| Madagascar wagtail | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Andasibe-Mantadia National Park | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Motacillidae |
| Genus: | Motacilla |
| Species: | M. flaviventris |
| Binomial name | |
| Motacilla flaviventris | |
The Madagascar wagtail (Motacilla flaviventris) is a species of wagtail in the family Motacillidae. It is endemic to Madagascar.
The Madagascar wagtail is a large, elegant and slender wagtail which has grey upperparts, a white breast and a yellow belly. There is a black band across the breast and the long tail has a dark centre and white outer tail feathers. There is short white supercilium. Juveniles have a less conspicuous breast band and a fainter supercilium. The body length is 19 cm (7.5 in). [3]
The Madagascar wagtail is endemic to Madagascar where it is found throughout the island. [3] It is common and widespread and most common in the east of the island and on the central plateau; it is less numerous in the north and west, and rare in the south. [4]
The Madagascar wagtail is typically found around water, such as rivers, lakes and seashores, also in open areas such a rice paddies and gardens. It is found from sea level up to 2,500 metres (8,200 ft) above sea level. [3]
The diet of the Madagascar wagtail mainly consists of small invertebrates, notably insects and spiders. It forages by walking or running on the ground, moving its tail up and down in typical wagtail fashion and suddenly jumping up a few metres into the air to capture prey. It breeds between August and November and is double brooded, with the young of the first brood often assisting their parents feed the second brood. [4] The nest is a bowl shape which is situated near the ground in dense foliage, the fork of a branch, a rock crevice or under the roof of a building but always near water. [5]
The white wagtail is a small passerine bird in the family Motacillidae, which also includes pipits and longclaws. The species breeds in the Palearctic zone in most of Europe and Asia and parts of North Africa; it also has a toehold in western Alaska as a scarce breeder. It is resident in the mildest parts of its range, but otherwise migrates to Africa. In total, there are between 9 and 11 subspecies of M. alba; in Ireland and Great Britain, the black-backed subspecies known as the pied wagtail predominates.
The wagtails, longclaws, and pipits are a family, Motacillidae, of small passerine birds with medium to long tails. Around 70 species occur in five genera. The longclaws are entirely restricted to the Afrotropics, and the wagtails are predominantly found in Europe, Africa, and Asia, with two species migrating and breeding in Alaska. The pipits have the most cosmopolitan distribution, being found mostly in the Old World, but occurring also in the Americas and oceanic islands such as New Zealand and the Falklands. Two African species, the yellow-breasted pipit and Sharpe's longclaw, are sometimes placed in a separate seventh genus, Hemimacronyx, which is closely related to the longclaws.
The grey wagtail is a member of the wagtail family, Motacillidae, measuring around 18–19 cm overall length. The species looks somewhat similar to the yellow wagtail but has the yellow on its underside restricted to the throat and vent. Breeding males have a black throat. The species is widely distributed, with several populations breeding in Eurosiberia and migrating to tropical regions in Asia and Africa. The species is always associated with running water when breeding, although they may use man-made structures near streams for the nest. Outside the breeding season, they may also be seen around lakes, coasts and other watery habitats. Like other wagtails, they frequently wag their tail and fly low with undulations and they have a sharp call that is often given in flight.
The western yellow wagtail is a small passerine bird in the wagtail family Motacillidae, which also includes the pipits and longclaws.
The citrine wagtail (Motacilla citreola) is a small songbird in the family Motacillidae.
The water pipit is a small passerine bird which breeds in the mountains of Southern Europe and the Palearctic eastwards to China. It is a short-distance migrant; many birds move to lower altitudes or wet open lowlands in winter.
The white-browed wagtail or large pied wagtail is a medium-sized bird and is the largest member of the wagtail family. They are conspicuously patterned with black above and white below, a prominent white brow, shoulder stripe and outer tail feathers. White-browed wagtails are native to South Asia, common near small water bodies and have adapted to urban environments where they often nest on roof tops. The specific name is derived from the Indian city of Madras.
The forest wagtail is a medium-sized passerine bird in the wagtail family Motacillidae. It has a distinctive plumage that sets it apart from other wagtails and has the habit of wagging its tail sideways unlike the usual up and down movements of the other wagtail species. It is the only wagtail species that nests in trees. It is found mainly in forested habitats, breeding in the temperate parts of east Asia and wintering across tropical Asia from India to Indonesia.
Euler's flycatcher is a small passerine bird in the tyrant flycatcher family. It breeds in South America east of the Andes from Colombia and Venezuela south to Bolivia and Argentina, and on the islands of Trinidad and formerly also Grenada. This species is named for the Swiss ornithologist Carl Euler.
The buff-rumped warbler is a New World warbler that is resident from Honduras south to northwestern Peru and disjunctly in the western Amazon. It is found in forests at up to 1500 m altitude, always near water.
The banded kestrel is a bird of prey belonging to the falcon family Falconidae. It is endemic to Madagascar and is also known as the Madagascar banded kestrel, barred kestrel or Madagascar barred kestrel. Its closest relatives are the grey kestrel and Dickinson's kestrel of mainland Africa and the three are sometimes placed in the subgenus Dissodectes.
The Cape wagtail, also known as Wells's wagtail, is a small insectivorous bird which is widespread in southern Africa. It frequents water's edge, lawns and gardens. It is a mostly resident, territorial species, but has been known to undertake limited altitudinal migration or form flocks outside of the breeding season. Like other wagtails they are passerine birds of the family Motacillidae, which also includes the pipits and longclaws.
The Madagascar buzzard is a bird of prey which is endemic to Madagascar. It is a species from the widespread genus Buteo in the family Accipitridae.
The Madagascar harrier-hawk is a very large species of bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, endemic to Madagascar.
The Madagascar sandgrouse is a species of bird in the family Pteroclidae. It is endemic to Madagascar and is a ground-dwelling short-legged plump bird. The head of the male is brown with a black area surrounding the beak. It has a pinkish-buff coloured breast, a light brown mottled back, brown wings and paler underparts barred with dark brown. The female has a generally duller appearance being cryptically coloured brown with dark specks and bars.
The dark-bellied cinclodes is a species of bird in the Furnariinae subfamily of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina and Chile.
The black-backed forktail, occasionally referred to as the black-throated forktail, is a forktail species in the family Muscicapidae. The species was described in 1836, from a specimen collected in Nepal. It is a medium-sized forktail, weighing between 25 and 29 grams, with a length of 20.5 to 23 centimetres. The species has a broad white stripe across its forehead. The crown, face, and mantle are black, while the bird's underparts are white, sharply divided from the black above. The wings are largely black with a broad white stripe across the greater coverts. The tail of the species, similar to that of other forktails, is long, graduated, and deeply forked. The tail is black with a white tip and three white bands created by shorter tail feathers. The beak of the bird is black, while the feet and legs are light pink, and the iris is brown. The species is monomorphic.
The sickle-billed vanga is a species of bird in the vanga family Vangidae. It is monotypic within the genus Falculea. It is endemic to Madagascar. Its natural habitats are tropical dry forests and tropical dry shrubland.
The mountain wagtail, also known as the long-tailed wagtail or grey-backed wagtail, is a species of wagtail of the family Motacillidae from sub-Saharan Africa.
