The African pipit (''Anthus cinnamomeus'') is a fairly small
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 t ...
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 lightweigh ...
belonging to the
pipit
The pipits are a Cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan genus, ''Anthus'', of small passerine birds with medium to long tails. Along with the wagtails and longclaws, the pipits make up the family (biology), family Motacillidae. The genus is wide ...
genus ''Anthus'' in the family
Motacillidae
The wagtails, longclaws, and pipits are a family, Motacillidae, of small passerine birds with medium to long tails. Around 70 species occur in five genera. The longclaws are entirely restricted to the Afrotropics, and the wagtails are predominan ...
. It is also known as the grassveld pipit or grassland pipit. It was formerly lumped together with the
Richard's,
Australian
Australian(s) may refer to:
Australia
* Australia, a country
* Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia
** European Australians
** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists
** Aboriginal Au ...
,
mountain
A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...
and
paddyfield pipit
The paddyfield pipit or Oriental pipit (''Anthus rufulus'') is a small passerine bird in the pipit and wagtail family. It is a resident (non- migratory) breeder in open scrub, grassland and cultivation in southern Asia east to the Philippines. Al ...
s in a single species, Richard's pipit (''Anthus novaeseelandiae''), but is now often treated as a species in its own right.
Subspecies
Some 15 subspecies are recognized:
* ''A. (c.) camaroonensis''
Shelley, 1900 – highlands of western
Cameroon
Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...
* ''A. c. lynesi''
Bannerman & Bates, 1926 – southeastern
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
to southwestern
Sudan
Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...
* ''A. c. stabilis''
Clancey, 1986 – locally in Sudan and
South Sudan
South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the C ...
* ''A. c. cinnamomeus''
Rüppell, 1840 – locally in
Ethiopian highlands
The Ethiopian Highlands is a rugged mass of mountains in Ethiopia in Northeast Africa. It forms the largest continuous area of its elevation in the continent, with little of its surface falling below , while the summits reach heights of up to . ...
* ''A. c. eximius''
Clancey, 1986 – southern
Arabian peninsula
The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate ...
* ''A. c. annae''
R.Meinertzhagen, 1921 – coastal
Horn of Africa
The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...
to coastal
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
* ''A. c. itombwensis''
Prigogine, 1981 – eastern highlands of the
DRC
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
* ''A. c. lacuum''
R.Meinertzhagen, 1920 – perimeter of
Lake Victoria
Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface area after ...
to central Tanzania
* ''A. c. latistriatus''
F.J.Jackson, 1899 – seasonal vagrant from its
Itombwe Mountains
The Itombwe Mountains (or Itombwe Massif, Plateau) are a range of mountains in the South Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). They run along the west shore of the northern part of Lake Tanganyika. They contain a vast area o ...
breeding range
* ''A. c. winterbottomi''
Clancey, 1985 – highlands of
Malawi
Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...
and adjacent countries
* ''A. c. lichenya''
Vincent, 1933 – plateaus of tropical and southcentral Africa, incl. Zimbabwean plateau
* ''A. c. spurium''
Clancey, 1951 – lowlands of southcentral Africa to coastal lowlands of
Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
* ''A. c. bocagii''
Nicholson, 1884 – drier regions of southcentral Africa, reaching northern South Africa
* ''A. c. grotei''
Niethammer, 1957 – higher rainfall regions of
Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
and
Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
* ''A. c. rufuloides''
Roberts, 1936 – plateaus and lowlands of
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
,
Eswatini
Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its no ...
and
Lesotho
Lesotho ( ), officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a country landlocked country, landlocked as an Enclave and exclave, enclave in South Africa. It is situated in the Maloti Mountains and contains the Thabana Ntlenyana, highest mountains in Sou ...
Distribution and habitat
It occurs in grassland and fields in
Southern,
Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
and
East
East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth.
Etymology
As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
, south-east of a line from
Angola
, national_anthem = " Angola Avante"()
, image_map =
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, religion_year = 2020
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through the
DRCongo to
Sudan
Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...
. It is also found in south-western
Arabia
The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...
. There is an isolated population in the highlands of
Cameroon
Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...
which is sometimes considered to be a separate species: Cameroon pipit (''Anthus camaroonensis'').
Description
The African pipit is long and is a slender bird with an erect stance. It is buffy-brown above with darker streaks. The underparts are white or pale buff with a streaked breast and plain belly and flanks. The face is boldly patterned with a pale stripe over the eye and a dark malar stripe. The outer tail-feathers are white. The legs are long and pinkish and the slender
bill
Bill(s) may refer to:
Common meanings
* Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States)
* Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature
* Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer
* Bill, a bird or animal's beak
Plac ...
is dark with a yellowish base to the lower mandible.
Juvenile birds have a blotched breast, scalloping on the upperparts and some streaking on the flanks.
The
song
A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetitio ...
is a repeated series of twittering notes, given during an undulating song-flight or from a low perch.
The Cameroon pipit is slightly larger and darker with buff underparts.
Conservation status
Zimmerman, Turner, and Pearson (1999) call it "the common East African pipit", but
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 ...
has
lumped the African pipit with Richard's pipit, and therefore has given it no separate conservation status.
Gallery
Image:Anthus cinnamomeus, nes, b, Zoutpan.jpg, left, A nest of ''A. c. rufuloides'' in a grassy floodplain, South Africa]
Image:African pipit (Anthus cinnamomeus) (13971536013), crop.jpg, left, Juvenile ''A. c. rufuloides'' showing heavy mottling on the mantle plumage
Image:African Pipit (Anthus cinnamomeus) lacuum - Flickr - Lip Kee.jpg, left, Adult ''A. c. lacuum'' in Kenya
References
*Peacock, Faansie (2006)
Pipits of Southern Africa'. Accessed 25/06/07.
*Sinclair, Ian & Ryan, Peter (2003) ''Birds of Africa south of the Sahara'', Struik, Cape Town.
*Zimmerman, Dale A.; Turner, Donald A. & Pearson, David J. (1999) ''Birds of Kenya & Northern Tanzania'', Christopher Helm, London.
External links
* African/Grassveld Pipit
Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds
{{Taxonbar, from=Q995602
Anthus
Birds of Africa
Birds of Southern Africa
Birds of Sub-Saharan Africa
Birds described in 1840