Jerdon's baza | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Accipitriformes |
Family: | Accipitridae |
Genus: | Aviceda |
Species: | A. jerdoni |
Binomial name | |
Aviceda jerdoni (Blyth, 1842) | |
Jerdon's baza (Aviceda jerdoni) is a moderate sized brown hawk with a thin white-tipped black crest usually held erect. [2] It is found in South-east Asia. It inhabits foothills in the terai and is rarer in evergreen forests and tea estates. [2]
The common name and Latin binomial commemorate the surgeon-naturalist Thomas C. Jerdon. [3]
It is about 46 cm long. It is confusable with crested goshawk or the changeable hawk-eagle in flight, but can be distinguished by the longer upright crest, very broad and rounded paddle-shaped wings [2] and mostly plain and pale underparts. It has a white chin and a bold black mesial stripe. [4]
Several subspecies are recognized within its large distribution range. These include: [5]
It is a resident of the terai of North India and foothills of the Eastern Himalayas from Eastern Nepal and Bengal duars to the Assam valley, Western Ghats in Southern India, southern Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, [6] [1] Burma, Thailand, [4] Sumatra, [7] Singapore [8] and Philippines [9]
The bird is typically seen in pairs making aerial sallies; crest held erect. Occasionally, the birds may be seen in small family parties of 3 to 5 seen in flight near edge of forests. [4] The birds indulge in 'soaring and undulating' display flights near the nest. [2] Breeding season varies locally but the bird is known to breed almost the entire year with the exception of a few months around April and May. [4] Food includes lizards, grasshoppers and other large insects. The stomach contents of a specimen collected in present-day Kurseong included agamid lizard, Japalura variegata , several longicorn beetles and mantises. [10]
The raptor subfamily Perninae includes a number of medium-sized broad-winged species. These are birds of warmer climates, although the Pernis species have a more extensive range.
The grey-breasted prinia or Franklin's prinia is a wren-warbler belonging to the family of small passerine birds found mainly in warmer southern regions of the Old World. This prinia is a resident breeder in the Indian subcontinent, Sri Lanka and southeast Asia. Like other prinias, it often holds the tail upright but it is easily told by a smoky grey band across the breast which contrasts with a white throat. The beak is all black while the legs are pink. The tail is graduated as in other prinias and the grey feathers are tipped in white. In the breeding plumage the upperparts are grey while non-breeding birds are pale above with rufous wings and a weak supercilium. It is found in scrub, forest clearings and other open but well vegetated habitats. It can be confused with the rufescent prinia.
The rufous-bellied eagle or rufous-bellied hawk-eagle is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae that is found in the forested regions of tropical Asia. Relatively small for eagles and contrastingly patterned like a falcon, this species was earlier placed in the genus Hieraaetus and sometimes also in the genus Aquila but thought to be distinctive enough to belong to a separate genus.
The orange-breasted green pigeon is a pigeon found across tropical Asia south of the Himalaya across parts of the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Like other green pigeons, it feeds mainly on small fruit. They may be found in pairs or in small flocks, foraging quietly and moving slowly on trees. The nape is blue-grey and the crown is yellowish green. The uppertail coverts are bronzed and the undertail coverts are unmarked rufous. The male has a pinkish band on the upper breast with a broader orange one below while the female has a bright yellow breast.
The yellow-browed bulbul, or golden-browed bulbul, is a species of songbird in the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in the forests of southern India and Sri Lanka. The yellow-browed bulbul is mainly yellow on the underside and olive above with a distinct yellow brow. They are easily located by their loud calls but tend to skulk within foliage below the forest canopy. While its taxonomic classification has changed over time, it is currently the sole species within the monotypic genus Acritillas which is closely related to Hemixos.
The grey-headed canary-flycatcher, sometimes known as the grey-headed flycatcher, is a species of small flycatcher-like bird found in tropical Asia. It has a square crest, a grey hood and yellow underparts. They are found mainly in forested habitats where they often join other birds in mixed-species foraging flocks. Pairs are often seen as they forage for insects by making flycatcher-like sallies and calling aloud. Several subspecies are recognized within their wide distribution range. In the past the genus Culicicapa was considered to be an Old World flycatcher but studies have found them to belong to a new family designated as the Stenostiridae or fairy flycatchers that include the African genera Stenostira and Elminia.
The black-throated munia or Jerdon's mannikin is a small passerine bird. This estrildid finch is a resident breeding bird in the hills of southwest India, the Western Ghats, Eastern Ghats and Sri Lanka.
The long-billed pipit or brown rock pipit is a passerine bird which has a wide distribution. A number of subspecies have been created for the populations in Africa, through the Arabian peninsula and South Asia. The systematics of this complex is yet to be clarified. Most birds are residents or short distance migrants.
The white-rumped shama is a small passerine bird of the family Muscicapidae. Native to densely vegetated habitats in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, its popularity as a cage-bird and songster has led to it being introduced elsewhere.
Calotes jerdoni, commonly known as the Indo-Chinese forest lizard or Jerdon's forest lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. The species is endemic to China and South Asia.
The black baza is a small bird of prey found in the forests of Northeast India, the eastern Himalayas, China and Southeast Asia. Many populations are migratory, including those in the Indian region, which winter in the south of the Peninsula and Sri Lanka. Black bazas have short, stout legs and feet with strong talons, and a prominent crest. They are found in dense forest, often in small groups, and can often be found perched on bare branches of tall trees rising above the forest canopy.
The white-eyed buzzard is a medium-sized hawk, distinct from the true buzzards in the genus Buteo, found in South Asia. Adults have a rufous tail, a distinctive white iris, and a white throat bearing a dark mesial stripe bordered. The head is brown and the median coverts of the upper wing are pale. They lack the typical carpal patches on the underside of the wings seen in true buzzards, but the entire wing lining appears dark in contrast to the flight feathers. They sit upright on perches for prolonged periods and soar on thermals in search of insect and small vertebrate prey. They are vociferous in the breeding season, and several birds may be heard calling as they soar together.
The sultan tit is an Asian forest bird with a yellow crest, dark bill, black upperparts plumage and yellow underparts. The sexes are similar. The female has greenish-black upperparts and a yellowish throat. The young bird is duller than the adult and has a shorter crest. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Melanochlora, which is fairly distinct from the Parus tits with the nearest relative being the monotypic Sylviparus.
The Pacific baza, also known as the crested hawk, crested baza, and Pacific cuckoo-falcon, is a slender, medium-sized species of hawk in the family Accipitridae. It is mostly grey, brown, and white coloured and grows to a length of 35–46 centimetres (14–18 in). It is an omnivore and usually does not migrate. The breeding season for the species lasts from September to at least February, during which time specimens commonly fly and vocalise for display. It lives in Australia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and East Timor, in forests, savannas, and freshwater bodies. The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists it as a least concern species.
The broad-tailed grassbird is a species of Old World warbler in the family Locustellidae. It is endemic to the Western Ghats of India with a possibility of occurrence in Sri Lanka. A small, mostly brown bird, it has a broad rounded and graduated tail. It is found only on the higher altitude grassy hills where it usually skulks, except during the breeding season when males fly up into the air to sing in their display. The species is believed to be a resident although it is possible that they make local movements.
The bazas, Aviceda, are a genus of bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. The genus has a widespread distribution from Australia to southern Asia and across to Africa. The bazas are sometimes known as cuckoo-hawks. A prominent crest is a feature of the bazas. They have two tooth-like indentations on the edge of the upper bill.
The Palani laughingthrush is a species of laughingthrush endemic to the hills of the Western Ghats south of the Palghat Gap in Southern India. Found in the high montane forests, this grey bibbed, rufous bellied bird with a prominent dark eyestripe and broad white brow was grouped along with the grey-breasted subspecies of the black-chinned laughingthrush and known as the grey-breasted laughingthrush. This species is found in the Palni Hills while another closely related form, the Ashambu laughingthrush with a shorter white brow is found in the high hills south of the Achankovil Gap and was treated as a subspecies. The two forms were together treated under the name of Kerala laughingthrush.
The white-tailed stonechat is a species of bird in the family Muscicapidae. It is found in Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan.
The grey-throated babbler is a species of passerine bird in the Old World babbler family Timaliidae.
The chestnut-bellied nuthatch belongs to the family Sittidae.