Cape Teal
Anas capensis
Medium-sized, pale gray duck with a pink bill. In flight, shows a green patch that is surrounded by white. Prefers saltwater wetlands such as natural saltpans and man-made saltworks but sometimes also uses freshwater wetlands. Similar to Red-billed Duck, but without a dark cap, and with paler overall coloration. Pink bill separates Cape Teal from all other ducks and grebes in the region.
识别特征
Like many southern ducks, the sexes are similar. It is very pale and mainly grey, with a browner back and pink on the bill (young birds lack the pink). This is a generally quiet species, except during mating displays. The breeding male has a clear whistle, whereas the female has a feeble "quack". The Cape teal cannot be confused with any other duck in its range.<p>This species is essentially non-migratory, although it moves opportunistically with the rains. It is a thinly distributed but widespread duck, rarely seen in large groups except the moulting flocks, which may number up to 2000.<p>The Cape teal feeds on aquatic plants and small creatures (invertebrates, crustaceans and amphibians) obtained by dabbling. The nest is on the ground under vegetation and near water.<p>The Cape teal is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.
分类信息
The Cape teal 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 all the ducks, geese and swans in the genus Anas and coined the binomial name Anas capensis. Gmelin based his description on the "Cape widgeon" that had been described in 1785 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his A General Synopsis of Birds. The naturalist Joseph Banks had provided Latham with a water-colour drawing of the teal by Georg Forster who had accompanied James Cook on his second voyage to the Pacific Ocean. His picture was drawn in 1773 at the Cape of Good Hope. This picture is now the holotype for the species and is held by the Natural History Museum in London. The genus name Anas is the Latin word for a duck. The specific epithet capensis indicates the Cape of Good Hope. The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.
- 学名
- Anas capensis
- 命名信息
- Gmelin, JF, 1789
- 目
- Anseriformes
- 科
- Anatidae
- 属
- Anas
分布与栖息地
- 繁殖区
- AF : Chad, Sudan and Ethiopia to South Africa
- 非繁殖区
- w AF
- 迁徙
- Nomadic movement
保护状况
- 种群趋势
- rising
照片
分布
鸟叫声
其他鸟类
Cape Shoveler
Spatula smithii
A large, elongated, speckled, brown duck with a distinctive and extended spatula-shaped black bill. In flight the sky-blue forewing is distinctive; no other regularly occurring duck species shares this feature. Male has a gray head, yellow eye, and yellow-orange feet; female has a rusty-brown head, dark eye, and gray-yellow feet. Within its range, the Northern Shoveler is an extremely rare vagrant, and it differs from Cape Shoveller by the following features: male in breeding plumage has a green head and chestnut belly; female and juvenile are in general paler and more warmly colored, but some individuals may be inseparable from female Cape Shoveller.
Gould's Toucanet
Selenidera gouldii
Beautiful small, multicolored toucan. Males have a black crown and underparts; in females, the black is replaced by chestnut. Note the black and orange patches on the bill. Inhabits lowland humid forest, seasonally flooded forest, gallery forest, and old second growth. Forages from middle levels to the canopy, usually in fruiting trees. Call is a deep and somewhat slow series of “ggrawnk” to “ggrraaw” notes, easily overlooked.
Socotra Warbler
Incana incana
Drab little warbler endemic to Socotra. Gray-brown above and pale gray below, sometimes showing a brighter rufous coloration crown. Found in most habitats with trees and bushes, ranging from grassland dotted with shrubs to fairly lush woodland. Often runs on the ground, and sometimes cocks up the tail. Vocalizations include harsh “tek” notes and a fast, high-pitched trill of very dry notes. Within its range, can only be confused with Socotra Cisticola, but easily distinguished by the darker and duller coloration, without streaking on the crown or back.
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