12–19 cm (5–7½ inches) in length, with ''Pittasoma'' being larger than ''Conopo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William John Swainson
William John Swainson FLS, FRS (8 October 1789 – 6 December 1855), was an English ornithologist, malacologist, conchologist, entomologist and artist. Life Swainson was born in Dover Place, St Mary Newington, London, the eldest son of John Timothy Swainson the Second (1756–1824), an original fellow of the Linnean Society. He was cousin of the amateur botanist Isaac Swainson.Etymologisches Worterbuch der botanischen Pflanzennamen by H. Genaust. Review by Paul A. Fryxell ''Taxon'', Vol. 38(2), 245–246 (1989). His father's family originated in Lancashire, and both grandfather and father held high posts in Her Majesty's Customs, the father becoming Collector at Liverpool. William, whose formal education was curtailed because of an impediment in his speech, joined the Liverpool Customs as a junior clerk at the age of 14."William Swainson F.R.S, F.L.S., Naturalist and Artist: Diaries 1808–1838: Sicily, Malta, Greece, Italy and Brazil." G .M. Swainson, Palmerston, NZ 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Passerine
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by the arrangement of their toes (three pointing forward and one back), which facilitates perching. With more than 140 families and some 6,500 identified species, Passeriformes is the largest clade of birds and among the most diverse clades of terrestrial vertebrates, representing 60% of birds.Ericson, P.G.P. et al. (2003Evolution, biogeography, and patterns of diversification in passerine birds ''J. Avian Biol'', 34:3–15.Selvatti, A.P. et al. (2015"A Paleogene origin for crown passerines and the diversification of the Oscines in the New World" ''Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution'', 88:1–15. Passerines are divided into three clades: Acanthisitti (New Zealand wrens), Tyranni (suboscines), and Passeri (oscines or songbirds). The passe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ovenbird (family)
Ovenbirds or furnariids are a large family of small suboscine passerine birds found from Mexico and Central to southern South America. They form the family Furnariidae. This is a large family containing around 315 species and 70 genera. The ovenbird (''Seiurus aurocapilla''), which breeds in North America, is not a furnariid – rather it is a distantly related bird of the wood warbler family, Parulidae. The ovenbirds are a diverse group of insectivores which get their name from the elaborate, vaguely "oven-like" clay nests built by the horneros, although most other ovenbirds build stick nests or nest in tunnels or clefts in rock.Remsen, J. V., Jr. 2003. Family Furnariidae (ovenbirds). Pages 162–357 in J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott and D. A. Christie eds. Handbook of the birds of the world, Vol. 8, broadbills to tapaculos. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. The Spanish word for "oven" ''(horno)'' gives the horneros their name. Furnariid nests are always constructed with a cover, and up to s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mixed-species Foraging Flock
A mixed-species feeding flock, also termed a mixed-species foraging flock, mixed hunting party or informally bird wave, is a flock of usually insectivorous birds of different species that join each other and move together while foraging. These are different from feeding aggregations, which are congregations of several species of bird at areas of high food availability. While it is currently unknown how mixed-species foraging flocks originate, researchers have proposed a few mechanisms for their initiation. Many believe that nuclear species play a vital role in mixed-species flock initiation. Additionally, the forest structure is hypothesized to play a vital role in these flocks' formation. In Sri Lanka, for example, vocal mimicry by the greater racket-tailed drongo might have a key role in the initiation of mixed-species foraging flocks, while in parts of the American tropics packs of foraging golden-crowned warblers might play the same role. Composition Mixed-species foragi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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