BIRDWALKERMONDAY WILDLIFE BLOG

This Blog contains Wildlife, Plants and Bird Photos from Walks, Safaris, Birding Trips and Vacations. Most of the pictures have been taken with my Nikon P900 and P950X cameras. Just click on any image for a larger picture. On the right column under the Blog Archive are the entries by date. Below that under Animal categories all the diffent species of Animals, Birds, Insects and Plants contained in the website are listed. Clicking on any entry will show all the entries for that species.

Tuesday, 5 April 2022

20-5-2019 BUMI HILLS, ZIMBABWE - WHITE HEADED LAPWING (Vanellus albiceps)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/4855-Vanellus-albiceps

19-5-2019 BUMI HILLS, ZIMBABWE - LITTLE BEE-EATER (Merops pasillas)

The little bee-eater (Merops pusillus) is a bird species in the bee-eater family, Meropidae. They are found in Sub-Saharan Africa. They should not be confused with the little green bee-eater (Merops orientalis). Migration is limited to seasonal movements depending on rainfall patterns.

Members of this species, like other bee-eaters, are rich and brightly coloured slender birds. They have green upper parts, yellow throats, black gorgets, and rich brown upper breasts fading to buffish ochre on the belly. Their wings are green and brown. Their beaks and legs are black. They reach a length of 15–17 cm, which makes them the smallest African bee-eater. Sexes are alike. Often silent, their call is a soft "seep".

These are abundant and tame birds, familiar throughout their range. There have been estimated to be between 60 and 80 million little bee-eaters. They breed in open country with bushes, preferably near water. Just as the name suggests, bee-eaters predominantly eat insects, especially bees, wasps and hornets, who are caught in the air by sorties from an open perch. This species often hunts from low perches, maybe only a metre or less high. Before eating their meal, a bee-eater removes the stinger by repeatedly hitting the insect on a hard surface.

Unlike most bee-eaters, these are solitary nesters, making a tunnel in sandy banks, or sometimes in the entrance to an Aardvark den. They lay 4 to 6 spherical white eggs. Both the male and the female take care of the eggs. These birds roost communally, lined up on a tree branch.

This is an abundant and tame bird, familiar throughout its range of Sub-Sahara Africa. There have been estimated to be between 60-80 million little bee-eaters. It breeds in open country with bushes, preferably near water. Just as the name suggests, bee-eaters predominantly eat insects, especially bees, wasps and hornets, which are caught in the air by sorties from an open perch.

This is the world’s smallest bee-eater at a length of 16 cm. The little bee-eater is bright green on top with orange or buff underparts, including the outer flight feathers. A black gorget (collar) separates the orange or buff breast from a yellow throat.

The tail is orange or buff, with a green center. Like all bee-eaters, the little bee-eater has a black eye stripe, with turquoise spot above the eye.

The little bee-eater hunts flying insects, whilst in flight. Once they catch an insect, they will return to a perch, to kill the insect and remove its sting, by repeatedly hitting the insect against the branch. The little bee-eater prefers insects such as bees and wasps.

A tunnel is dug by both the male and female little bee-eater, normally in a vertical sandy bank or an aardvark hole. This tunnel can be as deep as 130 cm. They do not line the nest cavity and the 2 to 6 eggs are laid directly on the sand. The eggs are incubated by both sexes for around 20 days.

This bee-eater is parasitized by the Greater Honeyguide (Indicator indicator).

The little bee-eater will roost communally at night, with the birds huddled together on a single perch. They often use the same perch repeatedly when hunting, taking short flights to catch their prey then returning back to the same perch.

The little bee-eater is found in a woodland environment, near water. This is a common resident in the north-eastern areas of South Africa.

20-5-2019 BUMI HILLS, ZIMBABWE - SOUTHERN RED BISHOP (FEMALE) (Euplectes orix)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/13962-Euplectes-orix

19-5-2019 BUMI HILLS, ZIMBABWE - AFRICAN PIPIT (Merops pusillus ssp. meridionalis)

The African pipit (Anthus cinnamomeus) is a fairly small passerine bird belonging to the pipit genus Anthus in the family Motacillidae. It is also known as the grassveld pipit or grassland pipit. It was formerly lumped together with the Richard's, Australian, mountain and paddyfield pipits in a single species, Richard's pipit (Anthus novaeseelandiae), but is now often treated as a species in its own right.

Monday, 4 April 2022

20-5-2019 LAKE KARIBA, ZIMBABWE - AFRICAN FISH EAGLE (Haliaeetus vocifer)

The African fish eagle (Haliaeetus vocifer) or the African sea eagle, is a large species of eagle found throughout sub-Saharan Africa wherever large bodies of open water with an abundant food supply occur. It is the national bird of Malawi, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. As a result of its large range, it is known in many languages. Examples of names include: Vis Arend in Afrikaans, nkwazi in Chewa, aigle pêcheur in French, hungwe in Shona, inkwazi in isiZulu, and ntšhu (pronounced "ntjhu") in Northern Sotho. This species may resemble the bald eagle in appearance; though related, the two species occurs on different continents, with the bald eagle being resident in North America.

27-5-2021 MERIDA, BADAJOZ - SQUARE HEADED WASP (Genus Astata)

Crabronidae is a large family of wasps within the superfamily Apoidea.

This family has historically been treated as a subfamily in the now-defunct Spheciformes group under the family Sphecidae. The Spheciformes included well over 200 genera, containing well over 9000 species. Revision of these taxa resulted in the restriction of the Sphecidae to what was once the subfamily Sphecinae. As a result, the former Crabroninae was elevated to family status as Crabronidae. Subsequent revision has further restricted the Crabronidae. Several of the subfamilies of the Crabronidae are often treated as families in their own right, as is true of the most recent phylogenies. Of these lineages of Apoidea, only three were not included within Crabronidae in the past: Ampulicidae, Sphecidae, and Anthophila.

Sunday, 3 April 2022

20-5-2019 BUMI HILLS, ZIMBABWE - PLUM COLOUR STARLING (Cinnyricinclus leucogaster ssp. verreauxi)

The Plum-coloured Starling, also known as the Violet-backed Starling (_Cinnyricinclus leucogaster), is a species found in sub-Saharan Africa with sexually dimorphic plumage. The male has iridescent violet or purple upperparts and a pure white belly, while the female is brown with streaked upperparts and white underparts with dark streaks. This bird is found in woodlands and savanna edges and feeds on fruit, berries, and insects. The subspecies verreauxi is a part of this species.

Scientific name: Cinnyricinclus leucogaster

Common names: Plum-coloured Starling, Violet-backed Starling, Amethyst Starling

Habitat: Woodlands and forest edges in sub-Saharan Africa

Diet: Fruits, berries, and insects

Male

Plumage: Iridescent violet to purple back and head, with a pure white belly and vent.

Appearance: The iridescence of the back varies from plum-violet to purple-blue depending on the light.

Female

Plumage: Brown upperparts with dark streaks, and white underparts with dark central streaks.

Appearance: The streaks on the underparts are broadest on the breast.

19-5-2019 BUMI HILLS, ZIMBABWE - VIOLET BACKED STARLING (MALE) (Cinnyricinclus leucogaster)

The violet-backed starling (Cinnyricinclus leucogaster), also known as the plum-coloured starling or amethyst starling, or Ndambamukula in the Venda language, is a relatively small species (17 cm) of starling in the family Sturnidae. It is the only member of the genus Cinnyricinclus. This strongly sexually dimorphic species is found widely in the woodlands and savannah forest edges of mainland sub-Saharan Africa. It is rarely seen on the ground, but instead found in trees and other locations away from the ground.

The violet-backed starling is a sexually dimorphic species with adults reaching a length of about 18 cm (7 in). The male has an iridescent violet head and back and pure white underparts. The female has a thrush-like appearance with brown, boldly-streaked upper parts and white, heavily-streaked underparts. Both sexes have yellow irises and black bills and legs.

The violet-backed starling is a common bird in Sub-Saharan Africa, occurring in most locations with the exception of the dense rainforest of the Congo Basin, and the more arid parts of southwestern Africa. It is found in open woodland, gallery forests, forest verges and clearings. In the Chyulu Hills of Kenya, it occurs at altitudes up to 2,100 m (6,900 ft).

The diet of the violet-backed starling includes fruits, seeds and arthropods. It sometimes hawks for insects in a manner similar to flycatchers. It largely feeds in the canopy, seldom foraging on the ground. The nest is usually located in a crevice in a tree within a few metres of the ground. Nesting material includes green leaves and dung. The female will incubate the clutch of two to four eggs, which are pale blue with reddish/brown spots, for 12–14 days. The male will help feed chicks until they fledge after about 21 days.