Nkulengu Rail
Himantornis haematopus
A large brown rail with a paler face and throat, blood-red legs, red eyes, and a brown bill with a paler tip. Could be mistaken for a francolin, but note short tail and secretive behavior. Found in dense lowland forest and mangroves, where it usually, but not always, occurs near water. Named for its distinctive calls, “nku-nku-lengu,” with each call lasting approximately one second. Calls primarily at night, sometimes for several minutes straight.
识别特征
The Nkulengu rail (Himantornis haematopus) is a species of bird in the family Rallidae. It belongs to the monotypic genus Himantornis. For long, this singular rail was considered a member of a distinct subfamily Himantornithinae. This was based on the assumption that it was a sort of "living fossil", as it resembles other Gruiformes rather than other rails in many traits. But as it seems, the supposed plesiomorphies are actually atavistic or otherwise re-evolved traits in reaction to its African rainforest habitat. Its closest living relatives seem to be the Asian genera Amaurornis, Gallicrex, Megacrex, and the widespread African Aenigmatolimnas, with Megacrex and Himantornis representing ancient and ecologically quite similar lineages at the extreme ends of the group's distribution. However a later genetic study found that it was basal to the radiation containing Porzana, Tribonyx, Gallinula and Fulica. It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo, and Uganda. It is notoriously difficult to visually observe, preferring to hide, but has a loud and distinctive call often made in pairs.
分类信息
Genus: Himantornis; Family: Rallidae; Order: Gruiformes.
- 学名
- Himantornis haematopus
- 命名信息
- Hartlaub, 1855
- 目
- Gruiformes
- 科
- Rallidae
- 属
- Himantornis
分布与栖息地
- 迁徙
- Resident species
行为
Migration pattern: Resident species.
保护状况
Population trend: declining.
- 种群趋势
- declining
照片
分布
鸟叫声
其他鸟类
Planalto Hermit
Phaethornis pretrei
Large hummingbird with an olive-green back contrasting with its cinnamon rump and belly. Note slightly curved bill with a red lower mandible and prominent dark mask. The tail is long with eye-catching white tips. Avoids forests; found in grasslands, shrubby areas, wooded savannas, and at forest edges.
Taiwan Rosefinch
Carpodacus formosanus
Endemic to Taiwan's mountain forests, this is the only breeding rosefinch on the island. Male deep wine-red with a frosty white brow and dark wings. Female dark brown, finely streaked below. Usually forages low in the forest, in thickets or on the ground. In parks and near villages, often perches up on railings and trail markers.
Indian Blackbird
Turdus simillimus
Dark thrush with a bright orange bill. Male is slightly darker than the female. Plumage varies slightly throughout range, Sri Lanka birds being midnight-black and central Indian “Black-capped” birds being brown with a black head and wings. Note the small teardrop-shaped patch of bare orange skin around the eye. Beautiful fluting song often heard from foothill forests, forest edge, and orchards; winters at lower altitudes, often in closer proximity to people, though typically not in outright urban areas like Chinese and Eurasian Blackbirds.
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