| Gabar goshawk | |
|---|---|
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| Adult in Tanzania | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Accipitriformes |
| Family: | Accipitridae |
| Genus: | Micronisus G.R. Gray, 1840 |
| Species: | M. gabar |
| Binomial name | |
| Micronisus gabar (Daudin, 1800) | |
| Subspecies [2] | |
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| Synonyms | |
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The gabar goshawk (Micronisus gabar) is a small species of African and Arabian bird of prey in the family Accipitridae.
The gabar goshawk is polymorphic and occurs in two distinct forms which fluctuate in relative abundance across the geographic range of the species. The more frequent, paler form has mostly grey upperparts with a conspicuous, white rump and white and grey barring on the chest, thighs and underwings, and a dark grey, barred tail. In contrast, the less frequent form, which accounts on average for approximately 25 percent of the overall population, is almost completely black. In both forms of adult the eyes are dark, and the legs are long and the cere is red. The cere and the legs are yellow in immatures and the plumage is generally browner, with the pale birds having untidier barring on the chest than the adult. The females are significantly larger than the males, the male's weigh 90 - 173g and the females 167 - 240g [3] The body length is 28–36 cm and the wingspan 63 cm. [4]
The gabar goshawk is found in sub-Saharan Africa, extending to Arabian Peninsula. [4] These subspecies are currently recognised: [5]
The gabar goshawk occurs in open woodland, especially dry Acacia savanna and broad-leaved woodland, with miombo ( Brachystegia ), cluster-leaf Terminalia , and mopane (Colosphermum mopane). In the more arid regions of southern Africa such as the Karoo and Namib Desert, it is generally restricted to tree-lined watercourses, but it may also move into cities and towns. [6]
The gabar goshawk is usually considered to be sedentary, but immature birds are somewhat nomadic and some small migratory movements have been recorded in parts of its range. It is most frequently observed alone, but pairs are also common, particularly during the breeding season, when the male is often observed pursuing the female through trees, or calling from his perch. The small platform nest is typically constructed using thin twigs and positioned in a vertical fork in the crown of a thorny tree, such as an acacia. One notable aspect of their nest construction is that the birds collect spider webs including the live spiders, the spiders spin new webs which may help camouflage the nest, and the spiders may consume arthropods that would parasitize the chicks. [3]
The eggs are laid from July to December, peaking in September to November. The normal clutch is two eggs, but up to four may be laid, and these are mainly incubated by the female for about 33–38 days. Once hatched, the chicks are brooded by the female for the first 19–21 days of their lives, while the male brings her food to feed to them. They leave the nest around 35–36 days old, becoming fully independent about one month later. [6]
Small birds are the major part of the gabar goshawk's diet, with small mammals, reptiles, and insects also taken on occasion. The prey is typically flushed from trees and caught following a persistent and energetic pursuit. The gabar goshawk sometimes hunts from the perch, swooping down to catch prey off the ground or in flight. They have also been recorded attacking the nests of colonial birds such as weavers by clawing their way destructively through the nest top to snatch the chicks from the nest. [3]
Known predators of the gabar goshawk include tawny eagles, Wahlberg's eagles, and Ayres's hawk-eagles. [6]
Hawks are a group of medium- diurnal birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Hawks are widely distributed and vary greatly in size.
The Accipitrinae are the subfamily of the Accipitridae often known as the "true" hawks, including all members of Accipiter and the closely related genera Melierax, Urotriorchis, Erythrotriorchis and Megatriorchis. The large and widespread genus Accipiter includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, the sharp-shinned hawk and others. They are primarily woodland birds that hunt by sudden dashes from a concealed perch, with long tails, broad wings and high visual acuity facilitating this lifestyle. In light of recent genetic research, the kites of the traditional subfamily Milvinae may also belong to this group.
The dark chanting goshawk is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae which is found across much of sub-Saharan Africa and southern Arabia, with an isolated and declining population in southern Morocco.
The African hawk-eagle is a large bird of prey. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. This species’ feathered legs mark it as a member of the Aquilinae subfamily. The African hawk-eagle breeds in tropical Sub-Saharan Africa. It is a bird of assorted woodland, including both savanna and hilly areas but the tend to occur in woodland that is typically dry. The species tends to be rare in areas where their preferred habitat type is absent. This species builds a stick nest of around 1 m (3.3 ft) across in a large tree. The clutch is generally one or two eggs. The African hawk-eagle is powerfully built and hunts small to medium sized mammals and birds predominantly, occasionally taking reptiles and other prey as well. The call is a shrill kluu-kluu-kluu. The African hawk-eagle is considered a fairly stable species and a species of Least Concern per the IUCN.
The lizard buzzard or lizard hawk, is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It is native to Sub-Saharan Africa. Despite its name, it may be more closely related to the Accipiter hawks than the Buteo buzzards.
The African harrier-hawk, harrier hawk or gymnogene is a bird of prey. It is about 60–66 centimetres (24–26 in) in length. It breeds in most of Africa south of the Sahara. The only other member of the genus is the allopatric Madagascar harrier-hawk.
The southern yellow-billed hornbill is a hornbill found in southern Africa. Yellow-billed hornbills feed mainly on the ground, where they forage for seeds, small insects, spiders and scorpions. This hornbill species is a common and widespread resident of dry thornveldt and broad-leafed woodlands. They can often be seen along roads and water courses.
The bateleur is a medium-sized eagle in the family Accipitridae. It is often considered a relative of the snake eagles and, like them, it is classified within the subfamily Circaetinae. It is the only member of the genus Terathopius and may be the origin of the "Zimbabwe Bird", the national emblem of Zimbabwe. Adult bateleurs are generally black in colour with a chestnut colour on the mantle as well as also on the rump and tail. Adults also have gray patches about the leading edges of the wings with bright red on their cere and their feet. Adults also show white greater coverts, contrasting with black remiges in males, gray patches on the underwing primaries and black wingtips. The juvenile bateleur is quite different, being largely drab brown with a bit of paler feather scaling. All bateleurs have extremely large heads for their size, rather small bills, large feet, relatively short legs, long, bow-like wings and uniquely short tails, which are much smaller still on adults compared to juvenile birds.
The Amur falcon is a small raptor of the falcon family. It breeds in south-eastern Siberia and Northern China before migrating in large flocks across India and over the Arabian Sea to winter in Southern and East Africa.
The grey goshawk is a strongly built, medium-sized bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. The white morph of this species is known as the white goshawk.
The (southern) pale chanting goshawk is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. This hawk breeds in southern Africa and is a resident species of dry, open semi-desert with 75 cm or less annual rainfall. It is commonly seen perched on roadside telephone poles.
The eastern (pale) chanting goshawk or Somali chanting goshawk, is a bird of prey of East Africa.
The black sparrowhawk, sometimes known as the black goshawk or great sparrowhawk, is the largest African member of the genus Accipiter. It occurs mainly in forest and non-desert areas south of the Sahara, particularly where there are large trees suitable for nesting; favored habitat includes suburban and human-altered landscapes. It preys predominantly on birds of moderate size, such as pigeons and doves, in suburban areas.
The little sparrowhawk is a species of Afrotropical bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It is the smallest member of the genus Accipiter and forms a superspecies with the red-thighed sparrowhawk.
The African goshawk is a species of African bird of prey in the genus Accipiter which is the type genus of the family Accipitridae.
The pale batis, also known as the Mozambique batis or East coast batis is a species of small bird in the wattle-eyes family, Platysteiridae. It occurs in eastern Africa, mostly in lowland miombo woodland.
The black-backed puffback is a species of passerine bird in the family Malaconotidae. They are common to fairly common sedentary bushshrikes in various wooded habitats in Africa south of the equator. They restlessly move about singly, in pairs or family groups, and generally frequent tree canopies. Like others of its genus, the males puff out the loose rump and lower back feathers in display, to assume a remarkable ball-like appearance. They draw attention to themselves by their varied repertoire of whistling, clicking and rasping sounds. Their specific name cubla, originated with Francois Levaillant, who derived it from a native southern African name, where the "c" is an onomatopoeic click sound. None of the other five puffback species occur in southern Africa.
The bearded woodpecker is a species of bird in the family Picidae. It has a distinctive black and white head and brownish barred body. It is native to tropical central Africa. It has an extremely wide range and is a fairly common species, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being of "least concern". Some taxonomic authorities place this species in Dendropicos.
Goshawk may refer to several species of birds of prey, mainly in the genus Accipiter:
The northern goshawk is a medium-large raptor in the family Accipitridae, which also includes other extant diurnal raptors, such as eagles, buzzards and harriers. As a species in the genus Accipiter, the goshawk is often considered a "true hawk". The scientific name is Latin; Accipiter is "hawk", from accipere, "to grasp", and gentilis is "noble" or "gentle" because in the Middle Ages only the nobility were permitted to fly goshawks for falconry.
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