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Verreaux's Coua
Verreaux's coua (''Coua verreauxi'') is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae. It is endemic to Madagascar. According to a BBC documentary, it is found only near a salt lake in the southern part of the island. The lake is 16 km long but only a couple of metres deep. The area has been drying out for the last 40,000 years and the organisms living here have become adapted to conserve water.BBC, ''Zoo Quest: Island of Marvels,'' Part 3Video clip, 0:06:50 – 0:08:35, Verreaux's coua/ref> The bird's name commemorates French ornithologist and collector Jules Verreaux. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland. The birds are found in southern part of the spiny forest zone. They live in coastal euphorbia scrub, and are most active at dawn and dusk. Birders listen for its descending series of loud contact calls, "corick-corick-corick-corick". A sympatric species is the crested coua, ''C. cristata.'' [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alfred Grandidier
Alfred Grandidier (20 December 1836 – 13 September 1921) was a French natural history, naturalist and List of explorers, explorer. From a very wealthy family, at the age of 20, he and his brother, Ernest Grandidier (1833–1912), undertook a voyage around the world. At first they were led by the astronomer and physicist Pierre Jules César Janssen (1824–1907), but when Janssen fell sick and had to return to France after about six months, the brothers continued the journey. They visited South America in 1858 and 1859 and in particular the Andes, Peru, Chile, Bolivia, Argentina and Brazil. During this voyage they gathered a significant collection of specimens which were analyzed, in 1860, by Ernest. The two brothers parted ways after this. Ernest Grandidier went to China and collected a vast number of specimens which are now in the Louvre and the Guimet Museum, Guimet museum. Alfred travelled to India, reaching it in 1863. He had intended to explore the high plateau of Tibet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coral Rag
Coral rag is a rubbly limestone composed of ancient coral reef material. The term also refers to the building blocks quarried from these strata, which are an important local building material in areas such as the coast of East Africa and the southeastern United States littoral (e.g. Florida, Bermuda). It is also the name of a member—the Coral Rag Member—of the Upper Oxfordian Coralline Oolite Formation of North Yorkshire. "Calne Freestone And Coral Rag" is a former name for the Stanford Formation, which stretches from Westbury in Wiltshire to Waddesdon in Buckinghamshire. Varieties * Corallian Limestone * Keystone (limestone) See also * Coral Rag Formation *Coral sand Coral sand is a form of aragonite sand particles originating in tropical and sub-tropical marine environments primarily from bioerosion of limestone skeletal material of marine organisms. Often, this is due to corallivores, such as parrotfish ... * List of types of limestone Notes Limestone ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Birds Described In 1867
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 common ostrich. There are over 11,000 living species and they are split into 44 orders. More than half are passerine or "perching" birds. Birds have wings 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, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coua
Couas are large, mostly terrestrial birds of the cuckoo family, endemic to the island of Madagascar. Couas are reminiscent of African turacos when walking along tree branches, and they likewise feature brightly coloured bare skin around the eyes. Some resemble coucals in their habit of clambering through jungle while foraging, while the arboreal species move between tree canopies with gliding flight. Four species have been recorded in rainforests while the remaining six are found in the dry forests of western and southern Madagascar. They have large feet, with a reversible third toe like all cuckoos. Their long tibia suggest a relationship with the '' Carpococcyx'' ground-cuckoos of Asia, a genus with similar nestlings. Consequently, they are sometimes united in the subfamily ''Couinae''. Couas build their own nests and lay white eggs. Couas' calls are a short series of evenly-spaced notes, which are sometimes answered by other individuals. Taxonomy The genus ''Coua'' was ere ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charcoal
Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, called charcoal burning, often by forming a charcoal kiln, the heat is supplied by burning part of the starting material itself, with a limited supply of oxygen. The material can also be heated in a closed retort. Modern charcoal briquettes used for outdoor cooking may contain many other additives, e.g. coal. The early history of wood charcoal production spans ancient times, rooted in the abundance of wood in various regions. The process typically involves stacking wood billets to form a conical pile, allowing air to enter through openings at the bottom, and igniting the pile gradually. Charcoal burners, skilled professionals tasked with managing the delicate operation, often lived in isolation to tend their wood piles . Throughout histo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Habitat Loss
Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease in biodiversity and Abundance (ecology), species numbers. Habitat destruction is in fact the leading cause of biodiversity loss and species extinction worldwide. Humans contribute to habitat destruction through the Exploitation of natural resources, use of natural resources, agriculture, industrial production and urbanization (urban sprawl). Other activities include mining, logging and trawling. Environmental factors can contribute to habitat destruction more indirectly. Geological processes, climate change, introduced species, introduction of invasive species, ecosystem nutrient depletion, water pollution, water and noise pollution are some examples. Loss of habitat can be preceded by an initial habitat fragmentation. Fragmentation and lo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Least Concern
A least-concern species is a species that has been evaluated and categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as not being a focus of wildlife conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. They do not qualify as threatened, near threatened, or (before 2001) conservation dependent. Species cannot be assigned the "Least Concern" category unless they have had their population status evaluated. That is, adequate information is needed to make a direct, or indirect, assessment of its risk of extinction based on its distribution or population status. Evaluation Since 2001 the category has had the abbreviation "LC", following the IUCN 2001 Categories & Criteria (version 3.1). Before 2001 "least concern" was a subcategory of the " Lower Risk" category and assigned the code "LR/lc" or lc. Around 20% of least concern taxa (3261 of 15,636) in the IUCN database still use the code "LR/lc", which indicates they have not been re- ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
IUCN
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status of the natural world and the measures needed to safeguard it. It is involved in data gathering and Data analysis, analysis, research, field projects, advocacy, and education. IUCN's mission is to "influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable". Over the past decades, IUCN has widened its focus beyond conservation ecology and now incorporates issues related to sustainable development in its projects. IUCN does not itself aim to mobilize the public in support of nature conservation. It tries to influence the actions of governments, business and other stakeholders by providing information and advice and through buildin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Crested Coua
The crested coua (''Coua cristata'') is a common medium-sized bird member of the cuckoo family, Cuculidae. It is endemic to Madagascar, mainly found in the coastal regions of the island. The crested coua is a weak flyer, so it will often be observed hopping from branch to branch in high canopies. It is distinguished mainly by its greenish-grey back, its prominent grey head crest, rufous-coloured breast, white abdomen and bright turquoise and blue patches of bare skin around the eyes. Description Adults The adult crested coua is a medium-sized bird, averaging between 12 and 17 inches (30 to 44 cm) in length. It has a greenish-gray plumage on the back, a white abdomen, rufous-colored chest and brown eyes. Its long tail is purplish-blue with white tips and its bill and beak are black. Its defining characteristics are its prominent grey head crest and, as goes for all couas, its colourful patches of bare skin around the eyes, which is blue and turquoise in crested co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cuckoo
Cuckoos are birds in the Cuculidae ( ) family, the sole taxon in the order Cuculiformes ( ). The cuckoo family includes the common or European cuckoo, roadrunners, koels, malkohas, couas, coucals, and anis. The coucals and anis are sometimes separated as distinct families, the Centropodidae and Crotophagidae, respectively. The cuckoo order Cuculiformes is one of three that make up the Otidimorphae, the other two being the turacos and the bustards. The family Cuculidae contains 150 species, which are divided into 33 genera. The cuckoos are generally medium-sized, slender birds. Most species live in trees, though a sizeable minority are ground-dwelling. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution; the majority of species are tropical. Some species are migratory. The cuckoos feed on insects, insect larvae, and a variety of other animals, as well as fruit. Some species are brood parasites, laying their eggs in the nests of other species and giving rise to the terms " cu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Euphorbia
''Euphorbia'' is a large and diverse genus of flowering plants, commonly called spurge, in the family (biology), family Euphorbiaceae. Euphorbias range from tiny annual plants to large and long-lived trees, with perhaps the tallest being ''Euphorbia ampliphylla'' at or more. The genus has roughly 2,000 members, making it one of the List of the largest genera of flowering plants, largest genera of flowering plants. It also has one of the largest ranges of ploidy, chromosome counts, along with ''Rumex'' and ''Senecio''. ''Euphorbia antiquorum'' is the type species for the genus ''Euphorbia''. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1753 in ''Species Plantarum''. Some euphorbias are widely available commercially, such as poinsettias at Christmas. Some are commonly cultivated as ornamentals, or collected and highly valued for the aesthetic appearance of their unique floral structures, such as the crown of thorns plant (''Euphorbia milii''). Succulent plant, Succulent euphorbi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominance (ecology), dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbaceous plant, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It may be the mature vegetation type in a particular region and remain stable over time, or it may be a transitional community that occurs temporarily as the result of a disturbance, such as fire. A stable state may be maintained by regular natural disturbance such as fire or browsing (predation), browsing. Shrubland may be unsuitable for human habitation because of the danger of fire. The term was coined in 1903. Shrubland species generally show a wide range of adaptations to fire, such as heavy seed production, lignotubers, and fire-induced germination. Botanical structural form In botany and ecology a shrub is defined as a much-branched woody plant less than 8 m high, usually with many plant stem, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
