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Brachypteraciidae
The ground rollers, Brachypteraciidae, are a small family of non-migratory birds restricted to Madagascar. They are members of the order Coraciiformes and are most closely related to the rollers in the family Coraciidae. Description Ground rollers share the generally crow-like size and build of the true rollers, ranging from in length, and also hunt reptiles and large insects. They are more terrestrial than Coracidae species, and this is reflected in their longer legs and shorter, more rounded wings. They lack the highly colourful appearance of the true rollers, and are duller in appearance, with striped or flecked plumage. They are much more elusive and shy than their relatives, and are normally difficult to find in the Malagasy forests. Often the hooting breeding call is all that betrays their presence. These birds nest as solitary pairs in holes in the ground which they excavate themselves, unlike the true rollers, which rarely nest in ground holes and even then do not di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scaly Ground Roller
The scaly ground roller (''Geobiastes squamiger'') is a species of bird in a monotypic taxon, monotypic genus in the near-passerine family Brachypteraciidae. It is Endemism, endemic to eastern Madagascar. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest. The scaly ground roller is found at elevations below , and one of the few birds of Madagascar to reside in lowland rainforest. Morphology Scaly ground rollers grow to between . The head is covered with a black and white scaly pattern. It is a copper brown color and has green wings, with white tips. The center of the tail is reddish-brown, and has blue tips and black marks. The underside is pale, with black crescents. Its gray bill is thick and long, and its legs are pink in color. Ecology and behavior The diet of the scaly ground roller mostly consists of invertebrates it collects from the ground but it does also eat vertebrates it can find. It has been reported to chiefly eat earthworms (''Pheretima'' sp.) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Long-tailed Ground Roller
The long-tailed ground roller (''Uratelornis chimaera'') is a species of bird in the ground roller family Brachypteraciidae, placed in the monotypic genus ''Uratelornis''. Endemic to arid spiny forests near the coast in southwestern Madagascar, this ground roller occurs at extremely low population densities throughout its habitat. This species requires shade and a deep layer of leaves on the ground, and it is absent from parts of the spiny forest lacking these features. It has no recognized subspecies, and its closest relative is the scaly ground roller. The long-tailed ground roller is the only ground roller to definitively display sexual dimorphism (differences in plumage or size between sexes). It is a medium-sized bird with a plump silhouette and a long tail. The upperparts are dark brown with black streaks while the underparts are light gray. The white throat is framed by black malar stripes and a black breastband, and a white stripe is present at the base of the bill. Sk ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Short-legged Ground Roller
The short-legged ground roller (''Brachypteracias leptosomus'') is a species of bird in the ground roller family Brachypteraciidae. It is the only living species in the genus ''Brachypteracias'' and is endemic to Madagascar. It is threatened by habitat loss. Taxonomy and systematics The short-legged ground roller is the only extant species in the genus ''Brachypteracias,'' although a fossil species, '' Brachypteracias langrandi'', has been described. The short-legged ground roller is more arboreal than other ground rollers, and may represent the ancestral form of the family.Langrand, O. (2017). Ground-rollers (Brachypteraciidae). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from http://www.hbw.com/node/52276 on 20 March 2017). The genus ''Brachypteracias'' once included the scaly ground roller, but a 2001 study of the DNA of the family found that the two are not ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coraciiformes
The Coraciiformes are a group of usually colourful birds including the kingfishers, the bee-eaters, the rollers, the motmots, and the todies. They generally have syndactyly, with three forward-pointing toes (and toes 3 & 4 fused at their base), though in many kingfishers one of these is missing. The members of this order are linked by their "slamming" behaviour, thrashing their prey onto surfaces to disarm or incapacitate them. In the past, Coraciiformes encompassed all anisodactyl (including syndactyl) members of the Cavitaves. This means that the birds currently classified in Leptosomiformes ( cuckoo-roller) and Bucerotiformes ( hornbills, hoopoes and allies) were formerly classified in Coraciiformes. This is largely an Old World order, with the representation in the New World limited to the dozen or so species of todies and motmots, and a mere handful of the more than a hundred species of kingfishers. The name Coraciiformes means " raven-like". Specifically, i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coraciidae
Coraciidae () is a family of Old World birds, which are known as rollers because of the aerial acrobatics some of these birds perform during courtship or territorial flights. The family contains 13 species and is divided into two genera. Rollers resemble crows in size and build, and share the colourful appearance of kingfishers and bee-eaters, blues and pinkish or cinnamon browns predominating. The two inner front toes are connected, but not the outer one. They are mainly insect eaters, with ''Eurystomus'' species taking their prey on the wing, and those of the genus ''Coracias'' diving from a perch to catch food items from on the ground, like giant shrikes. Although living rollers are birds of warm climates in the Old World, fossil records show that rollers were present in North America during the Eocene. They are monogamous and nest in an unlined hole in a tree or in masonry, and lay 2–4 eggs in the tropics, 3–6 at higher latitudes. The eggs, which are white, hatch after 17 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brachypteracias
''Brachypteracias'' is a small genus of birds in the ground-roller family Brachypteraciidae. The genus is endemic to Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f .... Species There are two species: Bird genera Bird genera with one living species {{Coraciiformes-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atelornis
''Atelornis'' is a small genus of birds in the ground-roller family Brachypteraciidae. The genus is endemic to Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f .... Species There are two species: References External links * Bird genera Endemic birds of Madagascar Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxa named by Jacques Pucheran {{Coraciiformes-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meropidae
The bee-eaters are a group of birds in the family Meropidae, containing three genera and thirty-one species. Most species are found in Africa and Asia, with a few in southern Europe, Australia, and New Guinea. They are characterised by richly coloured plumage, slender bodies, and usually elongated central tail feathers. All have long down-turned bills and medium to long wings, which may be pointed or round. Male and female plumages are usually similar. As their name suggests, bee-eaters predominantly eat flying insects, especially bees and wasps, which are caught on the wing from an open perch. The insect's stinger is removed by repeatedly hitting and rubbing the insect on a hard surface. During this process, pressure is applied to the insect's body, thereby discharging most of the venom. Most bee-eaters are gregarious. They form colonies, nesting in burrows tunnelled into vertical sandy banks, often at the side of a river or in flat ground. As they mostly live in colonies, la ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
MtDNA
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA and mDNA) is the DNA located in the mitochondria organelles in a eukaryotic cell that converts chemical energy from food into adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial DNA is a small portion of the DNA contained in a eukaryotic cell; most of the DNA is in the cell nucleus, and, in plants and algae, the DNA also is found in plastids, such as chloroplasts. Mitochondrial DNA is responsible for coding of 13 essential subunits of the complex oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) system which has a role in cellular energy conversion. Human mitochondrial DNA was the first significant part of the human genome to be sequenced. This sequencing revealed that human mtDNA has 16,569 base pairs and encodes 13 proteins. As in other vertebrates, the human mitochondrial genetic code differs slightly from nuclear DNA. Since animal mtDNA evolves faster than nuclear genetic markers, it represents a mainstay of phylogenetics and evolutionary biology. It also permits tra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
