Wall creeper
| Wall creeper | ||||||||||||
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Wallcreeper ( Tichodroma muraria ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the family | ||||||||||||
| Tichodromidae | ||||||||||||
| Swainson , 1827 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Tichodroma | ||||||||||||
| Illiger , 1811 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Tichodroma muraria | ||||||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1766) | ||||||||||||
| Subspecies | ||||||||||||
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The wallcreeper ( Tichodroma muraria ) is a small-sized , strikingly colored songbird that occurs scattered in alpine areas of Eurasia. Characteristic field marks are the red and white markings on the broad wings, the male's black throat during the breeding season, the long, slightly downwardly curved poke and the unsteady fluttering flight. Wall creepers inhabit almost all European and Asian mountains, eastwards to about the Great Hinggan Mountains northwest of Beijing , where they mainly, but not exclusively, stay in high alpine, rocky areas during the breeding season. The species breeds in crevices or rock caves and feeds on insects that are collected from crevices and crevices or from the rock surface, or are captured in flight. In Europe, the breeding occurrences reach heights of approximately 3500 meters, in Tibet they exceed 5000 meters. While they usually rise to even higher altitudes after the breeding season, wall creepers spend the winter months near the breeding areas, but at lower altitudes or in climatically more favorable regions. During this time of year, the species can also be observed on rocky stretches of beach or on buildings.
The systematic classification of this species, which has characteristics of both the nuthatches (Sittidae) and the treecreepers (Certhiidae), is difficult and is assessed differently in science. In particular, the validity of the Tichodromidae family is increasingly being questioned. As of 2020, despite the very large distribution area and the often widely isolated occurrences, only two very weakly differentiated subspecies will be distinguished, none of which appear in a hazard level of the IUCN
Appearance
The Wallcreeper is because of its occurrence in steep cliffs and rocky areas and canyons and gorges unmistakable, his colorful appearance and its particular way of moving.
The most conspicuous features of the field orithology are the long, downward-curved, black poking beak, the strikingly wide wings with the dark-brick-red, white-dotted coverts on the arm and hand wings as well as the deep black throat of the male in its splendid dress.
In flight, the wallcreeper is reminiscent of a very small, somewhat strangely colored hoopoe or a very large butterfly. Its total length is just under 17 cm. When sitting, the bird looks like a mouse, its scurrying movements are even like a mouse; only the red border of the wings stands out clearly from the overall slate-gray appearance. In this position, the very short legs with the extra-long toes are also noticeable.
The wall creeper is most noticeable when foraging for food. In the steep rocky terrain, it hops or flies climbing with constant wing flapping and wing spreading, mostly sideways upwards, whereby the red and white wing markings become visible.
Both sexes are very similar to each other. In the magnificent dress, the throat of the female tends to be gray, not deep black as in the male. The front breast, which is dark gray to black in the male, changes to light, almost pure white tones in the female. In the plain dress , the sexes are difficult to distinguish, the color then roughly corresponds to the plumage of the female in the magnificent dress.
The subspecies T. m. nepalensis is slightly larger and slightly darker in color than the nominate form. The white color markings, especially on the tail feathers, are larger. The differences to the nominate form are, however, very small and also variable, so that Tichodroma muraria is often treated as a monotypic species.
voice
The male's song consists of thin, pure whistling tones that rise in height; they are often concluded with a lighter and louder short element. The male strings four to five such flute tones into a stanza. The final whistle is usually a little darker. The singing is difficult to hear in the harsh mountain environment of his living space, often you can only hear the brightest tones. The female sings similarly, but his verses are even shorter and a little quieter.
In addition to this song, there is also a sounding contact call from the bird, which is generally not very happy to call. In rival fights, you can hear a relatively loud squeak of the bill .
Voice example
A voice example was documented by the Swiss Ornithological Institute in Sempach in a short portrait and voice example of the species .
distribution
The wall creeper is nowhere common in its entire range. However, due to its high alpine habitat, the species is difficult to determine.
Tichodroma muraria muraria
The occurrences of the nominate form ( Tichodroma muraria muraria ) extend in a wide arc from Western Europe over the Middle East to Western Iran. Most of the high mountains in this geographic region are populated. The most important mountain ranges from west to east are: Cantabrian Mountains - Pyrenees - French Massif Central - Swiss Jura - the entire Alpine arc including the Southern Alps - Apennines , in places up to Abruzzo - the Balkans with the Dinaric Mountains , the Pindus and Olympus - the Carpathians , Beskids and the mountainous region in Western Transylvania - the Rhodope Mountains and finally the Taurus Mountains and the Caucasus .
Reports from southern Spain ( Sierra Nevada ), the Crimean Mountains and the Pontic Mountains have not been clarified . Breed occurrences may exist in Cyprus, Lebanon and Syria.
Tichodroma muraria nepalensis
The distribution of the species in Asia is even less explored than that in Europe. Certainly Tichodroma muraria nepalensis occurs in all southwest and central Asian high mountains, such as Elburs , Hindu Kush , Altai and Pamir and their neighboring mountains . The wallcreeper is also a common breeding bird in Tianshan and Kunlun Shan . To the east, very isolated breeding occurrences extend to the mountainous areas north and south-west of Beijing .
habitat
The breeding habitats of the species are generally inaccessible, rugged and crevice-rich montane to high-alpine rocky areas. Limestone as well as gneiss and crystalline slate are preferred . Different tanning conditions during the day, stored grass cushions or other vegetation as well as the proximity to water outlets or waterfalls are important. The height of the rocks does not play a major role, so breeding sites were discovered in walls over 1,000 meters high as well as those in quarries with less than 40 meters. In addition, the species inhabits relatively moist rocky gorges and rocky areas in the Mediterranean area with isolated vegetation with cypress juniper ( Juniperus phoenicea ) and rosemary ( Rosmarinus officinalis ). Locations exposed to strong winds are rarely settled.
The vertical distribution of the breeding sites in Europe is between 400 meters and over 2,500 meters. An accumulation of low-lying broods is particularly noticeable east of the Vorarlberg Rhine Valley, which has been ornithologically well documented , especially in the Dornbirn and Hohenems area . But these habitats are also connected to mountain ranges and high mountain areas, into which the birds usually pass after the breeding business is completed during the remaining months, which are favorable in terms of temperature.
Outside Europe, breeding sites are known from over 4,000 meters; Wall creepers in search of food have been observed in rock faces at heights of over 6,000 meters.
If the birds remain in the breeding area during the winter months, they usually look for areas that are significantly deeper. They can then be observed occasionally in urban areas, for example fairly regularly at the Bern Minster .
behavior
General
Wall creepers are territorial all year round. They defend their breeding and winter areas. The territorial aggressive behavior of both sexes increases in the winter half-year. Alien birds, such as the black redstart , are usually tolerated, while the territory owner vigorously tries to drive away rivals of the same species. The flying fights of the opponents can be violent and lead to serious injuries. Outside the breeding season, the species lives solitary except in small temporary moulting groups . The courtship and pairing often begin in winter quarters.
activity
The diurnal birds leave their sleeping caves at the start of the day, and return to them at sunset. In winter, the activity phase begins much later and ends earlier. The activity phase is often interrupted by rest and cleaning phases, but these usually only last very short.
Comfort behavior
Sunbathing is one of the most common comfort behaviors . The bird either lies with widely spread wing and tail feathers on a flat ledge exposed to the sun, or it takes a more or less sitting position, exposing its stomach, chest and throat to the sun. In this position, the head is overstretched backwards, the tail serves as a support. Extensive sand bathing and bathing, mostly in small rivulets trickling down from above, are also very important for the personal hygiene of the wall creeper.
Locomotion
The most noticeable form of locomotion is a two-legged hop in a vertical rock face. The tail is not used as a support tail, but the body, pressed close to the rocks, is kept in balance by the feet and their long toes. The wings are used for greater distances from ledge to ledge. While climbing, the bird constantly unfolds the feathers of the hand wings and shows their red and white markings; this behavior obviously has a territorial signal effect. Larger, protruding areas in the rock are overcome in a spiral flutter flight at some distance from the rock.
The very large and wide wings help the wallcreeper to perform extremely agile flight maneuvers and to gain altitude very quickly on thermal lifts along the rock faces. The downward movement takes place in a lightning-fast nosedive with tightly placed wings. Only shortly before landing does it change to a braking flight with wide spread wings and wide spread tail. Frequently, especially when the bird returns to the nest with prey, a parachute-like downward slide with spread wings is observed.
Enemy behavior
When threatened by predatory mammals, the wall creeper twitches very quickly with the wings of the hand; when birds of prey appear, he remains motionless.
hikes
When weather conditions allow, most wall creepers stay in their breeding area. However, they do both vertical migrations and compensatory flights. Preferences of a certain migration direction were not observed overall, but individual populations can evidently develop migration traditions over a few 100 kilometers. Some of the birds that breed in northern eastern Switzerland, Vorarlberg and the Bavarian Allgäu regularly migrate to the northern Lake Constance area , the upper Neckar valley and suitable habitats in the southern Black Forest . In some cases, the same overwinterers could be found in these areas over several winter half-years. The residence time can be up to six months.
Food and subsistence
The wallcreeper feeds its brood exclusively on invertebrates . The food composition has not been researched in detail due to the difficulty in observing the bird. It mainly consists of the smallest to medium-sized insects; Spiders and harvestmen also appear to play an important role. The prey animals are picked up from cracks by poking or picked up from the ground. The constant flapping of the wings is apparently used to startle the insect food. Brief chase flights in the manner of flycatchers for flying insects have been observed, but often appear to end unsuccessfully. When looking for food, stones are turned over, obstacles are removed by hammering. Small insects are pierced with the pointed tongue and pulled into the throat, larger ones are killed by smashing and then swallowed.
Wallcreepers prefer to drink by letting droplets of water run from above directly into their open beak.
Breeding biology
The breeding biology of the species has not been adequately researched because it is difficult to observe.
Wall creepers go to their first brood towards the end of their first year of life. They probably have a monogamous seasonal marriage. There is some evidence that some partners mate again for years due to their great loyalty to the breeding site. Mating and successful breeding of close relatives have also been observed in isolated populations. The pair formation takes place already in winter quarters.
Nest location
After arriving in the breeding region, which rarely occurs before mid-March, the partners look for a nesting site in crevices and caves. Often there is disagreement about the final choice, which can only be resolved through intensive cave-showing, which both sexes carry out. The main focus is on security against nest predators ( ermines , stone marten ). The voluminous nest is softly padded with moss , lichen or, if available, sheep's wool. It is built exclusively by the female, the male only provides assistance. The nest building is carried out carefully and conscientiously and takes a correspondingly long time (10–20 days). Most of the breeding caves are over half a meter deep and the nest is in the last third of the cave. Half-fledged cubs can often be seen at the cave entrance or they come towards the approaching parents while they are feeding.
Brood
The breeding season rarely begins before mid-May. The clutch consists of three to five pointed oval white eggs, which usually have deep red to black spots and splatters at the wider end. The incubation of the clutch begins after the penultimate egg has been deposited, and accordingly the young hatch within twenty-four hours. The incubation period and the feeding time are weather-dependent, mean values are 20 and 30 days respectively. Apparently there is only one annual brood, even if there is a loss of clutch, the parents do not proceed to a second brood, probably mainly for reasons of time. The full-fledged cubs remain in a loose family unit for a few weeks after they leave the family before they often move to relatively distant areas. After the breeding business has ended, the adult birds usually rise to greater heights before they go to their winter quarters at lower altitudes.
Systematics
As of the end of 2019, the wallcreeper will be placed as a monotypical species Tichodroma muraria in the monotypical genus Tichodroma and also in the monotypical family Tichodromidae. In particular, there are considerable concerns about the authorization of the independent family, so that a provision to the Sittidae family is emerging. Overall, even new molecular genetic studies, such as the large-scale comparison published in 2015 between Tichodroma on the one hand and Sitta , Certhia and Salpornis on the other, could not eliminate the incertae sedis status of genus and family. It can be considered largely certain that Sitta is the sister genus of Tichodroma , as on the other hand Certhia and Salpornis are sister genera . At the moment, T. muraria seems to be best represented taxonomically due to its position within the superfamily Certhioidea , in which besides Tichodromae also Sittidae, Certhiidae , Polioptilidae and Troglodytidae are united.
As of the end of 2019, two rather weakly differentiated subspecies are considered valid. Two other subspecies, namely T. longirostra from the Zagros Mountains and T. ognewi from the Tashkent area, are believed to be clinical variations. The majority of the valid subspecies T. nepalensis is also viewed by experts as a clinical variation, so that T. muraria is also viewed as monotypic in the specialist literature.
- Tichodroma muraria muraria Linnaeus , 1766: The nominotypical taxon occurs in the western part of the total distribution area, eastward to Iran .
- Tichodroma muraria nepalensis Bonaparte , 1766: Breeds in the high mountains of Central Asia, the Himalayan region eastwards to the mountain ranges northwest of Beijing. This subspecies is slightly darker in color, the wings are a little longer, the beak, however, shorter. The white markings on the wings and on the feathers are more extensive; A light ocher yellow or fawn brown shimmer is often noticeable on the top of the head. The slight pink coloring of the base of the tail, which also appears in some individuals of the nominate form, occurs more frequently in this subspecies.
Inventory and inventory development
The wallcreeper is one of the extremely difficult to detect bird species, so that there is insufficient information about population numbers and population developments, especially in the non-European distribution areas. The IUCN estimates the total population at half a million to one and a half million adult individuals. The hazardous situation is assessed with LC (Least Concern). In Europe, the core populations are in Spain, France and Italy. Turkey is also home to many breeding pairs. Overall, the total stock of the European breeding population is put at a maximum of 100,000 breeding pairs. There is a potential risk primarily due to the increasing hiking tourism and climbing activities in previously untouched mountain regions.
Name derivation
The scientific generic name, like some other generic names, is pleonastic . Tichodroma is made up of the old Gr. Noun tò teīchos = the wall and (probably) dromás = running together. muraria is one of the Latin word murus, -i m. = Adjective derived from the wall . However, the term wall is definitely to be understood as the rock face, just as steep rock faces are called walls in alpine parlance today.
In older literature, the Wallcreeper is also alpine wall creeper , Wall woodpecker , Wall burr , Karminspecht or Alpine Specht called.
literature
- H. Löhrl, M. Wilson (2019). Wallcreeper ( Tichodroma muraria ). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, DA & de Juana, E. (eds.). * * * Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (accessed on https://www.hbw.com/node/59941 on November 7, 2019).
- H. Löhrl, M. Wilson and A. Bonan (2019). Wallcreeper (Tichodromidae). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, DA & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (accessed from https://www.hbw.com/node/52342 on November 7, 2019).
- Hans Löhrl : The wall creeper, Tichodroma muraria . Die Neue Brehm-Bücherei Vol. 498, 2004. ISBN 3-89432-837-1 - Unchanged reprint of the edition of January 1, 1976
- Handbook of the birds of Central Europe . Vol. 13 / II. Pp. 880-918, AULA Wiesbaden 1993
- Hans Günther Bauer & Peter Berthold : The breeding birds of Central Europe. Existence and endangerment. Aula, Wiesbaden 1997, ISBN 3-89104-613-8 , p. 423.
- Ulrich Brendel: Birds of the Alps . Ulmer, Stuttgart 1998, pp. 120-121. ISBN 3-8001-3502-7
- Viktor Wember: The names of the birds of Europe . Aula, Wiesbaden 2005, ISBN 3-89104-678-2
- Jochen Hölzinger et al .: The birds of Baden-Württemberg . Vol. 3.2; Ulmer, Stuttgart 1997: pp 189-196. ISBN 3-8001-3483-7
- Miroslav Saniga: Foraging habits of the Wallcreeper ( Tichodroma muraria ). Bird life 123; 2002: pp. 161-164.
Web links
- Data sheet from BirdLife International 2004 (PDF; 259 kB)
- Tichodroma muraria in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2008. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2008. Accessed January 31 of 2009.
- Videos, photos and sound recordings of Tichodroma muraria in the Internet Bird Collection
- Feathers of the wall creeper
annotation
- ↑ J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, DA Christie & E. de Juana: Taxonomic structure and notes. (No longer available online.) In: Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Formerly in the original ; accessed on August 10, 2018 . ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ BirdLife International 2018. Tichodroma muraria Downloaded on 07 November 2019
- ^ Swiss Ornithological Institute Sempach: Short portrait and voice example of the species.
- ↑ del Hoyo et al. (Tichodromidae)
- ↑ Min Zhao, Per Ahlström et al .: Phylogenetic position of the Wallcreeper Tichodroma muraria In: Journal für Ornithologie. 2016 DOI 10.1007 / s10336-016-1340-8
- ↑ del Hoyo et al. ( Tichodroma muraria )
- ↑ BirdLife International 2018. Tichodroma muraria Downloaded on 07 November 2019
- ↑ del Hoyo et al. ( Tichodroma muraria )
- ↑ The name "carmine woodpecker" is also used in older literature for the carmine pint ( Merops nubicoides ) from the bee-eater family .
