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Mesite
The mesites (Mesitornithidae) are a family of birds that are part of a clade (Columbimorphae) that include Columbiformes and Pterocliformes. They are somewhat small-bodied, flightless or near flightless birds endemic to Madagascar. All the species of this clade are listed as vulnerable. Description The mesites are forest and scrubland birds that feed on insects and seeds; brown and white-breasted mesites forage on the ground, gleaning insects from underneath leaves as well as low vegetation. The subdesert mesite uses its long bill to probe in the soil. Other birds, such as drongos and flycatchers, will follow mesites to catch any insects they flush out or miss. Mesites are vocal birds, with calls similar to that of a passerine's song, which are used for territorial defence. Two or three white eggs are laid in a stick-built nest located in a bush or on a low branch. The ''Mesitornis'' species are monogamous while ''Monias benschi'' is polygamous and, unlike the other two, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mesitornis
''Mesitornis'' is a genus of birds in the family Mesitornithidae. Its two members, the white-breasted mesite and the brown mesite, are endemic to Madagascar, and both are classified as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red list of Threatened species. The third mesite species, the subdesert mesite, is the sole member of the genus ''Monias''. Species ''Mesitornis'' There are two species, the brown mesite (''Mesitornis unicolor'') and the white-breasted mesite (''Mesitornis variegatus''). They are medium-sized birds to respectively and are considered to look like the rails; a family (Rallidae) in which the mesites are sometimes placed. Both species are ground-nesting and move slowly amongst the undergrowth searching in the leaf litter for invertebrates. The brown mesite is secretive and rarely seen. It lives in undisturbed primary, evergreen, humid forest along the eastern coast of Madagascar, from Marojejy National Park in the north to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Subdesert Mesite
The subdesert mesite (''Monias benschi'') is a ground-dwelling bird endemic to Madagascar. It is one of three species in the mesite family Mesitornithidae, and is restricted in distribution to a small low-land region in southwest Madagascar. Description The subdesert mesite is a medium-sized terrestrial bird which is often described as rail-like. The species has a long and downward-curved bill distinguishing it from the other members of the family. Both sexes are greyish above and show thin white eyebrows. Both have white underparts; the male has black crescent-shaped spots on the side of the neck and upper breast. The female has rufous spots that may merge into a general rufous tone, and has a tawny cheek patch. Distribution and habitat The subdesert mesite is restricted to spiny thicket with open areas, from sea-level to an altitude of . It is restricted to the long, and wide, coastal strip between the Fiherenana river and the Mangoky river, in the south-west of Madagasca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
White-breasted Mesite
The white-breasted mesite (''Mesitornis variegatus'') is a ground-dwelling bird endemic to Madagascar. One of three species in the mesite family, Mesitornithidae, it is classified as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). It has a small population and is restricted to five sites in the north and west of the island, and one in the east. Description The white-breasted mesite is a medium-sized terrestrial bird which is often described as rail-like. The species has a white face with distinctive facial markings (a white supercilium and dark malar stripes) and a short dark straight bill. The upperparts are rufous brown, the underside is white with a tawny chest band and a barred belly. The wings are short and rounded and the bird only flies a few metres when pursued. It has a melodic song and sings in the early morning and during the day. Ecology The white-breasted mesite is a forest species; living in groups of two to four individuals which can be s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Subdesert Mesite
The subdesert mesite (''Monias benschi'') is a ground-dwelling bird endemic to Madagascar. It is one of three species in the mesite family Mesitornithidae, and is restricted in distribution to a small low-land region in southwest Madagascar. Description The subdesert mesite is a medium-sized terrestrial bird which is often described as rail-like. The species has a long and downward-curved bill distinguishing it from the other members of the family. Both sexes are greyish above and show thin white eyebrows. Both have white underparts; the male has black crescent-shaped spots on the side of the neck and upper breast. The female has rufous spots that may merge into a general rufous tone, and has a tawny cheek patch. Distribution and habitat The subdesert mesite is restricted to spiny thicket with open areas, from sea-level to an altitude of . It is restricted to the long, and wide, coastal strip between the Fiherenana river and the Mangoky river, in the south-west of Madagasca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brown Mesite
The brown mesite (''Mesitornis unicolor'') is a ground-dwelling bird endemic to Madagascar. It is one of three species in the mesite family or the Mesitornithidae, and though classified as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), it is the most widespread of the three. Description This species is a medium-sized terrestrial bird which is often described as rail-like. The species has a plain face, marked only by a slightly contrasting fleshy eye-ring around a rather large eye and a variable white streak behind the eye. It has a short straight bill. The upperparts of the bird are rufous brown, the underside tawny with no barring or spotting. Ecology The brown mesite is a humid forest species, it forages by walking through the forest floor flicking over leaf-litter in order to find invertebrates. Its rufous brown plumage provides reasonable camouflage on the shady forest floor. The preferred habitat is undisturbed deciduous forest from sea-level up ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Columbimorphae
Columbimorphae is a clade/superorder discovered by genome analysis that includes birds of the orders Columbiformes (pigeons and doves), Pterocliformes (sandgrouse), and Mesitornithiformes (mesites). This group was defined in the ''PhyloCode'' by George Sangster and colleagues in 2022 as "the least inclusive crown clade containing ''Columba oenas'', ''Mesitornis variegatus'', and ''Pterocles alchata''". Previous analyses had also recovered this grouping, although the exact relationships differed. Some studies indicated a sister relationship between sandgrouse and pigeons (the traditional view) while other studies favored a sister grouping of mesites and sandgrouse instead. This sister relationship of the sandgrouses and mesites was named by George Sangster and colleagues in 2022 as the clade Pteroclimesites and defined in the ''PhyloCode'' as "the least inclusive crown clade containing ''Mesitornis variegatus'' and ''Pterocles alchata''". In 2020 Kuhl ''et al''. sequenced 3-prime ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pterocliformes
Sandgrouse is the common name for Pteroclidae (), a family of sixteen species of bird, members of the order Pterocliformes (). They are traditionally placed in two genera. The two central Asian species are classified as '' Syrrhaptes'' and the other fourteen species, from Africa and Asia, are placed in the genus '' Pterocles''. They are ground-dwelling birds restricted to treeless, open country, such as plains, savannahs, and semi-deserts. They are distributed across northern, southern, and eastern Africa, Madagascar, the Middle East, and India through central Asia. The ranges of the black-bellied sandgrouse and the pin-tailed sandgrouse even extend into the Iberian Peninsula and France, and Pallas's sandgrouse occasionally breaks out in large numbers from its normal range in Asia. Description Sandgrouse have small, pigeon-like heads and necks and sturdy compact bodies. They range in size from in length and from in weight. Their feathers' colours blend in with their desert e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Foraging
Foraging is searching for wild food resources. It affects an animal's fitness because it plays an important role in an animal's ability to survive and reproduce. Foraging theory is a branch of behavioral ecology that studies the foraging behavior of animals in response to the environment where the animal lives. Behavioral ecologists use economic models and categories to understand foraging; many of these models are a type of optimal model. Thus foraging theory is discussed in terms of optimizing a payoff from a foraging decision. The payoff for many of these models is the amount of energy an animal receives per unit time, more specifically, the highest ratio of energetic gain to cost while foraging. Foraging theory predicts that the decisions that maximize energy per unit time and thus deliver the highest payoff will be selected for and persist. Key words used to describe foraging behavior include ''resources'', the elements necessary for survival and reproduction which have a l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
IOC World Bird List
''Birds of the World: Recommended English Names'' is a paperback book written by Frank Gill and Minturn Wright on behalf of the International Ornithologists' Union. The book is an attempt to produce a standardized set of English names for all bird species and is the product of a project set in motion at the 1990 International Ornithological Congress. It is supplemented by a website, the IOC World Bird List, giving updates to the published material. An 11-page introduction deals with a number of issues which relate to the naming of birds. This is followed by a systematic list, from pages 12 to 211, and a 46-page index. The family sequence is that of the third edition of the '' Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World''. The book's cover is illustrated with a photo of a helmet vanga, a bird endemic to Madagascar.Gill, Frank, and Minturn Wright, ''Birds of the World: Recommended English Names''; Princeton University Press, 2006. Background Since the pioneerin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sexual Dichromatism
Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecious species, which consist of most animals and some plants. Differences may include secondary sex characteristics, size, weight, color, markings, or behavioral or cognitive traits. Male-male reproductive competition has evolved a diverse array of sexually dimorphic traits. Aggressive utility traits such as "battle" teeth and blunt heads reinforced as battering rams are used as weapons in aggressive interactions between rivals. Passive displays such as ornamental feathering or song-calling have also evolved mainly through sexual selection. These differences may be subtle or exaggerated and may be subjected to sexual selection and natural selection. The opposite of dimorphism is ''monomorphism'', when both biological sexes are phenotypically indistinguishable from e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Animal Sexual Behaviour
Animal sexual behaviour takes many different forms, including within the same species. Common mating or Reproduction, reproductively motivated systems include Monogamous pairing in animals, monogamy, Polygyny in animals, polygyny, Polyandry in nature, polyandry, Animal sexual behaviour#Polygamy, polygamy and Promiscuity#Other animals, promiscuity. Other sexual behaviour may be reproductively motivated (e.g. Sexual coercion among animals, sex apparently due to duress or coercion and situational sexual behaviour) or Non-reproductive sexual behavior in animals, non-reproductively motivated (e.g. Homosexual behavior in animals, homosexual sexual behaviour, bisexuality, bisexual sexual behaviour, cross-species sex, Paraphilia, sexual arousal from objects or places, Necrophilia in animals, sex with dead animals, etc.). When animal sexual behaviour is reproductively motivated, it is often termed ''mating'' or ''Copulation (zoology), copulation''; for most non-human mammals, mating and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
