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Plains-wanderer
The plains-wanderer (''Pedionomus torquatus'') is a bird, the only representative of family Pedionomidae and genus ''Pedionomus''. It is endemic to Australia. The majority of the remaining population is found in the Riverina region of New South Wales. Description The plains-wanderer is a quail-like ground bird, measuring 15–19 cm. It is such an atypical bird that it is placed in an entire family of its own, Pedionomidae. The adult male is light brown above, with fawn-white underparts with black crescents. The adult female is substantially larger than the male, and has a distinctive white-spotted black collar. They have excellent camouflage, and will first hide at any disturbance. If approached too closely, they will run rather than fly, at which they are very poor. Females lay four eggs, which the male then incubates. Taxonomy It was formerly believed to be related to the buttonquails and thus placed in the gamebird order Galliformes or with the cranes and rail ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charles Lucien Jules Laurent Bonaparte
Charles Lucien Jules Laurent Bonaparte, 2nd Prince of Canino and Musignano (24 May 1803 – 29 July 1857), was a French naturalist and ornithologist. Lucien and his wife had twelve children, including Cardinal Lucien Bonaparte. Life and career Bonaparte was the son of Lucien Bonaparte and Alexandrine de Bleschamp. Lucien was a younger brother of Napoleon I, making Charles the emperor’s nephew. Born in Paris, he was raised in Italy. On 29 June 1822, he married his cousin, Zénaïde, in Brussels. Soon after the marriage, the couple left for Philadelphia in the United States to live with Zénaïde's father, Joseph Bonaparte (who was also the paternal uncle of Charles). Before leaving Italy, Charles had already discovered a warbler new to science, the moustached warbler, and on the voyage he collected specimens of a new storm-petrel. On arrival in the United States, he presented a paper on this new bird, which was later named after Alexander Wilson. Bonaparte then set about st ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jacana (genus)
''Jacana'' is the genus comprising the two jacanas of the Americas: the northern jacana, ''Jacana spinosa'', and the wattled jacana, ''Jacana jacana''. The two species are very similar to each other: about long, with long necks and fairly long yellow bills. Adults are black and chestnut-brown, with pale yellow-green flight feathers that contrast conspicuously when a bird flies. Their legs are long and grayish, and as in all jacanas, their toes are extremely long for walking on aquatic vegetation such as lily pads. They have frontal shields (like those of coots) and wattles; differences in these are the most noticeable differences between the species. Juveniles are brown above and white below, with a buff-white stripe above the eye and a dark stripe behind it. The dark colors are somewhat darker on the juvenile wattled jacana than on the northern. Together the species occur in marshes in the American tropics and subtropics. The northern jacana's range meets that of the wattled ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Queensland
) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_date = Colony of Queensland , established_title2 = Separation from New South Wales , established_date2 = 6 June 1859 , established_title3 = Federation , established_date3 = 1 January 1901 , named_for = Queen Victoria , demonym = , capital = Brisbane , largest_city = capital , coordinates = , admin_center_type = Administration , admin_center = 77 local government areas , leader_title1 = Monarch , leader_name1 = Charles III , leader_title2 = Governor , leader_name2 = Jeannette Young , leader_title3 = Premier , leader_name3 = Annastacia Palaszczuk ( ALP) , legislature = Parliament of Queensland , judiciary = Supreme Court of Queensland , national_representation = Parliament of Australia , national_representation_type ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Astrebla Downs National Park
Astrebla Downs is a national park in Shire of Diamantina, Queensland, Australia. Geography Astrebla Downs is located in the Channel Country of outback Queensland, 1298 km west of Brisbane. The landscape is flat and barren with few trees. The average elevation of the terrain is 108 meters. Animals The park received an award in March 2007 by the WWF for being among the top 10 reserves of the decade. Recognition was given for the successful efforts to protect the bilby, an endangered mammal native to Australia. By 2008 it was estimated the park contained a bilby population of around 300. In 2009, a plague of long-haired rats descended on the park. The large numbers of rats attract feral cats to the area, which pose a threat to the bilby. Between 2011 and 2021, control measures have got rid of more than 3,000 cats, and 471 bilbies were spotted on a survey in June 2021. The park is home to the kowari, a tiny carnivorous marsupial which is a vulnerable species in Queensla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Diamantina National Park
Diamantina National Park is a national park in the Channel Country of South West Queensland, Australia, west of Brisbane. Like the Diamantina River that flows through it, it is named for Lady Diamantina Bowen, wife of Sir George Bowen, the first Governor of Queensland. Established in 1993 after the Queensland Government purchased Diamantina Lakes Station in 1992 and gazetted the property as a national park with an area of , Diamantina National Park received an award in March 2007 from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) for being among the top 10 reserves of the decade. Recognition was given for the successful efforts to protect the bilby, an endangered mammal native to Australia. Livestock was removed from the park in 1998. Parts of the park contain traditional aboriginal lands. These are noted for their food resources and numerous habitation sites. Aboriginals would roam the area, moving from the sandhills and gibber country in the wet season and returning to permanent water i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boolcoomatta, Bindarrah And Kalkaroo Stations Important Bird Area
The Boolcoomatta, Bindarrah and Kalkaroo Stations Important Bird Area is a 1402 km2 tract of land in north-eastern South Australia. It comprises three pastoral properties, 53,000 ha Kalkaroo Station, 24,000 ha Bindarrah Station, and 63,000 ha Boolcoomatta. The whole site has been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBA) because it supports a significant population of endangered plains-wanderers – perhaps the largest population of the species outside the Riverina region of New South Wales. Description The IBA lies on sandy and clay loam soils that support open tussock grasslands and chenopod shrublands, with stands of river redgums on drainage courses. The three properties have a history of extensive grazing by livestock and by feral herbivores. Boolcoomatta, formerly a sheep station but since 2006 a private protected area has been owned and managed by Bush Heritage Australia. Birds As well as plains-wanderers, significant ... [...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] |
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife International. There are over 13,000 IBAs worldwide. These sites are small enough to be entirely conserved and differ in their character, habitat or ornithological importance from the surrounding habitat. In the United States the Program is administered by the National Audubon Society. Often IBAs form part of a country's existing protected area network, and so are protected under national legislation. Legal recognition and protection of IBAs that are not within existing protected areas varies within different countries. Some countries have a National IBA Conservation Strategy, whereas in others protection is completely lacking. History In 1985, following a specific request from the European Economic Community, Birdlife International ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Red Fox
The red fox (''Vulpes vulpes'') is the largest of the true foxes and one of the most widely distributed members of the Order (biology), order Carnivora, being present across the entire Northern Hemisphere including most of North America, Europe and Asia, plus parts of North Africa. It is listed as least concern by the IUCN. Its range has increased alongside human expansion, having been Foxes in Australia, introduced to Australia, where it is considered harmful to native mammals and bird populations. Due to its presence in Australia, it is included on the list of the List of the world's 100 worst invasive species, "world's 100 worst invasive species". The red fox originated from smaller-sized ancestors from Eurasia during the Middle Villafranchian period, and colonised North America shortly after the Wisconsin glaciation. Among the true foxes, the red fox represents a more progressive form in the direction of Carnivore, carnivory. Apart from its large size, the red fox is disting ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grassland
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica and are found in most ecoregions of the Earth. Furthermore, grasslands are one of the largest biomes on earth and dominate the landscape worldwide. There are different types of grasslands: natural grasslands, semi-natural grasslands, and agricultural grasslands. They cover 31–69% of the Earth's land area. Definitions Included among the variety of definitions for grasslands are: * "...any plant community, including harvested forages, in which grasses and/or legumes make up the dominant vegetation." * "...terrestrial ecosystems dominated by herbaceous and shrub vegetation, and maintained by fire, grazing, drought and/or freezing temperatures." (Pilot Assessment of Global Ecosystems, 2000) * "A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seedsnipe
The seedsnipes are a small family, Thinocoridae, of small gregarious waders which have adapted to a herbivorous diet. The family is divided into two genera, ''Attagis'' and '' Thinocorus'', each containing two species. The family has a South American distribution, in the Andean and Patagonian regions. The relationships with other families within the order Charadriiformes are uncertain; it has been suggested that the plains wanderer of Australia, the jacanas and the painted snipes are their closest relatives. The plains wanderer in particular has a similar feeding ecology, although differs markedly in breeding biology. The family's common name is misleading, as they do not resemble true snipe, having short bills on small heads, and seeds do not form a major part of the diet.Fjeldså, J. (1996) "Family Thinocoridae (Seedsnipes)" ''in'' del Hoyo, J.; Elliot, A. & Sargatal, J. (editors). (1996). ''Handbook of the Birds of the World.'' Volume 3: Hoatzin to Auks. Lynx Edicions. One ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Painted Snipe
The Rostratulidae, commonly known as the painted-snipes, are a family of wading birds that consists of two genera: ''Rostratula'' and '' Nycticryphes''. Description The painted-snipes are short-legged, long-billed birds similar in shape to the true snipes, but their plumage is much more striking. There is sexual dimorphism in both size and plumage, with the males being duller overall and smaller. All three species have large forward pointing eyes. Phylogenetics The family Rostratulidae encompasses two genera and four species, one of which is extinct. Painted-snipes superficially resemble true snipes, but the two taxa are not closely related. Instead the similarity can be attributed to convergent evolution where both groups have been subjected to similar selective pressures, thus promoting the evolution of analogous features such as a long slender bill and legs, mottled cryptic plumage and characteristic body proportions. While less similar in general morphology, the species tha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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