Gray butcherbird – “Cracticus torquatus”

 Gray butcherbird – “Cracticus torquatus”

SUBFAMILY - Cracticinae

TAXONOMY

Lanius torquatus Latham, 1802, Port Jackson (Sydney), Australia. Three, possibly four subspecies; one large and dark with reduced white in wing in Tasmania (Cracticus torquatus cinereus), another small and dark with reduced white in wing in coastal southeastern Australia between the New South Wales-Queensland border and Melbourne (nominate torquatus), and a third (that may comprise east and west forms) small and paler with extensive white in wing throughout southern and inland Australia from the west coast to coastal Queensland south of Cape York Peninsula (C. t. leucopterus). The gray butcherbird forms a superspecies with the silver-backed butcherbird (C. argenteus) of northwestern Australia and the black-backed butcherbird (C. mentalis) of Cape York Peninsula and dry sectors of southeastern New Guinea.

OTHER COMMON NAMES

French: Cassican à collier;

German: Graurücken-Würgatzel;

Spanish: Pájaro Matarife Gris.

DESCRIPTION

Primary and tall secondary rainforests, particularly along edges and around openings such as tree falls, stream edges, and road cuttings. Densities have been estimated at two birds per 25 acres (10 ha) in suitable habitat. Widely but sparsely distributed year-round residents; solitary, in loose pairs or small family groups of three to five. Live mostly on top of forest canopies, perching upright and motionless for long periods on exposed vantage perches, from which they fly out in extended sallies. From perches and in flight, birds utter distinctive territorial and advertising calls at regular intervals; calls are a series of three or so well spaced mechanical double clicks over four to five seconds. At perches, the singer throws its head violently up and down at each click. Other calls include a harsh monarch-like wheeeit, possibly in warning or agitation, and a seldom-heard wrenlike twittering.

FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET

Apparently wholly insectivorous, birds capture food in the air and from the surface of foliage with the bill on sallying flights. Most foraging is done in and above the forest canopy but sometimes extends to lower strata. Food, including dragonflies, beetles, grasshoppers, and other flying insects, is swallowed whole at a perch, without much beating.

REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY

Data lacking on timing and duration of events and respective parental contribution. Nests are small, compact cups of twigs and rootlets built-in often exposed positions in horizontal tree forks at the ends of branchlets at 20–115 ft (6–35 m) above the ground; and eggs, usually one per clutch, are cream to pale buff, with a ring of black-brown spotting at the larger end.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

10–12 in (25–30 cm); 2.8–4.0 oz (80–110 g). Medium-sized bull-headed bird with tapered body and black-, gray-, and white-patterned plumage. Head black with white lore spot (between eye and upper bill) and collar, back gray, rump white, tail and wings black with white tips and stripes respectively, and undersurface uniformly grayish white. Eyes dark brown, feet gray, and bills bicolored, with a black tip and gray-white base. Females are usually grayer-breasted and shorter billed than males. Juveniles dull-gray-billed and dully patterned, with dusky-olive and speckled upper parts and yellowish underparts.

DISTRIBUTION

Most of southern and inland Australia north to 20°S, including Tasmania but excluding treeless deserts.

HABITAT

Closed woodland and open forest of eucalypts and acacias, including mallee (Eucalyptus) and mulga (Acacia) scrubs, where the space between tree crowns is about the size of the crowns themselves. Densities range from one bird to about 12 to 49 acres (5–20 ha) in suitable habitat.

BEHAVIOR

Retiring and solitary, in pairs or small family groups, gray butcherbirds live in the mid-and upper strata of trees, spending much of their time perching still and coming to ground only to pounce on prey. They are sedentary, with pairs holding the same territory, 20–99 acres (8–40 ha), year-round, with a larger home range. Both male and female duet antiphonally in songs of fluted whistles and ringing caws, which are also given in alarm and aggression.

FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET

Gray butcherbirds are raptorial perch-pouncers, watching from tree perches at 6.5–40 ft (2–12 m) up, then swooping down to ground or branches to snap up prey, which is mostly insects but also small birds, nestlings, reptiles, and mice. Fruit also contributes to the diet. Food is carried back to perch, wedged in crannies or forks and torn apart with the bill for eating; the small weak feet are not used for tethering prey.

REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY

Monogamous, forming pair bonds in breeding territories reinforced by much duetting during early breeding. Gray butcherbirds breed mostly between July and August and December and January throughout their range. The nest, a rough but tight cup of twigs lined with finer, often reddish fiber, is placed in upright forks in outer foliage at 10–50 ft (3–15 m) up and takes about four weeks to build. Eggs, in clutches of three to five, are 1.20–1.25 x 0.85–0.95 in (30–32 x 22–24 mm), brownish-green, and finely freckled in red browns, often in a zone around the larger end; they hatch in 22–24 days. The Female builds the nest and incubates unaided, while the male defends the territory. He may assist her in feeding young, which fledge around four weeks. Usually, only one brood is reared per year.

CONSERVATION STATUS

Not threatened, although many populations have declined locally because of habitat clearing and alienation.

SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS

Some local populations frequent camping sites, feeding on scraps and garbage thrown out by campers. They are called commensals in such circumstances because they benefit from a close association with humans.

Hazards to birders in Michigan

Hazards to birders in Michigan are few and include biting insects, traffic, theft in urban areas, certain weather conditions, Poison-ivy and Poison Sumac, Black Bears, and even Moose in some areas, and, in a very few areas, a rattlesnake species. Biting insects are by far the most frequent hazard that birders may encounter. From May through September, mosquitos will be present in any wooded or wetland area statewide. 

Swampy situations and more northern areas are often the worst, and some may want to consider head nets in these areas. Every birder should consider using insect repellent, as mosquito-borne diseases such as West Nile Virus have been detected in Michigan. In more northern regions, Black Flies can be a problem in the summer months (June–August), and in some boggy and swampy areas, there can be swarms of them.

Insect repellent is recommended. Ticks are found statewide, most often Wood Ticks and precautions should be taken when walking in tall grassy areas. The much tinier Deer Tick, while less commonly encountered, is a more significant problem as it carries Lyme Disease, which has occurred in Michigan. Tucking your pant legs into your socks and using insect repellent on the socks and wearing long-sleeved shirts in these areas is usually sufficient protection.

Chiggers are relatively rare in Michigan but do occur in summer in drier prairie areas of the southeastern and southwestern corners of the state, though they are infrequently encountered by birders. Toxic vegetation in Michigan consists of two plants, Poison-ivy and Poison Sumac, both of which cause skin irritations and rashes with intense itching. Some people are immune to the effects of the plants’ oils (urushiol), but as one of the editors recently discovered, this immunity is not necessarily permanent!

Poison-ivy is found in shrubby and wooded areas statewide and is quite common. In northern areas, it is often little more than a ground cover, when is sometimes called Poison Oak (which does not occur in Michigan), but in the southernmost areas, it is often a vine that can be as thick as your finger to, exceptionally, as thick as your forearm. Some birds, most notably Northern Flickers, relish Poison-ivy berries in the fall.

Learn to recognize the “hairy” tendrils on the vines of this plant, and the leaf arrangement and shape—”leaflets three, let it be”. Virginia Creeper is similar to Poison-ivy, but typically has five leaflets, a woody vine without hairy tendrils, and often grows even larger. The distribution of Poison Sumac is quite patchy, confined to the Lower Peninsula, and typically restricted to the swampy or boggy lake and pond margins, and is infrequently encountered by birders. The appearance is similar to the very common Staghorn Sumac, but has fewer shinier leaflets, which also lack serrations on the edges.

Staghorn Sumac is infrequently found in the same habitats as Poison Sumac. Black Bears occur through the northern Lower Peninsula and the entire Upper Peninsula, though they are not as common as in many western states, and they are rarely a problem. Bears may be encountered at campgrounds, and precautions should be taken to properly stow food so as not to attract them. In a few areas of the western Upper Peninsula, Moose has been reintroduced and could possibly be encountered, though they are still somewhat rare. Never approach a Moose closely on foot, and never get between a female and her calf.

Michigan has a single venomous reptile, the Eastern Massassauga, a small rattlesnake. The Eastern Massassauga, a Threatened, protected species in Michigan, occurs in the southern two-thirds of the Lower Peninsula and is rarely encountered. It inhabits swamps, bogs, and some marshes, and its distribution is quite patchy. Sites, where the presence of this snake is known, are noted in the text.

Being one of the smallest of rattlesnakes (up to 30" and usually much smaller), the bite of the Eastern Massassauga is most serious only to small infants or the elderly (rarely fatal) but can cause considerable pain and illness even in a healthy adult. Most bites from this relatively even-tempered snake are caused by people attempting to move the snake off a trail.

The snake, while generally tolerant, interprets too much of this activity as harassment and reacts defensively as it would to any threat. The best strategy is to walk around the snake, giving it a wide berth, enjoy the fact that you’re experiencing something that few Michiganders ever have, and by all means leave the snake alone! Certain areas in Michigan, as in all states, are prone to crime.

No birding areas are located in high crime areas, but there are a few where caution is advised, some surprisingly far from urban areas. These few areas are noted in the text. By far the most frequent crime that birders fall victim to, and even this is rare, is theft. Precautions consist largely of making sure you do not leave valuables in sight inside your car. Take your valuables with you, or lock them in the trunk. The few weather-related hazards include snow and cold, thunderstorms, and tornados.

Severe winter conditions can be encountered by birders visiting the Upper Peninsula and even the northern Lower Peninsula, and appropriate precautions should be taken. Driving on unplowed roads is not advised, as getting stranded in deep snow miles from help, with temperatures below zero, could develop into a life-threatening situation. Serious winter trips into these regions mean bringing blankets, candles, extra food, etc. Wind, in combination with cold temperatures, will create wind chill that can cause frostbite on exposed skin in minutes.

Sometimes winter wind chills as low as -20 to -50°F can occur anywhere in the state, most often in the UP. Dangerous thunderstorms and tornados (most frequent in June and July) are easily avoided by birders, as such conditions are usually apparent. In early spring, many of the less-used backcountry roads can become very wet with deep mud-holes that can entrap the unwary birder.

Many of these same roads in sandy areas, particularly those used by ORVs, can be quite soft, sometimes resulting in standard cars becoming stuck. Thoroughly checking out these potentially hazardous conditions may prevent a long, expensive trip to the nearest towing facility. In May 2004, Michigan law was changed regarding pedestrian travel over the state’s beaches.

The law, which applies to beaches on private property, states that private landowners with beachfront property control all the land up to the water’s edge. Thus, the only way to avoid trespassing under this new law is to be in the water! It is unclear how this new law will play out, but for now, it is wise to exercise extra caution when walking on Great Lakes beaches in Michigan to avoid trespassing on private property.

Under most conditions, the breakwalls, piers, and jetties along the lake shorelines are reasonably safe for birding, though it is always a good idea to dress warmly. Be careful where you walk, as large cracks or uneven places in the concrete could cause injury. Dangerous conditions exist on all Great Lakes breakwalls during strong winds and icy conditions. DO NOT walk out on a breakwall if waves are breaking over it, or if it is icy. Falling off the breakwall into the water could result in drowning in strong currents in windy conditions, or death from the rapid onset of hypothermia during icy conditions.

Eurasian Eagle Owl Facts

Extremely variable habitat, from boreal coniferous and mixed deciduous forests to Mediterranean scrub, woody, and grassy steppes; also, rocky and sandy deserts; nests in the Alps up to 2100m (hunting to 2800m), in The Himalayas to 4500m, in Tibetian highlands to 4700m. Palearctic, from continental Europe and Scandinavia east across Russia to C Siberia, Sea of Okhotsk, Sakhalin , and Japan, in the south to the Mediterranean the region, Turkey, N Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Tibet, China, and Korea.

Plumage considerably darker in humid, oceanic regions than in arid continental areas; size increases from warm regions to cold northern areas or with altitude. Adult (nominate bubo: Europe, south to France, Sicily, Greece, Romania and Ukraine, east to Moscow).

Females, also in flight have the darkest race. Dorsal ground color golden-brown to tawny-buff; crown, mantle, scapular, and underwing-coverts with large black feather tips; hindneck and underparts broadly streaked black (Scandinavian birds are darkest in color). Eyes bright golden-yellow to red-orange; bill greyish-black to black, cere olive-grey; claws black; tarsi and toes densely feathered. Intergrades with slightly smaller and greyer hispanus from the Iberian Peninsula and (formerly) N Africa. Subspecies ruthenus, east of nominate bubo to western Ural river and south to lower Volga basin, and interpositus, south of nominating in Bessarabia, Crimea, Caucasus, Asia Minor, and Iran, are very similar in plumage, slightly greyer or the brown pattern darker, with less or more ochre wash.

Mesoptile (nominate bubo). Down long and soft, scapulars and greater upper wing-coverts like an adult; rusty-buff to dirty cream in color. Eyes pale yellow to pale yellow-orange; cere bluish grey. Juvenile (nominate bubo). Downy, long and soft, pale ochre and dirty cream mesoptile feathers. Eyebrows, the area surrounding eyes, lores and throat white; scapulars, greater upper wing coverts, secondaries and tail feathers like an adult, but narrower, with more pointed tips; primaries invisible or barely visible. Eyes yellow-orange.

Adult (sibiricus: W Siberia and Bashkiria to middle Ob and W Altai, north to limits of the forest). Female, also in flight. Pale ground color mixed cream and off-white or clear white. Crown, hindneck and underparts only narrowly streaked black; limited spots on back, scapular, and upper wing-coverts, indistinctly vermiculated grey, cream or white; belly and flanks finely streaked and vermiculated. Tarsi and toes white. In-flight shows darker upper wing-coverts and dark tips to greater primary coverts. Subspecies yenisseensis of C Siberia has slightly darker plumage, with pale grey and ochre predominating.

Male. Above, much darker and more brownish than yenisseensis; whitish belly more distinctly streaked and barred than sibiricus. 1f Adult (ussuriensis: SE Siberia to NE China, Sakhalin, Hokkaido and S Kuril Islands). Male. Much darker than jakutensis, distinctly darker than sibiricus. Below, more buffish, less whitish, and more streaked and vermiculated. Above, brown markings more extensive and diffuse, white areas are more limited. 1g Adult (kiautschensis: W, C and SE China, E Korea).

Female. Smaller, much darker, tawnier and more rufous than ussuriensis. Plumage duller than in nominating bubo; upperparts paler, more mottled, less heavily marked with brown; below, more ochre and less heavily streaked. Adult (turcomanus: Steppe between Volga and Ural River, east to Transbaikalia). Very pale and yellow race, resembling nikolskii and omissus, with paler streaking and vermiculations, with brown pattern less contrasting.

Adult (hemachalana: Tien Shan and Fergana to Pamir Mountains, north to Kara Tau, south to Baluchistan and Himalayas). Male. A pale and distinctly brown race, similar to swinhoei of S China and to the specifically distinct Rock Eagle Owl Adult (omissus: Turkmenia and adjacent Iran, Chinese Turkestan; intergrades with turcomanus and hemachalana). Male. Typical dessert form. Pale ochre ground color, less rusty than nikolskii; dark markings only slightly developed above and below.

THE GREAT POT00 IN COSTA RICA

There is very little known about the life history and behavior of the Great Potoo (Nyctibius grandis). Perhaps this species generally roosts in very tall trees in tropical forests. It’s coloration-white with brown mottling-matches closely that of the limbs on which it rests. The hunting as well as the roosting habits of N. grandis observations made above the canopy of a primary lowland wet forest at Finca La Selva (a research station of the Organization for Tropical Studies), near Puerto Viejo, Heredia Province, on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica.

Great Potoo first observation in 1978 from a platform where built 33 m up in a Monkey-pot tree (Lecythis costaricensis). It sat on a limb of a leafless, 46 m tall Hymenolobium sp. (Leguminosae) tree some 80 m away, within unbroken forest in the south corner of Washington Plot (a permanent research site at La Selva).

The bird was very difficult to distinguish, for it closely resembled the stump of a branch. This was the first time a Great Potoo had been seen in the area. The species has not been previously reported with certainty from Costa Rica, although expected, for it was known to occur in regions to the north and south.

The very few records from the north have come from Nicaragua, Guatemala and a sighting, but no specimens, from Honduras. On the afternoon the bird perched on the same limb as before at my level. It stood within a small area of bare bark, devoid of the usual encrusting lichens, suggesting that this was a regular perch site.

Over the next two months I visited the tree at varying intervals and nearly always found the bird there. I photographed it repeatedly, confirming the identification, and noted some of its behavior. When the potoo was not disturbed, it sat upright, facing forward, eyes closed, and with its head feathers erect so that it had an owl-like appearance.

My presence several meters away did not seem to disturb the bird. When I made abrupt moves that shook the tree or when I called out, the potoo apparently became alarmed and immediately raised its head until it faced vertically, with eyes closed and head feathers depressed. In this position it resembled even more closely a part of the branch. Often, in either position, the mouth was held partially open. The bird was probably panting as it always sat in full sun.

The mouth lining was a dull red. Occasionally, for no apparent reason, the potoo shifted its body to a horizontal orientation; its head however, remained facing out, never down. At other times it stretched its wings or turned its head and looked around. The bird perched on lateral limbs of the tree crown that ranged in diameter from about 15 cm to about 35 cm. It stayed within regions from one-half to two-thirds of the distance from the trunk to the periphery of the crown.

During the period of my observations, the Hymenolobium tree was in its reproductive phase. By the last two weeks of August, the fruit had become attractive to other birds, especially the Red-lored Parrot (Amazona uutumnulis). These parrots came to the tree in groups of up to twenty and foraged noisily. On 23 August, after several days of this activity, I searched for the potoo but it was not in the Hymenolobium.

On 1 September the potoo was in the tree again. At around 16:OO several Red-lored Parrots flew into the tree and began walking about the limbs looking for fruit. One parrot came to within a meter of the potoo, and the latter appeared to become agitated. It looked repeatedly toward the parrots as it made uncharacteristically quick movements and finally assumed its vertical alarm posture.

The bird was not in the tree the next day and it still had not returned by 15 September, when I left La Selva. The coloration of the potoo matches closely that of the lichen-covered limbs of Hymenolobium sp., and these trees, along with others that have similarly colored limbs, could be preferred perches. The species is probably more numerous than is generally realized but its cryptic coloring and habits make it difficult to find. Further inspection of canopy tree crowns may corroborate these conclusions.

Reference - DONALD R. PERRY

  

Short-tailed paradigalla "Paradigalla brevicauda"

 Description

This is a species of bird of paradise. Short-tailed paradigalla is endemic to Papua New Guinea highland forest. It is the least concern on the ICUN red list of threatened species.  This medium size species considered to breed polygynously.

 

SUBFAMILY

Paradisaeinae

 

TAXONOMY

Paradigalla brevicauda Rothschild and Hartert, 1911, Mount

Goliath, central Dutch New Guinea.

 

OTHER COMMON NAMES

English: Short-tailed wattled bird of paradise; French: Paradisier à queue courte; German: Langschwanz-Paradigalla; Spanish: Paradigalla de Cola Corta.

 

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

9.0 in (23 cm); female 0.4–0.38 (155–170 g), male 0.35–0.41 lb (160–184 g). Head, upperparts, and underparts a velvety black. Yellowish green crown to nape and small, light blue wattle at the mandible base. Conspicuous bright yellow fore face. Blackish bill and legs.

 

DISTRIBUTION

Western and central ranges of New Guinea mainland from the Weyland Mountains eastward to the Bismark Range at altitudes of 4,590–8,460 ft (1,400–2,580 m). Maybe on the Kratke Range, Papua New Guinea, but unrecorded to date.

 

HABITAT

Midmontane forests, including beech, forest/garden edges, secondary growth.

 

BEHAVIOR

Birds give a rising bell-like zheee call at about 490 ft (150 m) intervals in moss forest, suggestive of dispersed solitary males advertising from song posts. In-flight, wings make an audible rattling or rustling.

 

FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET

Omnivorous, predominantly frugivorous, but little known. Birds acrobatically cling to tree boughs and trunks to tear and probe into epiphytic plant growth for invertebrates and small vertebrates. Nestlings fed a large proportion (65%) of animals, including earthworms, insect larvae, crickets, beetles, mantids, katydids, spiders, frogs, and skinks.

 

REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY

Polygynous, with presumed promiscuous males and exclusively female nest attendance. Breeding on the Tari Valley slopes recorded in all months except March and November. Nest is a substantial, deep, open cup and the clutch is one egg. Incubation lasts more than 19 days and a known nestling period was 25 days.

 

CONSERVATION STATUS

Not threatened.

The common sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos)

 IDENTIFICATION

19-22 cm. Upperparts brown olive, including rump and tail; white underparts, with streaked breast; wings with a white band; dark bill and greenish legs.

SIMILAR SPECIES

Recalls a Green Sandpiper, which is bigger, with a white rump and lacks a white line on wing.

SEXING

Plumage of both sexes alike.

AGEING

3 types of age can be recognized:

Juvenile with feathers on upperparts, scapulars, and tertials with a narrow and rounded sub terminal bar bordered by buff at the tip, without streaks; wing coverts very heavily barred brown; central tail feathers without short bars or spots at sides; with fresh flight feathers and always with one age; some birds with legs tinged pink. 2nd year only if some juvenile feathers have been retained on median wing coverts, tail, or flight feathers.

Adult with feathers on upperparts with a dark streak; tertials streaked; wing coverts with a dark subterminal bar, sometimes with several spaced dark bars; central tail feathers with dark subterminal bar and short bars or spots at sides; flight feathers with two ages and, if only one, with eroded feathers; with grey greenish legs.

MOULT

Complete post breeding moult, starting in breeding areas and finished in wintering quarters. Partial post-juvenile moult but some birds can retain median wing coverts and flight and tail feathers; usually starting in wintering quarters. Both types of age have a pre-breeding moult, between February and May, including most of the body feathers and some wing coverts; sometimes also the tail.

STATUS IN ARAGON

This is a summer visitor breeding in rivers in mountainous areas, and widely distributed on passage in wet places throughout the Region.

 

The Yellow-throated euphonia ranges from southern Mexico to western Panama, through the lowlands of both coasts and into the highlands to an altitude of possibly 4000 feet above sea level. Like other euphonias, it is a restless bird of the treetops. Except when a nest binds, it rarely appears to remain long in one spot. However, wanders widely in search of food through plantations and pastures with scattered trees and doubtless also over the roof of the forest, where it is difficult to see.

The male is a brilliant little bird, black glossed with violet and blue over all the upper plumage except the forehead and forepart of the crown, which bright yellow like the entire underparts are. The black area includes the sides of the head, the wings, and most of the tail, which is marked with white on the outer rectrices.

From the other black and yellow euphonias that inhabit northern Central America, he is readily distinguished by his yellow rather than black throat and by his notably thicker, black bill. The female is olive-green above, with dull yellow under plumage. These euphonias subsist largely on berries of mistletoe, as do other members of the genus.

The Yellow-throated euphonia ranges from southern Mexico to western Panama, through the lowlands of both coasts and into the highlands to an altitude of possibly 4000 feet above sea level.

VOICE

The only song you will hear from this little tanager is a short whistle, usually repeated two or three times in rapid sequence, sometimes clear and bell-like, more rarely with a plaintive intonation, reminding me of the opening notes of the White-throated Sparrow’s song, but fuller in tone. The female’s song, or perhaps it should be considered a call, at its best, resembles that of the male, but more often it is thin and chaffy in quality and again is high-pitched and almost trilled.

NEST BUILDING

Male Yellow-throated euphonia with a dry grass blade in his bill led to building a nest of the species. The nest was situated in a cranny in the top of a rotting fence post five feet high. It was beside a small corral amid extensive pastures with scattered trees. It was so well shielded behind a small aroid that grew should never have discovered it, had the movements of the building birds not betrayed its position to me.

It was a roofed structure with a little round entrance on the outer side. It was composed of fine tendrils and other bits of vegetation, all bound together with cobweb. The outer shell appeared to have been completed, for the birds were lining the interior with small, dry grass blades.

The male and female worked in the closest harmony. Usually, they arrived together, each with a length of the grass blade in its bill. And one would vanish behind the arrow-shaped leaves of the aroid while the mate perched close by, waiting its turn to place the material in the nest. Either male or female might enter first; there was no set order of precedence.

As soon as the second member of the pair had come out of the nest, the two were off like a flash for more material. Sometimes the male would follow his mate back to the nest without bringing anything. Then while she took her grass blades inside, he lingered close beside the fence post, uttering a fine metallic pink that sounded much like the notes of the Cardinal as he goes to roost on a chill wintry evening, but even fainter.

The male and female worked in the closest harmony. Usually, they arrived together, each with a length of the grass blade in its bill.

Although this nest was nearly finished when found, the first egg was not laid. Another was deposited on the following day. When I returned to the nest on April 8, there was a male Boat-tailed Grackle resting atop the post where it was hidden. The nest was in ruins and the eggs had vanished.

Although not an actual witness of the grackle’s predation, the circumstantial evidence against him was very strong, especially when it is remembered that grackles, in general, are notorious nest robbers. This nest had been so well concealed that the grackle must have found it; by seeing one of the pair of euphonias enter.

The female euphonia was perching nearby, calling incessantly with a triple, or sometimes double reedy whistles; but her mate did not appear while I waited. Possibly I should have found additional eggs in this nest if the grackle had not destroyed it. A pair of Bonaparte Euphonias building a nest in the axil of the lowest frond of a young coconut palm, 7% feet above the ground.

Again both sexes were bringing material. This nest was never completed. The Bonaparte Euphonias choose a considerable variety of nest sites. In the central plateau of Costa Rica, they have been found nesting in the banks beside streams and roadways, in holes that they most probably found readymade.

A more fortunate nest was situated in the decayed top of a post only forty inches high, in a fence line between a bushy pasture and light second-growth woodland, on the same plantation where the first was found. This nest measured 2% inches from front to back; the doorway was 1% inches in diameter. It had no concealment beyond that afforded by the sides of the cranny in the top of the post.

THE EGGS

When discovered, the nest on the fence post contained three eggs. The female euphonia flew out and was probably then preparing to lay the fourth egg. On the following morning, the set of five eggs was complete. For a tropical bird, this is an unusually large clutch of eggs, and especially so in the tanager family, in which sets of two eggs are the rule and those of more than three are very rare.

The eggs of the Yellow-throated euphoniare short ovate. They are white, heavily blotched with umber in a crown on the thicker end, with a scattering of spots of the same color over the remaining surface. Some have a brownish wash over the entire blunt end, on which the more solid blotches and speckles are laid. Six eggs measured 16.7 by 13.5, 16.7 by 12.3, 16.7 by 12.7, 15.9 by 12.7, and 15.9 by 12.7 and 15.9 by 12.7 millimeters (average of the six, 16.3 by 12.8 millimeters).

The male is a brilliant little bird, black glossed with violet and blue over all the upper plumage except the forehead and forepart of the crown, which bright yellow like the entire underparts are.

INCUBATION

To learn something about the Euphonia's mode of incubation, the day dawned with a dense mist; there was still insufficient light to distinguish the little tanager in the closed nest. A bird flew out, too rapidly to be recognized with certainty, but beyond any reasonable doubt, it was the female. She heard her mate calling in the distance, answered him while sitting, and then flew out and away to join him. The pair returned together and both flew toward the nest, the female a little ahead, but the male following closely.

Each seemed to be trying to reach the doorway before the other. The female won the race and entered; the male turned just short of the doorway and flew off. There was a light flurry of rain. The male, unseen in the distance, called with clear double whistles; the female answered from the nest with similar whistles, but less clear, then left her eggs.

The pair came back together, and with a loud whirr of tiny wings raced each other to the nest. Again the female won by her own length and entered, while the male veered aside just in time to avoid striking the fence post, then continued to some neighboring bushes, where he repeated his double whistles.

Twice more in the morning, the pair of euphonias engage in this race to reach the nest. Each time the female won by the smallest margin. It seemed that this apparent competition was only a formality. The male had no real desire to get there first and sit on the eggs but merely escorted his mate back to her duty in this dashing fashion.

From the other black and yellow euphonias that inhabit northern Central America.

A similar ceremony may be witnessed at nests of the Yellow-crowned Euphonia, the Tawny-bellied Euphonia, the Turquoise-naped Chlorophonia, the Black-crowned Tody-Flycatcher, and the Slate-headed Tody-Flycatcher. All these tiny birds build closed nests with a round doorway in the side. In all both sexes share the work of construction, but only the female incubates, as in the Bonaparte Euphonia.

The female euphonia, upon winning the formal race with her mate, did not appear to alight in the doorway of the nest and then step inside, but on the contrary, passed through the narrow aperture with no apparent break in her movement. She turned around so rapidly that she hardly seemed to have touched the nest before she was seated on her eggs with her head outward.

She always incubated in this position, looking out. For so diminutive a bird, she sat very patiently. Her sessions on the eggs showed a progressive increase in length in the course of the morning, first 32, then 54, 69, and 83 minutes. Her corresponding recesses were 16, 8, 44, and 40 minutes. Her average session was 59.5 minutes, her average recess 27 minutes; and in six hours of the morning, she kept the eggs covered 68.8 percent of the time.

Although the male euphonia appeared to be very attentive, he was nearly always out of sight and hearing while his mate sat in the nest. Whenever I was obliged to force her to leave the eggs so that I might see whether they had hatched, she would perch close by and call incessantly until I departed. While I measured the eggs, an operation that required about twenty minutes because of the difficulty of removing them through the narrow doorway, she continued her calls of distress without interruption during the whole time.

Yet the male never appeared on these occasions; he seemed to forage at a good distance, only approaching the nest when he escorted his mate on her return from a recess, or in the early morning, to call her out to join him. Later in the morning she ended her sessions spontaneously, called to him from near the nest without receiving a reply, then flew off alone to seek him.

That she was successful in establishing contact with him, despite the distance at which he habitually foraged, was clear from the fact that on the two occasions when she left the nest alone, she later returned in his company. It will be recalled that when the Boat-tailed Grackle destroyed the first nest, the female euphonia likewise called for a long while in its vicinity without succeeding in attracting her mate. The set of five eggs had been completed. All five were pipped and had hatched by the following day, thus having an incubation period of sixteen days.

THE NESTLINGS

The young euphonias developed slowly, however when eight days old their black skin was still nearly naked. Their short, thick bills were black with yellow edges, and, when opened, revealed a bright red interior - an attractive combination of colors. Only three nestlings survived.

Time did not permit a study of parental care; but from the fact that the male helped to build the nest, and in view of subsequent observations on related species, there can be little doubt that he took a large share in feeding the nestlings, as appears to be the invariable custom in the tanager family. At the age of fifteen days, the young birds were well feathered and could fly a little.

One afternoon the adjoining pasture was burnt off, and the smoke enveloping the nest became so dense that removed the nestlings for a while to prevent their suffocation. On May 19 the three young euphonias left the nest, at the age of seventeen days. Possibly their departure had been hastened by their premature experience in the open on the day of the fire, for young Yellow-crowned Euphonias stay in the nest until from 22 to 24 days old.

The young male Bonaparte euphonias do not attain the adult plumage in the first year, but begin to breed in transitional plumage, as do the Yellow-crowned Euphonias;  the same is true of the Thick-billed euphonias.

SUMMARY

Yellow-throated euphonia wanders widely through clearings and plantations with scattered trees, where they feed largely on the berries of mistletoes. In the Motagua Valley of Guatemala, they nested from March until at least the end of May. Nests were found in the decayed tops of fence posts and in the axil of a coconut palm. In other regions, they have been discovered in holes in banks.

The globular nest with a sideward-facing doorway is built by both sexes, either of which may deposit its material first when they come together. One of the nests in Guatemala contained five eggs, and a set of the same size has been reported from Costa Rica. The female alone incubates. In six mornings hour’s one female took sessions averaging 59.5 minutes and recesses averaging 27 minutes; she covered her eggs 69 percent of the time.

He returns to the nest were the occasion of a spectacular ceremony, in which the male seemed to race her to the doorway; but she always arrived first. Her eggs hatched after 16 days of incubation. This brood left when 17 days old, but possibly their departure was hastened by their temporary removal when fire threatened their nest several days earlier. Read More - The white-throated magpie-jay

Yellow-throated euphonia wander widely through clearings and plantations with scattered trees, where they feed largely on the berries of mistletoes.

References – Alexander F Skutch by Life Histories of Central American Birds.

Lesser Striped Swallow (Cecropis abyssinica)

Lesser Striped Swallow (Cecropis abyssinica) is a common species, which is distributed along the coast and adjacent interior of the Eastern Cape Province and Transkei, throughout much of KwaZulu-Natal, the Transvaal woodland areas, and most of Swaziland and Zimbabwe. In Botswana, it occurs in the east and commonly in the Okavango, and in Namibia it is found along the Kunene and Kavango rivers, the Caprivi Strip, and scattered records further south. This is one of the most abundant African swallows. It ranges over the greater part of Africa south of the Sahara, except for the open regions in the south and southwest. It is frequently confused with the similar Greater Striped Swallow “H. cucullate” in southern Africa.

Habitat:

It occurs in a variety of woodland and savanna habitats, but for semi-arid Kalahari savannas. Within these regions, it can also be found in cultivated and sub-urban areas. Also, it is very common in lower-lying than higher-lying areas within its range. It is recognized to nest frequently on riverbanks and trees. The bird flight is normally very strong gliding but can be very fast, like that of a Barn Swallow.

Movements:

This species shows complex patterns of movement in the region. It is largely a summer-breeding migrant in South Africa, but some birds are present throughout the year. Especially in the lower-lying eastern areas along the KwaZulu-Natal coast and in the Lowveld of the Transvaal and Swaziland. A winter exodus is also apparent in Zimbabwe. But the presence of birds in this country during the winter is more frequent than in most of South Africa, and birds from the south may pass through or winter in Zimbabwe.

It has been suggested that the Zimbabwean breeding population leaves that country and is replaced by South African migrants during the winter. Hence, mainly from March to October, but the passage of the southern race unitatis through this area is likely from August to September and March to April.

The models for Zones 5 to 8 suggest reduced overwintering, and later arrival and departure times with increasing latitude for unitatis. The departure of birds from their breeding grounds are spread over several weeks and is probably influenced by the stage of breeding of individuals.

Also, the populations start to weaken as early as February and March in most regions. Some nests in the northern Kruger National Park was occupied throughout the year but different individuals used the nests during the summer and winter months, indicating that ‘residency’ does not necessarily involve the same individuals.

Breeding:

A summer-breeding the pattern is shown by the race unitatis in the Eastern Cape Province (Zone 8), KwaZulu-Natal (Zone 7), and Transvaal (Zone 6), with the most breeding recorded August-May and peaking November–December. Breeding starts earlier in the Transvaal than in the Eastern Cape Province. In Zimbabwe breeding occurs throughout the year, but this contains records of unitatis on the plateau and ampliformis in the west, and most records refer to unitatis whose breeding peaks August–December. In Namibia and north-ern Botswana (Zone 1), breeding was recorded March–October for ampliformis indicated peak egg-laying for this race in May.

Interspecific relationships:

This little bird often occurs alongside the Greater Striped Swallow but typically one species tends to be much more common than the other in areas of overlap. Because both species use man-made structures for breeding, they may compete for nest sites and the smaller Lesser Striped Swallow may be at a disadvantage in such situations.

There could also be competing with the much larger Red-breasted Swallow H. semirufa for nest sites, but that species usually nests in more constricted sites than the two striped swallows. Lesser Striped Swallow nests are regularly usurped by White-rumped Swifts Apuscaffer.

Historical distribution and conservation:

Like many Hirundinidae, this species has benefited from nesting in manmade structures and has probably increased, at least in density, in many areas owing to this habit.

Nesting

Lesser Striped Swallow has a soft lining nest, built in a cave or under a rock overhang or a tree branch. However, given the selections, it can opt to make a nest at high places. This little bird willingness to use buildings, bridges, culverts, and similar structures.

Description

Lesser Striped Swallow is 10 to 14cm long, with dark blue upperparts with a vibrant red rump and a rufous-chestnut crown nape and sides of the bird's head. The white and dark streaking showing at underparts white, tawny underwing flight feathers and upper wings are blackish brown. The long beautiful blackish tail normally longer in males than females. However, the young one is a bit browner and dull with less contrast.  

Diet and Foraging

Lesser Striped Swallow diet normally consists of bees, flying ants, beetles, flies, lepidopterans, fruits, and seeds. It feeds alone, or in pairs, also, mixes with other swifts. The bird habitually forages six-meter above ground and 8 to 22 meters over treetops and often over the water. Hence, the birds also hover over vegetation to catch caterpillars and feed around different animals to take insects, perches when eating fruit. Source - CP    

Reference - R.A. Earlé and M. Herremans

The white-throated magpie-jay

 

One of the largest and most conspicuous songbirds in Guanacaste is the White-throated Magpie-Jay (Calocitta formosa). This social and vocal bird is normally seen in family groups of five to ten birds and is quite attractive. The blue body, white breast, exceptionally long blue tail, and tall, forward-curving topknot feathers on its head make it unmistakable. The large Central American species of magpie-jay range in the Pacific-slope thorn forest from Jalisco, Costa Rica, and Mexico to Guanacaste. It is common in thorn forests, deciduous woodland, gallery forest, forest edges, and cultivated areas like coffee plants.

Also, a closely related species, the Black-throated Magpie-Jay, is found in Mexico. The White-throated Magpie-Jay is found in savannas, dry forests, gallery forests, farmsteads, ranches, backyards, and woodlots. Roaming in family groups, these intelligent and omnivorous jays search for small lizards, caterpillars, frogs, beetles, grasshoppers, katydids, and cockroaches. Other foods include fruits, corn, eggs, and nestlings of other birds, fruits, grains, seeds, the young of other birds, and the nectar of balsa (Ochroma) flowers. At La Ensenada Lodge, they boldly enter the open-air restaurant to pick up fallen food scraps. The nesting season occurs from February through July.

While incubating, the female is visited by several family members and the male, who all take turns feeding her. The young are fed by the parents and by the young from previous broods. This magpie is omnivorous, consuming an extensive range of animal and plant matter. The juvenile birds take several years to acquire the full range of foraging skills of their parents. White-throated Magpie-Jay does not take on any migratory movements, though males disperse away from their natal territories a few years after fledging, and it is not considered threatened by human activities.

The White-throated Magpie-Jay can be found in Guanacaste's NPS-Guanacaste, Palo Verde, Santa Rosa, and Las Baulas-and in the Lomas Barbuda! BR. It can also be seen at Sugar Beach, Tamarindo, Hacienda Solimar, La Ensenada Lodge, Playa Dofia Ana, La Pacifica, east to Hotel Borinquen Mountain Resort, and southeast to Tarcol Lodge at the mouth of the Rio Tarcoles. The white-throated magpie is a very noisy, gregarious bird, mostly likes to travel with flocks, mobbing its observers. Source CP

Facts:

Calocitta Formosa

Costa Rican names: Urraca copetona; urraca; piapia azul.

Status: Permanent resident.

length: 18 to 22 inches. (43 to 56cm)

Weight: 7.2 ounces (205 to 210 grams).

Range: Central Mexico to Costa Rica.

Elevational range: Sea level to 4,000 feet

 

The Cloud Cisticola or tink-tink cisticola

 

The Cloud Cisticola or tink-tink cisticola is near-endemic to southern Africa and occurs in South Africa, Angola, Mozambique, Lesotho, and sparsely in Swaziland. However, a widely separated relict population occurs in Zambia and southern Zaire. It occurs in the western and southern Cape Province and from 22°E through the Eastern Cape Province and Transkei (where it is sparse), to the Free State, Transvaal, Lesotho lowlands, and inland KwaZulu-Natal.

Cloud Cisticola is most abundant in the southern Transvaal and the southern and eastern Free State. There is a remarkable cut-off west of25° E. It is included in southeastern Botswana in its range, but it was not recorded there during the atlas period, nor does there seem to be any other confirmed record from that country. Easily confused with four other small grass cisticola species, it is identified mainly on the basis of its call, except for the isolated nominate race in the Western Cape Province, which can be identified by its ventral streaking.

This race is sometimes considered to be a separate species. The atlas records primarily reflect the summer distribution and the map is probably fairly accurate, although some misidentifications are inevitable in this group.

Habitat:

It occurs in short grasslands with relatively low basal cover, mainly in the grassland biome and in the Grassy Karoo; it is absent above 2000 m. It requires open grassland and does not tolerate invasion by scrub and trees. In the Western Cape Province it has colonized and breeds in fields of winter cereal crops. It was reported from estuarine marshland near Port Elizabeth. It is common in Themeda triandra grassland on the Highveld where it over-laps mainly with Ayres’ Cisticola C. ayresii.

Movements:

There is strong seasonality in reporting rates with a drop in winter when the species behaves unobtrusively and is difficult to identify without the help of diagnostic calls and displays. Records from the Western Cape Province show no seasonality, presumably because this population can be identified year-round on plumage. Droughts, overgrazing, and burning affect its habitat and must prompt local movements. There is apparently no record of regular seasonal movements in the literature.

Breeding:

Atlas records confirm that breeding occurs earlier (July–December) in the nominate race in the Western Cape Province than elsewhere, where egg-laying spans late spring and summer (September–March)

Inter specific relationships:

It is most closely related to Ayres’ and Pale crowned C. brunnescens Cisticolas. It overlaps extensively with all four similar small cisticolas. It is a host of the brood-parasitic Cuckoo Finch Anomalospiza imberbis.

Historical distribution and conservation:

It has almost disappeared from the Cape Flats where it was displaced by alien vegetation and development for agriculture and housing. It is suggested that it is more widely distributed in KwaZulu-Natal than recorded in this atlas, but there was some confusion between this species and Ayres’ Cisticola in Cyrus & Robson. It expanded its Transvaal range westwards during the years of good rain in the 1970s.The Cloud Cisticola is not threatened. The ability of the western race to adapt to agriculture means that it was not displaced on a large scale by the loss of indigenous fynbos. Source - CP