Magenta Petrel
Pterodroma magentae
One of the rarest seabirds in the world, endemic to the Chatham Islands. Medium-sized bird with a distinctive dark gray head, neck, and upper breast and a gray chin. The rest of the underside is white with a light gray underwing. During breeding, the birds mainly forage south and east of their colonies, venturing across the Pacific Ocean to South American and tropical seas in the winter. Many petrel species can appear similar to the Magenta Petrel but can be ruled out if they appear partially hooded, show traces of an “M” across their back, or are found outside of the Chatham Island range during breeding season.
识别特征
This medium-sized petrel has a brownish-grey head, neck, and upper breast, with white underparts. The undersides of the wings are brown. It has a black bill and pink legs. Adults weigh 400–580 g.<p>The bird nests in 1–3 m long burrows under dense forest. They form long-term monogamous pair bonds, raising one egg at a time, and both partners incubate the egg and feed the chick. The breeding season is between September and May, during which time the birds forage over the open ocean.
分类信息
- 学名
- Pterodroma magentae
- 命名信息
- (Giglioli & Salvadori, 1869)
- 目
- Procellariiformes
- 科
- Procellariidae
- 属
- Pterodroma
分布与栖息地
- 繁殖区
- PO : Chatham Is. (e of South I., New Zealand)
- 非繁殖区
- to Pitcairn group (se Polynesia), Juan Fernandez and Nazca Ridge (w of c South America)
- 迁徙
- Complete migrants
保护状况
Formerly widespread on Chatham Island, the tāiko is now confined to the forested Tuku Valley on the south-west of the island. The species is one of the rarest birds in the world. The species is classified as critically endangered due to an assumed population decline in excess of 80% in the last 60 years and the fact that it is restricted to one small location. In the 2005 breeding season, the 13 known breeding pairs successfully fledged 11 chicks. In 2017, 34 breeding pairs were being monitored. The current population is estimated at between 80 and 100 mature individuals.<p>The main threats to the species are introduced mammalian predators, principally cats and rats, other threats are present from feral pigs collapsing burrows.<p>The land on which tāiko were first rediscovered was privately owned by Manuel and Evelyn Tuanui, who in 1983 donated 1283 hectares of land to the government to protect the species, becoming the Tuku Nature Reserve. In a 2004 report, about 80 percent of tāiko breeding burrows were in this reserve. The Tuanui family were also founding members of the Chatham Island Taiko Trust, an organisation formed to promote taiko conservation work.<p>A conservation strategy is in place on the island to translocate chicks to an area where the main threats have been removed called the Sweetwater Secure Breeding Site. Studies in other petrel species such as the Manx shearwater, wandering albatross, and Cory's shearwater, have shown that birds return to the site in which they fledged. In 2007, eight chicks were successfully translocated and fledged from the breeding site. There has also been a predator-proof fence built around a small area of land since 2006, 60 tāiko have been relocated to this area.
- 种群趋势
- rising
照片
分布
其他鸟类
White-quilled Bustard
Afrotis afraoides
The male is a striking, medium-sized, mostly dark bustard with a bold white cheek patch and a reddish bill. The female has a black belly and is elsewhere finely barred. In flight it has a conspicuous white window on both the upper and lower sides of the wing. Scattered individuals, sometimes associated in small groups, inhabit arid savanna and Karoo scrub. It singscalls a strident, ratcheting “kraak-kraak-kraak” which leads into a maniacal “raa-cha-ka-ka-ka....cha-ka-ka-ka” display as the male flies around 20–30 m above the ground, with legs dangling. In flight, Black Bustard’s lack of large white wing patches separates it from the similar White-quilled Bustard.
Ashy Wood-Pigeon
Columba pulchricollis
Generally uncommon barrel-chested forest pigeon with dark gray upperparts and pale underparts. Checkerboard-style neck collar comprised of stiff black feathers with creamy-buff tips is unique. Usually encountered hurtling by over evergreen broadleaf hill forests; appears all dark from above, pale with contrastingly dark underwings and dark chest from below. Forages quietly in the canopy, often seen in medium-sized to large flocks; occasionally observed taking grit on the ground. Speckled Wood-Pigeon is also dark above but is maroon brown with light spotting.
White-crowned Sparrow
Zonotrichia leucophrys
Large, long-tailed sparrow with striking head pattern. Adults have black and white stripes on the head, while immatures show brown and tan. Underparts are plain grayish without streaks. Bill color varies from yellow to pink, but always brighter than White-throated Sparrow. Breeds in brushy areas or thickets in open forest, often with conifers. In migration and winter, can be found in any brushy or weedy areas, often hopping on the ground. Visits feeders.
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