Wikipedia - User contributions [en]

Masked crimson tanager

2012-11-11T12:10:48Z

Alchemik2207:

{{Taxobox
| name = Masked Crimson Tanager
| image = Masked Crimson Tanager.jpg
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref>{{IUCN|id=106009305 |title=''Ramphocelus nigrogularis'' |assessors=[[BirdLife International]] |version=2012.1 |year=2012 |accessdate=16 July 2012}}</ref>
| regnum = [[Animalia]]
| phylum = [[Chordata]]
| classis = [[Aves]]
| ordo = [[Passeriformes]]
| familia = [[Thraupidae]]
| genus = ''[[Ramphocelus]]''
| species = '''''R. nigrogularis'''''
| binomial = ''Ramphocelus nigrogularis''
| binomial_authority = ([[Johann Baptist von Spix|Spix]], 1825)
| synonyms = }}
The '''Masked Crimson Tanager''' (''Ramphocelus nigrogularis'') is a species of [[bird]] in the family [[Thraupidae]].
It is found in [[Bolivia]], [[Brazil]], [[Colombia]], [[Ecuador]], and [[Peru]].
Its natural [[habitat]]s are subtropical or tropical [[swamp]]s and subtropical or tropical moist [[shrubland]].

The Masked Crimson Tanager was first described by German naturalist [[Johann Baptist von Spix]] in 1825. Its species name is derived from the [[Latin]] words ''niger'' "black", and ''gularis'' "throated". It is one of nine species of brightly coloured tanagers of the genus ''[[Ramphocelus]]''. Mitochondrial DNA evidence indicates its closest relative is the [[Crimson-backed Tanager]] (''R. dimidiatus''), and the two split around 800,000 years ago.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Burns|first=Kevin J.|coauthors=Racicot, Rachel A.|year=2009|title=Molecular phylogenetics of a clade of lowland tanagers: implications for avian participation in the great American interchange|journal=Auk|volume=126|issue=3|pages=635–48|url=http://www.bio.sdsu.edu/pub/burns/Burns%26Racicot2009.pdf}}</ref>

Measuring 18 to 19 cm (7-7.5 in) in length, the adult male has a black face, wings, mantle, belly and tail, and is a bright red elsewhere in its plumage. The bill has a silver sheen.<ref name=ridgely>{{cite book|url=http://books.google.com.au/books?id=gC_A2fpBl1gC&pg=PA614&dq=%22Masked+Crimson+Tanager%22&hl=en&ei=86PkTarEBIf2vwPfvr2UBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CEIQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=%22Masked%20Crimson%20Tanager%22&f=false|title=Field Guide to the Songbirds of South America: The Passerines|page=614 |author=Robert S. Ridgely, Guy Tudor|year=2009|publisher=University of Texas Press|isbn=0-292-71979-5}}</ref> The female resembles the male but has a brownish belly and duller plumage overall,<ref name="Schulenberg">{{cite book|last=Schulenberg|first=Thomas S. |title=Birds of Peru |publisher=Princeton University Press|location=Princeton, NJ|year=2007|pages=542–43|isbn=0-691-13023-X|url=http://books.google.com.au/books?id=yFuWUc7l0uQC&pg=PA542&dq=%22Masked+Crimson+Tanager%22&hl=en&ei=VqDkTeyHDYqMvQOw1PWiBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCsQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22Masked%20Crimson%20Tanager%22&f=false|accessdate=31 May 2011}}</ref> while the juvenile is duller still.<ref name=ridgely/> It resembles the [[Vermilion Tanager]] (''Calochaetes coccineus'') but the latter lives at higher altitudes.<ref name="Hilty">{{cite book|last= Steven L. Hilty, Bill Brown|title=A guide to the birds of Colombia|publisher=Princeton University Press|year=1986|pages=624|isbn=0-691-08372-X|url=http://books.google.com.au/books?id=kHa6tJNKGDAC&pg=PA624&dq=%22Crimson-backed+Tanager%22&hl=en&ei=cD_lTYmXOISyvgPZocyEBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CDMQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=%22Crimson-backed%20Tanager%22&f=false|accessdate=1 June 2011}}</ref>

The Masked Crimson Tanager makes a high-pitched single note variously transcribed as ''tchlink'' or "tink", and a simple melody often sung at dawn.<ref name=ridgely/><ref name="Schulenberg"/>

The Masked Crimson Tanager is found across Amazonia and is abundant. It prefers to dwell near bodies of water such as lakes, swamps or rivers, generally at altitudes below 600 m (2000 ft).<ref name="Schulenberg"/> Masked Crimson Tanagers move about in troops of 10 to 12 birds.<ref name=ridgely/> The species can form mixed species flocks with the [[Silver-beaked Tanager]] (''Ramphocelus carbo'').<ref name="Schulenberg"/> It is frugivorous (fruit-eating).{{Citation needed|date=June 2011}}

==Behavior==
The Masked Crimson Tanager has been speculated to engage in reverse sexual dominance behavior similar to their congener pair, the [[Silver-beaked Tanager]]. The Mask Crimson Tanagers, who belong to the [[passerine]] [[bird]] [[order (biology)|order]] exhibit this behavior similar to that of their cousin. However, there is no observable evidence to support the hypothesis that the Masked Crimson Tanager are among the rare and unexplained phenomenon of reverse sexual dominance. Under normal circumstances, [[passerine]] species of [[birds]] exemplify a default hierarchy of dominance wherein larger, heavier birds tend to dominate the smaller, lighter birds and males tend to dominate females. Between Masked Crimson Tanagers and the [[Silver-beaked Tanager]], individuals engage in a form of [[interference competition]], also known as competition by resource defense, when partitioning resource-rich habitats. The Masked Crimson Tanager prefer to inhabit sites close to or around [[oxbow lakes]], a common geographical feature of their native [[Amazonia]]. They demonstrate aggression while defending the more productive areas around the lakes, causing the Silver-beaked Tanager to occupy the [[riparian]] forest. The Masked Crimson Tanagers are competitively superior and dominate most interspecies interactions with their cousin.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Lebbin|first=Daniel J.|year=2008|title=AGGRESSIVE INTERACTIONS AND PRELIMINARY EVIDENCE FOR REVERSED SEXUAL DOMINANCE IN ''RAMPHOCELUS'' TANAGERS|journal=ORNITOLOGIA NEOTROPICAL|issue=19|pages=329–334|url=http://www.ibiologia.unam.mx/links/neo/revista/Volumenes%2018-19/19-3/ON%20(19)%20329-334.pdf}}</ref>

===Breeding===
The Masked Crimson Tanager breeds in between the dry and wet seasons of the seasonal tropics that they occupy. This species of Tanager participates in [[cooperative breeding]], which involves the communal care and protection of the offspring. For the Masked Crimson Tanager, as well as other lake-margin bird species, [[cooperative breeding]] may be favored due to high population density and scarcity of habitable space.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Robinson|first=Scott K.|year=1997|title=Birds of a Peruvian Oxbow Lake: Populations, Resources, Predation, and Social Behavior|journal=Ornithological Monographs|volume=48|issue=Studies in Neotropical Ornithology Honoring Ted Parker|pages=613–639|url=http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.wustl.edu/stable/view/40157558}}</ref>

In neotropical forests, the Masked Crimson Tanager congregates in mixed flocks much like those seen in [[flycatchers]] and vireos. The degree to which the Masked Crimson Tanager forms mixed flocks correlates with the relative extent to which broad-leafed canopy make up the composition of the neotropical forest.<ref>{{cite article|last=Angehr|first=George R.|coauthors=Aucca, Constantino; Christian, Daniel G.; Pequeño, Tatiana; Siegel, James|year=2001|title=Structure and Composition of the Bird Communities of the Lower Urubamba Region, Peru|book=Urubamba: The Biodiversity of a Peruvian Rainforest|url=http://nationalzoo.si.edu/SCBI/MAB/documents/SIMAB7.pdf#page=163}}</ref>

===Feeding===
Like most tanagers, Masked Crimson Tanagers are mainly [[frugivorous]], supplementing their fruit diets with small insects such as [[termite|flying termites]]. Their insectivorous tendency is driven by the periodic cycle of the breeding of termites, which produce winged males and females when sexually active. These termites are richer in nutrients than normal wood termites and therefore it may become more ecologically sound for the Masked Crimson Tanager to feed on these insects to supplement their existing diets.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Eisenmann|first=Eugene|year=1961|title=Favorite Foods of Neotropical Birds: Flying Termites and Cecropia Catkins|journal=The Auk|Volume=78|issue=4|pages=636–638|url=http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.wustl.edu/stable/4082198?seq=1}}</ref>

Masked Crimson Tanagers may also feed on the nectar of flowers as part of their diet. On most occasions, the they do not open the flowers, but rather feed on the nectar if and only if the flower has already been opened by some other species of bird or insect. The Masked Crimson Tanager has been noted to open flowers in Trinidad. Masked Crimson Tanagers feed on flowers of [[Erythrina fusca]] plants in a nondestructive manner while simultaneously contacting the anthers of the flowers with their heads, thus making them effective pollinators.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Cotton|first=Peter A.|year=2001|title=The Behavior and Interactions of Birds Visiting Erythrina fusca Flowers in the Colombian Amazon|journal=Biotropica|Volume=33|issue=4|pages=662–669|url=http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.wustl.edu/stable/3593168?seq=1}}</ref>

<gallery>
Image:Ramphocelus nigrogularis-20030906.jpg
Image:Ramphocelus nigrogularis-20030523.jpg
</gallery>

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2011}}

[[Category:Ramphocelus]]

[[es:Ramphocelus nigrogularis]]
[[eu:Ramphocelus nigrogularis]]
[[fr:Tangara masqué]]
[[fi:Karmiinitangara]]
[[sv:Karminbrösttangara]]
[[pl:Tapiranga czarnobrzucha]]

Crimson-collared tanager

2012-11-10T16:21:17Z

Alchemik2207:

{{Taxobox
| name = Crimson-collared Tanager
| image = Ramphocelus sanguinolentus -Belize-8.jpg
| image_caption = In Belize
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref>{{IUCN|id=106009304 |title=''Ramphocelus sanguinolentus'' |assessors=[[BirdLife International]] |version=2012.1 |year=2012 |accessdate=16 July 2012}}</ref>
| regnum = [[Animal]]ia
| phylum = [[Chordata]]
| classis = [[Aves]]
| ordo = [[Passeriformes]]
| familia = [[Thraupidae]]
| genus = ''[[Ramphocelus]]''
| species = ''R. sanguinolentus''
| binomial = ''Ramphocelus sanguinolentus''
| binomial_authority = ([[Rene Primevere Lesson|Lesson]], 1831)
| synonyms = *''Phlogothraupis sanguinolenta''
}}

The '''Crimson-collared Tanager''' (''Ramphocelus sanguinolentus'') is a rather small [[Middle America (Americas)|Middle American]] [[songbird]]. It was first described by the French naturalist [[René-Primevère Lesson]] in 1831, its specific epithet from the [[Latin]] adjective ''sanguinolentus'', "bloodied", referring to its red plumage.

==Taxonomy==
This species is sometimes placed in a genus of its own as ''Phlogothraupis sanguinolenta'',<ref name=Howellwebb/> and a genetic study suggests that it is less closely related to the other ''Ramphocelus'' tanagers than they are to each other.<ref>{{cite journal | author=S. J. Hackett | title= Molecular phylogenetics and biogeography of tanagers in the genus ''Ramphocelus'' (Aves) | journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution | volume=5 | issue=2 | year=1996 | pages=368–382 | doi= 10.1006/mpev.1996.0032 | pmid=8728395}}</ref> Its closest relative is the [[Masked Crimson Tanager]].{{Citation needed|date=March 2009}}

==Description==
Crimson-collared Tanagers average 19–20 cm (7.5–8 in long. The adult plumage is black with a red collar covering the nape, neck, and breast<ref name=Howellwebb>{{cite book | author=Steve N. G. Howell and Sophie Webb | title=[[A Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Northern Central America]] | publisher=Oxford University Press | year=1995 | pages = 676–77 | isbn=0-19-854012-4}}</ref> (remarkably similar to the pattern of the male [[Crimson-collared Grosbeak]]). All tail coverts are also red. The bill is striking pale blue and the legs are blue-gray. In adults, the [[iris (anatomy)|irides]] are crimson, contrary to what is shown in Howell & Webb.<ref name=Howellwebb/> Females average slightly duller than males, but are sometimes indistinguishable from them. Juvenile birds are similar except that the hood is dull red, the black areas are tinged with brown, and the breast is mottled red and black.<ref name=Howellwebb/> Young birds also have a duller bill color.

Vocalizations are high-pitched and sibilant. There are several calls; one rendered as ''ssii-p'' is given both when perched and in flight.<ref name=Howellwebb/> The song is jerky and consists of two-to-four-note phrases separated by pauses, ''tueee-teew, chu-chee-wee-chu, teweee''.

==Distribution and habitat==
The Crimson-collared Tanager ranges from southern [[Veracruz]] and northern [[Oaxaca]] in [[Mexico]] through the Atlantic slope of [[Central America]],<ref name=Howellwebb/> to the highlands of western [[Panama]].<ref>{{cite web | last = Hill | first = Armas | title = Panama Birds during FONT Birding & Nature Tours | publisher = Focus on Nature Tours | year = 2006 | url = http://www.focusonnature.com/BirdListAllPanama.htm | accessdate = 10 July 2006}}</ref> It inhabits the edges of humid evergreen forests and second growth, where it is often seen in pairs at middle to upper levels.

==Behaviour==

===Breeding===
The nest is a cup built of such materials as moss, rootlets<ref name=Howellwebb/> and strips of large leaves such as [[banana]] or ''[[Heliconia]]''{{Citation needed|date=March 2009}}, and is placed at middle height in a tree at a forest edge. The female usually lays two eggs, pale blue with blackish spots.<ref name=Howellwebb/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

* {{cite book | author=F. G. Stiles and A. F. Skutch | title=A guide to the birds of Costa Rica | publisher=Cornell University Press | year=1989 | isbn=0-8014-9600-4}}

{{commons|Ramphocelus sanguinolentus}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crimson-Collared Tanager}}
[[Category:Ramphocelus]]

[[es:Ramphocelus sanguinolentus]]
[[eu:Ramphocelus sanguinolentus]]
[[fr:Tangara ceinturé]]
[[pl:Tapiranga maskowa]]
[[sv:Rödkragad tangara]]

Wattle (anatomy)

2012-11-06T21:57:02Z

Alchemik2207:

[[File:Rooster portrait2.jpg|thumb|right|180px|A rooster's wattle hangs from the throat]]
[[File:Male common pheasant.jpg|thumb|180px|right|A [[Common Pheasant]] ''(Phasianus colchicus)'' with a bright red facial wattle]]
{{wiktionarypar|wattle}}
A '''wattle''' is a fleshy [[dewlap]] or [[caruncle]] hanging from various parts of the head or neck in several groups of birds, goats and other animals. In some birds the caruncle is [[erectile tissue]].<ref>John James Audubon, Dean Amadon, John L Bull. 1967 ''The birds of America‎''</ref>

The wattle is frequently an organ of [[sexual dimorphism]]. In some cases within the bird world the caruncle has a feather covering, whilst in other cases the feathers are sparse or absent.<ref>Richard Bowdler Sharpe. 1888</ref>

==Birds==
===Function===
In birds the wattle is often an ornament for courting [[Sexual selection|potential mates]]. A large wattle is correlated with high testosterone levels, good nutrition, and the ability to evade predators, which in turn suggests a successful mate. It has also been proposed that ornamental organs such as the wattle are also associated with [[Gene|genes]] coding for disease resistance.<ref>[http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10709-010-9440-5 "Are large wattles related to particular MHC genotypes in the male pheasant?" Mariella Baratti, Martina Ammannati, Claudia Magnelli, Alessandro Massolo and Francesco Dessì-Fulgheri]</ref>
===Examples===
[[Bird]]s with wattles include:
*From the neck or throat
** Birds of the family [[Casuarius]]: the Northern, Southern, and Dwarf cassowaries
** [[Galliformes]] (e.g., [[wild turkey]]s,<ref>[http://www.globaltwitcher.com/artspec_information.asp?thingid=2199 Hogan, C. Michael "Wild turkey: Meleagris gallopavo", GlobalTwitcher.com, ed. N. Stromberg 2008]</ref> [[chicken]]s)
** Some [[vulture]]s
** Some [[lapwing]]s
** Some<ref>John White. 1790</ref> [[List of Australian birds|Australia]]n [[wattlebird]]s (Anthochaera ''spp.'')
** The [[List of New Zealand birds|New Zealand]] [[Callaeidae|wattlebirds]] (Callaeidae), which include the [[Kokako]], [[Tieke|Tieke or Saddleback]], and the [[Huia]]
*From below the eyes
**The [[List of African birds|African]] [[Wattle-eye|Wattle-eye or Puffback Flycatcher]]
**Many male [[pheasant]]s
**[[Spectacled Tyrant]]

==Mammals==
[[Mammal]]s with wattles include:
*Many domestic [[goat]]s, as a fleshy protuberance hanging either side of the throat
*Some domestic [[pig]]s (such as [[kunekune]]s and [[Lithuanian Native pig]]s), as a fleshy protuberance hanging either side of the throat

==See also==
* [[Comb (anatomy)]] - the fleshy structure present atop the heads of many [[Galliform]] species
* [[Dubbing (poultry)]] - Wattle removal

==References==
{{reflist}}

== Notes ==
* John White. 1790. ''Voyage to New South Wales''
* Richard Bowdler Sharpe. 1888. ''Catalogue of the birds in the British Museum‎'', British [[Natural History Museum]] Department of [[Zoology]]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wattle (Anatomy)}}
[[Category:Ornithological terminology]]
[[Category:Bird topography]]

[[de:Glöckchen]]
[[es:Carúncula]]
[[ga:Sprochaille]]
[[ko:고기수염]]
[[id:Gelambir]]
[[nl:Lel (anatomie)]]
[[fi:Heltta (eläimet)]]
[[pl:Przydatki głowowe]]
[[war:Bitáy-bitáy]]

South American painted-snipe

2012-11-05T21:58:44Z

Alchemik2207:

{{Taxobox
|name=South American Painted-snipe
|status=LC|status_system=IUCN3.1
|image= Nycticryphes.jpg
|image_width=
|regnum=[[Animal]]ia
|phylum=[[Chordate|Chordata]]
|classis=[[bird|Aves]]
|ordo=[[Charadriiformes]]
|familia=[[Rostratulidae]]
|genus='''''Nycticryphes'''''
|genus_authority = [[Alexander Wetmore|Wetmore]] & [[James Lee Peters|Peters]], 1923
|species='''''N. semicollaris'''''
|binomial=''Nycticryphes semicollaris''
|binomial_authority=([[Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot|Vieillot]], 1816)
|synonyms=''Rostratula semicollaris''
}}

The '''South American Painted-snipe''' or '''Lesser Painted-snipe''' (''Nycticryphes semicollaris'') is a shorebird in the family [[Rostratulidae]]. There are two other species in its family, the [[Australian Painted-snipe]] and the [[Greater Painted-snipe]].

==Description==
Head and neck dark red-brown with a yellow stripe on the crown; upperparts dark grey-brown, spotted white; underparts white. Although the female may be slightly larger and brighter, in contrast to the two other species in the family, the South American Painted-snipe is not strongly [[sexual dimorphism|sexually dimorphic]]. It has a relatively long, decurved, bill. It has webbed feet, also a difference from the other painted snipe. Measurements: 19–23 cm in length; 65–86 g in weight.

==Distribution and habitat==
The species is found in the southern third of [[South America]], from southern [[Brazil]], [[Paraguay]] and [[Uruguay]] to [[Chile]] and [[Argentina]]. It inhabits lowland freshwater wetlands, including wet grasslands.

==Behaviour==
===Diet===
Omnivorous, feeding by probing in mud and shallow water for small animals and seeds, often at dusk.

===Breeding===
South American Painted-snipes are monogamous and breed semi-colonially. The nest is a shallow cup on the ground in a wetland, with a clutch of 2-3 eggs. Breeding has been recorded mainly from July to February.

===Voice===
A hoarse, hissing "wee-oo" recorded from birds in captivity.

==Conservation==
The South American Painted-snipe has traditionally been regarded as a desirable game-bird in Chile and Argentina and has been regularly hunted. It is an uncommon species in its wide range, and may be threatened by drainage of wetlands and other habitat degradation. However, there has been no documented significant decline in population and the species' conservation status remains at one of Least Concern.

==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Refbegin}}
*[http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/species/index.html?action=SpcHTMDetails.asp&sid=3067&m=0 BirdLife Species Factsheet]
*Höhn, E. Otto. (1975). Notes on Black-headed Ducks, Painted Snipe and Spotted Tinamous. ''Auk'' '''92''': 566-575.
{{Refend}}

==External links==
*[http://www.answers.com/main/ntq-dsid-2392-dekey-%23South_American_painted_snipe Answers.com - South American Painted Snipe]
*[http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/resources/grzimek_birds/Rostratulidae/Nycticryphes_semicollaris.jpg/view.html Image at ADW]

[[Category:Rostratulidae]]
[[Category:Birds of South America]]

{{Charadriiformes-stub}}

[[ca:Nycticryphes semicollaris]]
[[es:Nycticryphes semicollaris]]
[[eo:Pentrita galinageto]]
[[eu:Nycticryphes semicollaris]]
[[fr:Rhynchée de Saint-Hilaire]]
[[it:Nycticryphes semicollaris]]
[[nl:Nycticryphes]]
[[pt:Narceja-de-bico-torto]]
[[pl:Złotosłonka Amerykańska]]
[[zh:半领彩鹬]]

Grey-necked rockfowl

2011-11-06T11:39:51Z

Alchemik2207:

{{Taxobox
| name = Grey-necked Rockfowl
| image =PicathartesReichenow.jpg
| image_caption = Illustration Grey-necked (background) with White-necked (foreground)
| status = VU
| status_system = iucn3.1
| trend = down
| regnum = [[Animal]]ia
| phylum = [[Chordate|Chordata]]
| classis = [[Bird|Aves]]
| ordo = [[Passeriformes]]
| familia = [[Picathartidae]]
| genus = ''[[Picathartes]]''
| species = '''''P. oreas'''''
| binomial = ''Picathartes oreas''
| binomial_authority = [[Anton Reichenow|Reichenow]], 1899
| range_map = PicathartesDistribution.svg
| range_map_caption = The distribution of the Grey-necked Rockfowl (azure)
}}

The '''Grey-necked Rockfowl''', ''Picathartes oreas'', also known as '''Grey-necked Picathartes''', breeds in southern [[Cameroon]], northern [[Nigeria]], [[Gabon]], and [[Equatorial Guinea]], and possibly in [[Republic of the Congo|Congo]]]. It has a grey throat and grey upperparts. The underparts are pale orange. The head has black "masks", a violet crown, and a red patch at the nape. It is found in closed canopy, primary rainforest, but may also populate further degraded habitat.<ref>http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=6264</ref>

It feeds mainly on [[Invertebrate|invertebrates]], often following ant columns, and also takes small [[Vertebrate|vertebrates]] such as [[Frog|frogs]] or [[Lizard|lizards]].<ref>Thompson and Fotso (2000)</ref> It nests in caves and on [[Cliff|rock cliffs]] and needs specific [[habitat]] requirements, such as overhanging rock for protection from the elements and often it needs a [[River|seasonal river]] below to protect from [[Predator|predators]].<ref>Tye (1987)</ref> It is occasionally found nesting on similar structures such as [[Buttress root|tree buttresses]] and concrete bridges.<ref>Christy and Maisels (2007)</ref> It breeds in colonies wherever nest sites are limited.<ref>Tye (1987)</ref> The nest is a half cup made out of dried mud with dry grass or leaves. It lays one to three eggs, usually two.<ref>Bian et al. (2006)</ref> It [[Avian incubation|incubates]] for 21-24 days, and [[fledges]] in about 24 days. In southern Cameroon, nesting occurs from August to October (Peaking in September),<ref>French (2006)</ref> but elsewhere in its range it nests between March-November (peaking in August-November).

It is classified as vulnerable because the population has dropped below 10,000 birds and is fragmented due to loss of habitat. Forest clearance is normally for [[agriculture]] such as [[Crops|crop fields]] and [[Coffee plantation|coffee plantations]].<ref>T. Awa in litt. (2007)</ref> Disturbances from [[birdwatchers]] and [[Ecotourism|ecotourists]] at the nest site is becoming an increasing concern.

==Taxonomy==
This species was first [[Species description|described]] by [[Anton Reichenow]] in 1899 from a bird collected near [[Limbe, Cameroon]].<ref name="Fry4">Fry 2000, p. 4</ref> He published his description in ''Ornithologische Monatsberichte'' and described it as ''Picathartes oreas''.<ref name="Fry4"/> The generic name was fist used by [[René-Primevère Lesson]] in 1828 after he split the Grey-necked Rockfowl's close relative the [[White-necked Rockfowl]] from the crow genus ''[[crow|Corvus]]'' and placed in its own genus, ''Picathartes'', as the White-necked Rockfowl did not share characteristics common to members of ''Corvus'' such as a feathered head.<ref name="Lesson"> {{cite book | last = Lesson | first = René-Primevère | authorlink = René-Primevère Lesson| title = Manuel d'ornithologie ou description des genres et des principales espèces d'oiseaux | publisher = Roret, Libraire | volume = IV| date = 1828 | location = Paris | pages = 374–376| language = French | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=QTxW7C1A8CIC&q=picathartes#v=snippet&q=picathartes&f=false }}</ref> This generic name comes from the Latin words ''pica'' "magpie", which is the origin for the word "pied", and ''cathartes'' "vulture".<ref name="Earthwatch">{{cite web| title = Conserving the white-necked ''Picathartes'' in Ghana| publisher = Earthwatch Institute | url = http://www.earthwatch.org/europe/expeditions/exped_research_focus/rf-ghanarockfowl.html| accessdate =2011-10-25 }}</ref><ref name="OnlineDictionary">{{cite web | last = Harper | first = Douglas | authorlink = Douglas Harper | title = pied | work = Online Etymology Dictionary | publisher = Dictionary.com | date = 2011 | url = http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/pied| accessdate = 2011–10–29}}</ref> Since its initial description, the picathartes have been placed in more than five different families, including the crows [[Corvidae]], the starlings [[Sturnidae]], the Old World flycatchers [[Muscicapidae]], the babblers [[Timaliidae]], and the Old World warblers [[Sylviidae]].<ref name="HBW60">Thompson 2007, p. 60</ref> Today the rockfowl are believed to compose a unique family, [[Picathartidae]].<ref name="Fry1">Fry 2000, p. 1</ref> Recent [[DNA analysis]] has shown that the species' family forms a [[clade]] with its closest relatives, southern Africa's [[rockjumper]]s, and southeast Asia's [[Rail-babbler]].<ref name="Jønsson"> {{cite journal | last = Jønsson | first = Knud | coauthors = Jon Fjeldså, Per G P Ericson, and Martin Irestedt | title = Systematic placement of an enigmatic Southeast Asian taxon ''Eupetes macrocerus'' and implications for the biogeography of a main songbird radiation, the Passerida | journal = [[Biology Letters]] | volume = 3 | issue = 3 | pages = 323–326 | publisher = Royal Society | location = London | date = 2007-6-22| url = http://rsbl.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/3/3/323.full | doi = 10.1098/rsbl.2007.0054 }}</ref> The analysis suggests that the rockfowl split from the common ancestor of their clade 44 million years ago.<ref name="Jønsson"/> It is believed that the ancestor of this clade originated in Australia and spread to Africa.<ref name="Jønsson"/> Though the Grey-necked Rockfowl has no [[subspecies]], it is believed to form a [[superspecies]] with the White-necked Rockfowl, with plumage and facial pattern being the primary differences between the two species.<ref name="Fry1"/>

==Ecology and behavior==

===Diet===
The Grey-necked Rockfowl feeds primarily on invertebrates and small vertebrates.<ref name="Fry6">Fry 2000, p. 6</ref> It is known to eat beetles, including [[weevil]]s, [[rove beetle]]s, and [[click beetle]]s from the genus ''[[Psephus]]'', [[butterflies]], ants from the genera ''[[Dorylus]]'' and ''[[Pachycondyla]]'', [[grasshopper]]s, cockroaches from the family [[Blattidae]], [[earwig]]s, [[caterpillar]]s, [[ant-lion]]s, [[silverfish]], and earthworms.<ref name="Fry6"/> Small lizards, frogs, snails, and slugs are also eaten, as are crabs from the genus ''[[Potamon]]'', [[moss]]es, and [[leaves]].<ref name="Fry6"/> At at least one nesting site, it relies primarily on the arthropods feeding on the bat [[guano]] near the cave.<ref name="Fry6"/> It is known to regurgitate what it has eaten in pellet form.<ref name="Fry6"/>

===Reproduction===
The Grey-necked Rockfowl breeds either alone or in small colonies.<ref name="Fry6"/> It is [[monogamy|monogamous]] and therefore does not breed with rockfowl other than its mate despite earlier suggestions that it bred cooperatively.<ref name="Fry6"/> Courtship displays are unknown.<ref name="Fry6"/> The timing of the laying of eggs in a colony is not synchronized, leading to various stages of development within the colony.<ref name="Fry6"/>

== References ==
{{Reflist|2}}

===Cited texts===
* {{cite book | last = Fry | first = C. Hilary | coauthors = Stuart Keith and Emil K. Urban | title = The Birds of Africa Volume VI | publisher = Academic Press| date = 2000 | location = London | isbn =0-12-137306-1}}
* {{cite encyclopedia | last = Thompson | first = Hazell S.S. | editor-last = del Hoyo | editor-first = J. | editor2-last = Elliott | editor2-first =A. | editor3-last = Christie | editor3-first =D.A. | title = Family Picathartidae (Picathartes) | encyclopedia = [[Handbook of the Birds of the World]] | volume = 12. '''Picathartes to Tits and Chickadees''' | publisher = Lynx Editions | location = Barcelona | date = 2007}}

== External links ==
* [http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/species/index.html?action=SpcHTMDetails.asp&sid=6264&m=0 BirdLife Species Factsheet]
* [http://www.redlist.org/search/details.php?species=17257 IUCN Red List]

[[Category:Picathartes]]
[[Category:Birds of Cameroon]]
[[Category:Birds of Equatorial Guinea]]
[[Category:Birds of Gabon]]
[[Category:Birds of Nigeria]]

{{passeri-stub}}

[[de:Buntkopf-Felshüpfer]]
[[fr:Picatharte du Cameroun]]
[[hu:Szürkenyakú gólyalábúvarjú]]
[[nl:Grijsnekkaalkopkraai]]
[[fi:Punapääkaljukas]]
[[zh:灰頸岩鶥]]

Grey-necked rockfowl

2011-11-06T11:00:15Z

Alchemik2207: