Westland petrel

Procellaria westlandica

Photo by Mark Jobling (Wikipedia)

Common name:
Westland petrel (en); petrel-de-Westland (pt); puffin du Westland (fr); pardela de Westland (es); Westlandsturmvogel (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Procellariiformes
Family Procellariidae

Range:
This species is endemic to New Zealand, only breeding in coastal foothills at Punakaiki, South Island. Outside the breeding season they spread over a large area of the southern Pacific Ocean, from the coast of south-eastern Australia to the coast of Chile.

Size:
These large petrels are 50-55 cm long and have a wingspan of 135-140 cm. They weigh 0,8-1,2 kg.

Habitat:
They breed in densely forested hill and coastal cliff, up to an altitude of 250 m. They mainly forage on the open ocean, but also in intertidal areas and in sub-tidal coastal kelp forests and seagrasses.

Diet:
The Westland petrel hunts cephalopods, fishes and crustaceans, also following trawlers to scavange fishing waste.

Breeding:
These birds breed in May-November. They form breeding colonies, with each pair building a large, cavernous burrows, up to 2 m long, close to steep slopes, cliff edges or trees from where they can take off. There the female lays a single egg which is incubated for 57-65 days. The chicks fledge 20-40 days after hatching and then head out to the open ocean, not returning to the colony for 5 years. They reach sexual maturity at 10 years of age.

Conservation:
IUCN status - VU (Vulnerable)
The Westland petrel has a very small breeding range and a global population estimated at 10.700 individuals. The population is believed to be stable, but there are several significant threats, namely habitat loss due to mining and agriculture and nest predation by introduced mammals such as cats and dogs and the native weka Gallirallus australis. Other threats include by-catch by long-line fishing vessels, and increased tourism.

Baya weaver

Ploceus philippinus

Photo by J.M. Garg (Wikipedia)

Common name:
Baya weaver (en); tecelão-de-Baya (pt); tisserin baya (fr); tejedor de Baya (es); Bayaweber (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Ploceidae

Range:
This species is found in southern Asia, from eastern Afghanistan and Pakistan, throughout India and Sri Lanka, and trough Nepal and Bangladesh into southern China, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand and south to Malaysia and the Indonesian islands of Sumatra and Java.

Size:
These birds are 15 cm long and weigh 25-30 g.

Habitat:
The Baya weaver is mostly found in agricultural areas, especially arable land and irrigated fields such as rice paddies. They are also found in dry grasslands, scrublands, pastures and magroves.

Diet:
They mainly feed on grass seeds, particularly Guinea grass Panicum maximum, but often also rice seeds and other agricultural grains, reason why they are often considered a pest. They also feed on insects, small frogs and molluscs.

Breeding:
Baya weavers breed during the monsoon. They form colonies in trees, with each male building elaborately woven nests made of grass leaves and palm fronds. They nests are placed hanging from tree branches, often over water. Both males and females are monogamous. The female lays 2-4 white eggs, which she incubates alone for 14-17 days. The chicks are mostly fed by the female, but the male may assist, fledging about 7 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status -LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and, although the global population size has not been quantified, the Baya weaver is described as locally common to common, although rare in Bhutan. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Violet-eared waxbill

Uraeginthus granatinus

Photo by Ian White (Flickr)

Common name:
violet-eared waxbill (en); monsenhor (pt); cordonbleu grenadin (fr); granadero común (es); granatastrild (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Estrildidae

Range:
This African species is found from southern Angola, Zambia and Zimbabwe to northern South Africa.

Size:
These birds are 13-15 cm long and weigh 12 g.

Habitat:
The violet-eared waxbill is mostly found in dry scrublands and savanna, especially Acacia, Colosphermum Baikiaea, Baphia and Bauhinia stands. They are also found in pastures and arable land.

Diet:
They usually forage on the ground, or among scrubs and grasses, taking the seeds of various grasses and forbs, fruits and nectar. They also hunt some insects, namely termites, ants and beetles.

Breeding:
Violet-eared waxbills are monogamous, solitary nesters, forming life-long pair bonds. They can breed all year round and the nest is built by both sexes, consisting of a thick-walled, vertical oval-shaped structure made of grass stems and lined with green grass inflorescences and feathers of other birds. The nest is typically concealed in the foliage of a scrub or tree. The female lays 2-7 white eggs, which are incubated by both sexes for 12-13 days. The chicks are fed and brooded by both parents and fledge 16-18 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This specie has a very large breeding range and is described as common or fairly common. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Keel-billed toucan

Ramphastos sulfuratus

(Photo from Online Utility)

Common name:

keel-billed toucan (en); tucano-arco-íris (pt); toucan à carène (fr); tucán pico iris (es); fischertukan (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Piciformes

Family Ramphastidae

Range:

This species is found in Central America, from southern Mexico to northern Colombia and north-western Venezuela.

Size:

These birds are 42-55 cm long. The males weigh 360-550 g, while the smaller females weigh 275-480 g.

Habitat:

The keel-billed toucan is mostly found in lowland rainforests, but also in some rainforests at higher altitudes, mangroves, tropical dry forests and second growths. They can also be found is pastures and plantations. This species is present from sea level up to an altitude of 1.600 m.

Diet:

They mainly feed on the fruits and seeds of various tropical trees, namely Cercropia,  Inga, Protium, Ficus, Rheedia, Alchornea costaricensis, Didymopanax morototoni, Astrocaryum polystachyum, Iriartea exorrhiza, Virola panamensis, Cupania seemanni, Cnestidium rufescens, Salacia, Swartzia cubensis and Ehretia tinifolia. They also take snakes, small lizards, insects such as beetles, cicadas and ants, and the eggs and nestlings of passerine birds.

Breeding:
Keel-billed toucans breed in March-June. The nest is a natural tree cavity or an old woodpecker nest, lined with  wood chips and green leaves. The nest is about 7 m above the ground. The female lays 1-4 dull white eggs with irregular pitted grooves extending lengthwise along the egg. The eggs are incubated by both parents for 16-20 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 45-60 days after hatching. They reach sexual maturity at 2-3 years of age.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a large breeding range and the global population is estimated at 50.000-500.000 individuals. The population is suspected to be in decline locally owing to taking of young as pets and unsustainable levels of hunting, but the keel-billed toucan is not considered threatened at present.

Bokmakierie

Telophorus zeylonus

Photo by Ian White (Flickr)

Common name:
bokmakierie (en); boquemaquire (pt); gladiateur bacbakiri (fr); bubú silbón (es); bokmakiri (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family  Malaconotidae

Range:
This African species is found in south-western Angola, Namibia, southern Botswana and throughout South Africa.

Size:
These birds are 22-23 cm long and weigh around 70 g.

Habitat:
The bokmakierie is mostly, found in open scrublands and savannas, but also in scrubby deserts, plantations, orchards, vineyards and urban gardens and parks.

Diet:
They are opportunistic, mainly eating insects such as beetles, crickets, grasshoppers, bugs, moths, caterpillars, wasps, ants, flies, antlion larvae, mantids, termite alates and stick insects, but also millipedes, centipedes, snails, spiders, earthworms, lizards, small snakes, chameleons, geckos, frogs, small birds and some fruits and berries.

Breeding:
The bokmakierie breeds all year round. Both sexes build the nest, a cup made of small twigs, leaves, roots, tendrils, grass and bark, usually placed in a dense scrub, concealed by thick vegetation. There the female lays 2-6 greenish-blue eggs with red-brown or lilac blotches, which are incubated by both sexes for 14-19 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 15-21 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as widespread. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats. 

Rose-breasted grosbeak

Pheucticus ludovicianus

Photo by John Harrison (Wikipedia)

Common name:
rose-breasted grosbeak (en); bico-grosso-tricolor (pt); cardinal à poitrine rose (fr); picogrueso degollado (es); rosenbrust-kernknacker (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Cardinalidae

Range:
This species breeds in northern North America, from British Columbia in the west to the Atlantic coast of Canada in the east and as far south as New Jersey, the Appalachian Mountains through South Carolina, west to eastern Kansas, Nebraska, and the Dakotas. They migrate south to winter in the greater Antilles, coastal Mexico, and throughout Central America and northern South America to eastern Peru and the Guyanas.

Size:
These birds are 18-22 cm long and have a wingspan of 29-33 cm. They weigh 35-65 g.

Habitat:
Rose-breasted grosbeaks breed in deciduous and mixed forests in boreal and temperate areas, especially along forest edges, but also in second-growth woodlands, orchards, suburban parks and gardens. They winter in open tropical forests and rural areas.

Diet:
They eat seeds, berries, fruits and insects. They are known to take beetles, ants, bees, bugs and caterpillars, as well as the berries of elderberry, red-berried elder, blackberry, raspberry, mulberry, juneberry, and the seeds of various herbs such as smartweed, pigweed, foxtail, milkweed, sunflower and domestic crops such as peas, corn, oats and wheat.

Breeding:
Rose-breasted grosbeaks form monogamous pairs that last a single breeding season. They breed in May-July and the nest is a cup loosely woven of grasses and twigs, lined with shredded bark, pine needles and fine grasses. The nest is placed on a tree, scrub or vine, up to 17 m above the ground. The female lays 1-5 pale green or blue eggs with reddish brown blotches and speckles. The eggs are incubated for 11-14 days and the chicks fledge 9-12 days after hatching but only become fully independent 3 weeks later. Each pair typically raises a single clutch per year.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range. The population is considered large and, although there have been marginal declines in some areas, the overall population seems to be mostly stable.

Rock parrot

Neophema petrophila

Photo by Jean-Philippe Paris (Mango Verde)

Common name:
rock parrot (en); piriquito-das-rochas (pt); perruche des rochers (fr); periquito roquero (es); klippensittich (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Psittaciformes
Family Psittacidae

Range:
This species is endemic to Australia, being found in coastal areas of South Australia and Western Australia, especially along the coast from Kingston to Ceduna in South Australia and in Western Australia from Cape Arid National Park to Geraldton.

Size:
These birds are22-24 cm long and weigh 45-65 g.

Habitat:
The rock parrot is mostly found in rocky coastal areas and rocky offshore islands, but also in coastal sand dunes, mangroves, saltmarshes, mudflats and occasionally in dry forests and scrublands near coastal areas. They are seldom seen more than a few hundred metres from the sea.

Diet:
They feed on the on seeds and fruits of a wide variety of grasses, rushes, scrubs and salt-tolerant plants, namely Carpobrotus.

Breeding:
Rock parrots breed in August-December. They nest on a rock crevice or ledge, tunnel or abandoned seabird nesting burrow, often hidden behind succulent scrubs. Most nests are on offshore islands. The female lays 4-5 eggs, which she incubates alone for 18 days while the male provides her food. The chicks fledge about 30 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status -LC (Least Concern)
This species has a relatively large breeding range and, although the global population size has not been quantified, the rock parrot is reported to be generally common. The population is suspected to be in decline owing to predation by invasive species, especially foxes, cats and rats, and human disturbance is also a problem near housing and recreational developments.