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White-headed Duck
The white-headed duck (''Oxyura leucocephala'') is a small diving duck some long. The male has a white head with black crown, a blue bill, and reddish-grey plumage. The female has a dark bill and rather duller colouring. Its breeding habitat is lakes with open water and dense vegetation at the margin. It dives under water and feeds on aquatic vegetation as well as some animal matter. It is more likely to swim away from a perceived threat than to fly. This duck is known from Spain, North Africa, Western Asia and Central Asia. Populations are declining, mostly due to loss of habitat and pollution, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated the bird's status as "endangered". Taxonomy and systematics The white-headed duck was originally described as ''Anas leucocephala'' by Giovani Antonio Scopoli in 1769. It is currently in the genus Oxyura. Other generic synonyms used in the past include ''Erismatura'', ''Cerconectes'', ''Gymnura'', ''Undina'', ''Bythone ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Giovanni Antonio Scopoli
Giovanni Antonio Scopoli (sometimes Latinized as Johannes Antonius Scopolius) (3 June 1723 – 8 May 1788) was an Italian physician and naturalist. His biographer Otto Guglia named him the "first anational European" and the "Linnaeus of the Austrian Empire". Biography Scopoli was born at Cavalese in the Val di Fiemme, belonging to the Bishopric of Trent (today's Trentino), son of Francesco Antonio, military commissioner, and Claudia Caterina Gramola (1699-1791), painter from a patrician family from Trentino. He obtained a degree in medicine at University of Innsbruck, and practiced as a doctor in Cavalese and Venice.Newton, Alfred 1881. ''Scopoli's ornithological papers.'' The Willoughby SocietyScanned version/ref> Much of his time was spent in the Alps, collecting plants and insects, of which he made outstanding collections. He spent two years as private secretary to the bishop of Seckau, and then was appointed in 1754 as physician of the mercury mines in Idrija, a small to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
North Africa
North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in the west, to Egypt's Suez Canal. Varying sources limit it to the countries of Algeria, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisia, a region that was known by the French during colonial times as "''Afrique du Nord''" and is known by Arabs as the Maghreb ("West", ''The western part of Arab World''). The United Nations definition includes Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Sudan, and the Western Sahara, the territory disputed between Morocco and the Sahrawi Republic. The African Union definition includes the Western Sahara and Mauritania but not Sudan. When used in the term Middle East and North Africa ( MENA), it often refers only to the countries of the Maghreb. North Africa includes the Spanish cities of Ceuta and Melilla, and plazas de so ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Birds Of Central Asia
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight skeleton. Birds live worldwide and range in size from the bee hummingbird to the ostrich. There are about ten thousand living species, more than half of which are passerine, or "perching" birds. Birds have whose development varies according to species; the only known groups without wings are the extinct moa and elephant birds. Wings, which are modified forelimbs, gave birds the ability to fly, although further evolution has led to the loss of flight in some birds, including ratites, penguins, and diverse endemic island species. The digestive and respiratory systems of birds are also uniquely adapted for flight. Some bird species of aquatic environments, particularly seabirds and some waterbirds, have further evolved for swimming. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Birds Of Azerbaijan
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight skeleton. Birds live worldwide and range in size from the bee hummingbird to the ostrich. There are about ten thousand living species, more than half of which are passerine, or "perching" birds. Birds have whose development varies according to species; the only known groups without wings are the extinct moa and elephant birds. Wings, which are modified forelimbs, gave birds the ability to fly, although further evolution has led to the loss of flight in some birds, including ratites, penguins, and diverse endemic island species. The digestive and respiratory systems of birds are also uniquely adapted for flight. Some bird species of aquatic environments, particularly seabirds and some waterbirds, have further evolved for swimming. Birds ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Birds Of Europe
In this article, Europe refers to the geographical continent, not the somewhat larger Western Palearctic, which includes parts of the Middle East and north Africa. There are 930 species of bird in the area, and in general the avifauna is similar to Asia north of the Himalayas, which is also in the Palearctic realm. There are also many groups shared with North America. 65 species are globally threatened, 4 species are extinct, and 18 species are introduced by people. Conversely, many of the Southern Hemisphere groups, including the ancient flightless '' Struthioniformes'' ( ostrich order), and their relatives the tinamous are not represented at all. The order follows th''IOC World Bird List''version 12.2. The following tags have been used to highlight several categories. The commonly occurring native species do not fall into any of these categories. * (A) Accidental - a species that rarely or accidentally occurs in Europe * (E) Endemic - a species endemic to Europe * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ducks
Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfamilies, they are a form taxon; they do not represent a monophyletic group (the group of all descendants of a single common ancestral species), since swans and geese are not considered ducks. Ducks are mostly aquatic birds, and may be found in both fresh water and sea water. Ducks are sometimes confused with several types of unrelated water birds with similar forms, such as loons or divers, grebes, gallinules and coots. Etymology The word ''duck'' comes from Old English 'diver', a derivative of the verb 'to duck, bend down low as if to get under something, or dive', because of the way many species in the dabbling duck group feed by upending; compare with Dutch and German 'to dive'. This word replaced Old English / 'duck', possibly to avoid confu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oxyurinae
The Oxyurini are a tribe of the duck subfamily of birds, the Anatinae. It has been subject of considerable debate about its validity and circumscription. Some taxonomic authorities place the group in its own subfamily, the ''Oxyurinae''. Most of its members have long, stiff tail feathers which are erected when the bird is at rest, and relatively large, swollen bills. Though their relationships are still enigmatic, they appear to be closer to swans and true geese than to the typical ducks. The highest diversity is found in the warmer parts of the Americas, but at least one species occurs in a major part of the world. Their habitus resembles a freshwater diving duck, particularly when moving on dry land. Their legs are set far back, making them awkward walkers, so they rarely leave the water. When at rest, their tails are a notable difference, and in the water they often swim very deep-set. Their unusual courtship displays involve drumming noises from inflatable throat sacs, he ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Birding World
''Birding World'' was a monthly birding magazine published in the United Kingdom. It was the magazine of the Bird Information Service, based at Cley next the Sea, Norfolk. With the publication of issue No. 26/12 in January 2014, ''Birding World'' magazine ceased publication. History and profile Originally published in 1987 as ''Twitching'' volume 1, the magazine underwent a name-change to this name, in 1988 (also resetting its volume count back to 1). The editor was Steve Gantlett, and the assistant editor Richard Millington. It was aimed at birders with an interest in the occurrence and identification of rare birds in the United Kingdom and the Western Palearctic. It also covered birding-related material from around the globe. The range of material published included: * papers on bird identification, often including proposed new identification characters for difficult groups of taxa * news articles on rare birds in Britain and elsewhere in the Western Palearctic Signifi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gantlett, Steve
Stephen J. M. Gantlett is a British birder. He lives with his wife Sue in Cley-next-the-Sea, Norfolk. A qualified optician, SJMG retired from this profession in 1982 to become a full-time ornithologist. He was the editor of Birding World magazine until it ceased production in January 2014. He also co-runs Birdline, a telephone information service containing news of rare birds, with Richard Millington. Steve Gantlett is a twitcher. He is one of a small number of birders who have seen over 500 species in Britain. He is a former member of the British Birds Rarities Committee. Gantlett's specialism as an ornithologist is the advancement of bird identification. Among the areas of knowledge in which Gantlett has played a key role are the identification of orange-billed terns. He also found the UK's first Rock Sparrow at Cley on 14 June 1981 (with Richard Millington), still the only record in the UK. He has published papers on this subject in Birding World ''Birding World'' was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
AEWA
The Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds, or African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement (AEWA) is an independent international treaty developed under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Programme's Convention on Migratory Species. It was founded to coordinate efforts to conserve bird species migrating between European and African nations, and its current scope stretches from the Arctic to South Africa, encompassing the Canadian archipelago and the Middle East as well as Europe and Africa. The agreement focuses on bird species that depend on wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...s for at least part of their lifecycle and cross international borders in their migration patterns. It currently covers 254 species. Parties M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oxyura Jamaicensis
The ruddy duck (''Oxyura jamaicensis'') is a duck from North America and one of the stiff-tailed ducks. The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek ''oxus'', "sharp", and ''oura'', "tail", and ''jamaicensis'' is "from Jamaica". Taxonomy The ruddy duck was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with the other ducks, geese and swans in the genus ''Anas'' and coined the binomial name ''Anas jamaicensis''. Gmelin based his description on the "Jamaica shoveler" that had been described in 1785 by the English ornithologist John Latham from a specimen that he had received from Jamaica. The ruddy duck is now placed with five other species in the genus '' Oxyura'' that was introduced in 1828 by the French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte. The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek ''oxus'', meaning "sharp", and ''oura'' meaning "tail". The specific epithe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endangered Species
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and invasive species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List lists the global conservation status of many species, and various other agencies assess the status of species within particular areas. Many nations have laws that protect conservation-reliant species which, for example, forbid hunting, restrict land development, or create protected areas. Some endangered species are the target of extensive conservation efforts such as captive breeding and habitat restoration. Human activity is a significant cause in causing some species to become endangered. Conservation status The conservation status of a species indicates the likelihood that it will become extinct. Multiple factors are considered when assess ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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