Friday, 17 July 2020
Thursday, 16 July 2020
15-7-2020 CREU DE LONGA, ALBUFERA - COLLARED PRATINCOLE (Glareola pratincola)
The collared pratincole (Glareola pratincola), also known as the common pratincole or red-winged pratincole, is a wader in the pratincole family, Glareolidae. As with other pratincoles, it is native to the Old World.
The collared pratincole was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1766 in the twelfth edition of his Systema Naturae. He placed it with the swallows and swifts in the genus Hirundo and coined the binomial name Hirundo pratincola. The collared pratincole is now placed in the genus Glareola that was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760. The genus name is a diminutive of Latin glarea, "gravel", referring to a typical nesting habitat for pratincoles. The species name pratincola means an inhabitant of meadows, from Latin pratum, prati, "meadow" and incola, "inhabitant", from incolere, "to inhabit".
Two subspecies are recognised:
Glareola pratincola pratincola, (Linnaeus, 1766) – southern Europe & North Africa to south Pakistan
Glareola pratincola fuelleborni, Neumann, 1910 – sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal to central Ethiopia and south Somalia south to east South Africa (includes erlangeri and riparia)
Description
This pratincole is 24–28 cm (9.4–11.0 in) long with a 60–70 cm (24–28 in) wingspan. It has short legs, long pointed wings, a long forked tail, and a short bill, which is an adaptation to aerial feeding. The back and head are brown, and the wings are brown with darker flight feathers. The belly is white. The underwings are chestnut, but look dark below.
Very good views are needed to distinguish this species from other pratincoles, such as the black-winged pratincole and the oriental pratincole, which may occur in its range. The latter species also has a chestnut underwing, but is shorter-tailed.
he collared pratincole is a bird of open country, and is often seen near water in the evening, hawking for insects. It is found in the warmer parts of Europe, southwest Asia and Africa. It is migratory, wintering in tropical Africa, and is rare north of the breeding range. It has been recorded as a vagrant in Brazil and Barbados.
Pratincoles are unusual among waders in that they typically hunt their insect prey on the wing like swallows, although they can also feed on the ground.
The nesting is colonial. The nest is a shallow scrape on open ground often near water. The clutch is 2–4 eggs which have a cream background with black or dark brown blotches, spots or streaks. On average the eggs measure 32 mm × 24 mm (1.26 in × 0.94 in) and weigh 10 g (0.35 oz). Beginning after the last egg is laid, they are incubated by both parents and hatch synchronously after 17-19 days. The young are precocial and nidifugous. They leave the nest after 2–3 days and are then cared for by both parents who feed them with regurgitated food for the first week. The young fledge when they are 25–30 days of age.
The collared pratincole (Glareola pratincola) is a unique, medium-sized migratory wader (24–28 cm long, 60–70 cm wingspan) that acts like a swallow, hunting insects in agile aerial acrobatics over wetlands and marshes. Recognizable by a forked tail, long pointed wings, and a black-bordered buff throat, they breed in warm, sparse-vegetation areas of southern Europe and Asia before wintering in sub-Saharan Africa.
Hunting Behavior: Unlike most waders that feed in mud, this species feeds on insects in the air, similar to terns or swallows.
Appearance: They have a sandy-brown back, a white belly, and distinctive chestnut-coloured underwings. They also have short legs and a short, red-based bill.
Breeding & Nesting: Breeding occurs from April to June in colonies, usually near water, on bare ground, salt pans, or in agricultural fields. They make a simple scrape in the ground, laying 2–4 eggs.
Habitat: They prefer warm climates and low-altitude areas with wetlands, salt pans, marshes, or newly burned land.
Migration: They are strict migrants, wintering in tropical Africa, though some populations exist in parts of Africa year-round.
Vocalization: They make shrill, staccato, and trilled calls while in flight, often described as a "stwick".
Conservation Status: While not threatened globally, they are considered rare or near-threatened in specific regions like South Africa due to habitat loss and disturbance.
Wednesday, 15 July 2020
15-7-2020 ULLAL DE BALDOVI, ALBUFERA - EURASIAN HUMMINGBIRD HAWKMOTH (Macroglossum stellatarum)
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The hummingbird hawk-moth (Macroglossum stellatarum) is a species of hawk moth found across temperate regions of Eurasia. The species is named for its similarity to hummingbirds, as they feed on the nectar of tube-shaped flowers using their long proboscis while hovering in the air; this resemblance is an example of convergent evolution.
The hummingbird hawk-moth was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. As of 2018, its entire genome and mitogenome have been sequenced.
The hummingbird hawk-moth is distributed throughout the northern Old World from Portugal to Japan, but it breeds mainly in warmer climates (southern Europe, North Africa, and points east). Three generations are produced in a year in Spain. There is evidence that the population in the British Isles is actively expanding its range, as numbers have been consistently increasing. In addition, it is believed that this population is becoming resident instead of migratory, as warmer temperatures due to climate change are allowing individuals to overwinter.
15-7-2020 ULLAL DE BALDOVI, ALBUFERA - OLD WORLD SWALLOWTAIL BUTTERFLY (Papilio machaon)
Papilio machaon, the Old World swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. The butterfly is also known as the common yellow swallowtail or simply the swallowtail (a common name applied to all members of the family, but this species was the first to be given the name). It is the type species of the genus Papilio. This widespread species is found in much of the Palearctic (it is the only swallowtail in most of Europe) and in North America.
This species is named after Machaon (Ancient Greek: Μαχάων, romanized: Makháōn) a figure in Greek mythology. He was a son of Asclepius.
This butterfly is present throughout the entire Palearctic region, ranging from Russia to China and Japan, (including the Himalayas and Taiwan), and across into Alaska, Canada, and the United States, and thus, is not restricted to the Old World, despite the common name. In Asia, it is reported as far south as Saudi Arabia, Oman, the high mountains of Yemen, Lebanon, Iran and Israel. In southern Asia, it occurs in Pakistan and Kashmir, northern India (Sikkim, to Assam, and Arunachal Pradesh), Nepal, Bhutan, and northern Myanmar.
This butterfly is widespread in Europe. In the United Kingdom, it is limited to a few areas in the Norfolk Broads of East Anglia. It is the UK's largest resident butterfly. The monarch (Danaus plexippus) is slightly larger, but is only a rare vagrant.
As P. machaon is widespread throughout Eurasia and often common, it is not threatened as a species. It is listed as "vulnerable" in the South Korean and Austrian Red Data Books, and in the Red Data Book of the former Soviet Union. In Armenia the species demonstrates stable population trend and is assessed as Least Concern.
In some countries, P. machaon and its subspecies are protected by law. Papilio machaon machaon is protected by law in six provinces of Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Moldova. The species is protected in the United Kingdom, and subspecies verityi is protected in India.
The butterfly has a strong and fast flight, but frequently pauses to hover over flowering herbs and sip nectar. It frequents alpine meadows and hillsides, and males are fond of 'hilltopping', congregating near summits to compete for passing females. At lower elevations, it can be seen visiting gardens.
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