The longclaws are a
genus, ''Macronyx'', of small African
passerine birds in the family
Motacillidae.
Longclaws are slender, often colorful, ground-feeding insectivores of open country. They are ground nesters, laying up to four speckled eggs. They are named for their unusually long hind claws, which are thought to help in walking on grass. There are only between 10,000 and 19,000 Sharpe's longclaw left in Kenya.
The genus ''Macronyx'' was introduced by the English naturalist
William John Swainson
William John Swainson FLS, FRS (8 October 1789 – 6 December 1855), was an English ornithologist, malacologist, conchologist, entomologist and artist.
Life
Swainson was born in Dover Place, St Mary Newington, London, the eldest son of ...
in 1827 with the
Cape longclaw as the
type species.
The name combines the
Classical Greek words "long" or "great" and "claw".
Species list
The genus contains eight species:
References
External links
Longclaw videoson the Internet Bird Collection
{{Taxonbar, from=Q389600
Macronyx