Fox Kestrel
Falco alopex
A large kestrel with long pointed wings and tail. The base color is a rich rufous with fine black streaking. In flight, the wings are rufous and black above and pale below. Found around cliffs and other rocky areas within dry savanna, usually in pairs. Similar to Greater Kestrel, but slimmer and more rufous, with rusty rather than gray barring in the tail. The calls are agitated “kree” notes.
识别特征
It is a large, slender kestrel with long, narrow wings and tail. It is 32–38 cm (13–15 in) long with a wingspan of 76–88 cm (30–35 in) and a weight of 250–300 g (8.8–10.6 oz). The female is 3% larger than the male. The plumage is dark rufous above and below with black streaks. The tail is narrowly barred with black while the flight feathers of the wing are dark and unbarred. The underwings are pale, contrasting with the darker body. The eye is yellow-brown unlike the similar greater kestrel which has whitish eyes as well as paler plumage, barred flight feathers and grey on the tail.<p>Juvenile fox kestrels have heavier streaking than the adults and clearer barring on the tail.<p>The species has a high, screeching call, but is usually silent outside the breeding season.
分类信息
- 学名
- Falco alopex
- 命名信息
- (Heuglin, 1861)
- 目
- Falconiformes
- 科
- Falconidae
- 属
- Falco
分布与栖息地
It breeds in the savanna region south of the Sahara from Mali eastwards as far as Ethiopia and north-west Kenya. It occasionally wanders west to Senegal, the Gambia and Guinea and south to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Most birds are sedentary but there is some movement northward during the wet season and southward in the dry season. It is often found around cliffs and rocky hills. It occurs from near sea level to 2200 m, especially below 1000 m. It has a large range of about 4 million km2, but is usually uncommon. Its total population is probably fewer than 100,000 pairs.
- 迁徙
- Resident species
行为
It rarely hovers, preferring to hunt from a perch in a tree or on a rock. It feeds on insects, lizards and small mammals. It generally catches food on the ground but also hunts for flying insects escaping from grass fires.<p>Little is known about its breeding habits. The nest site is a hole or crevice in a cliff or on a ledge. No nesting material is used. The clutch is thought to consist of two or three eggs. The birds sometimes breed in loose colonies of up to 20 pairs.
保护状况
- 种群趋势
- stable
照片
分布
其他鸟类
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Garrulax bicolor
Stunning Sumatran endemic, now sadly in heavy decline due to poaching for the cagebird trade. Extirpated throughout much of former range, and now only present in more remote montane forests. Combination of dark body, bright white head, and black “mascara” is unique and unmistakable, but shy and reclusive habits make this bird more readily heard than seen; groups may suddenly erupt into a collective raucous cackling song which carries a considerable distance. Also gives a variety of hoots, rattles, and churrs.
White-fronted Tyrannulet
Acrochordopus zeledoni
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Romblon Boobook
Ninox spilonotus
A rare medium-sized owl of lowland and foothill forest on Tablas, Romblon, and Sibuyan islands. Upperparts, chest, and head dark brown and indistinctly barred. Underparts reddish brown. Note the long whiskers around the face and the bright yellow eyes. Probably the only owl in its range except for Mantanani Scops-Owl, but Romblon Boobook is reddish rather than gray and lacks the black line around the face. Song is a phrase of three notes, “wik weu-weu,” with the second and third being descending rasping notes.
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