Meadow pipit
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Meadow Pipit ( Anthus pratensis ) |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Anthus pratensis | ||||||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1758) |
The Meadow Pipit ( Anthus pratensis ) is a bird art from the family of Wagtail , which in the northern half of Europe and Asia a widespread and sometimes common breeding bird. During his move he can occasionally be seen in larger groups in fields and at the edges of ponds.
description
At just under 15 centimeters, the meadow pipit is about the same size as a house sparrow . However, it is more graceful and slimmer than this and therefore looks larger. The plumage shows no gender-specific differences. The top of the body is olive colored. The over-eye stripe is whitish and the outermost tail feathers are white. The legs are reddish and the beak is thin and pointed.
The meadow pipit's call is a sharp “ist” or “ististist”, often long-lasting and monotonous “tlitlitli” near the nest. His singing, which he performs in short singing flights, is high and thin. He begins to sing before the start of the singing flight, then usually rises from a bump in the ground and usually does not return to the starting point when sliding down.
The meadow pipit is very similar to the tree pipit . It can be distinguished from the tree pipit when observing it in the field because of its habitat and voice rather than visual characteristics. Basically it is slightly smaller than the tree pipit and has a more pronounced gray-greenish color. The stripes on the back are somewhat more pronounced and darker, the chest less yellowish and more delicately stripes. In contrast to the more delicate meadow pipit, the tree pipit has a more powerful beak. While tree pipits can often be seen sitting on tree branches, meadow pipits usually stay on the ground and have a “hopping”, short flight. The tree pipit, on the other hand, flies jerkily in flat waves.
ecology
nutrition
Meadow pipits feed mainly on small diurnal insects and arachnids of all kinds in the summer half-year, and also on small snails and seeds in the winter half-year .
habitat
The meadow pipit is a widespread and occasionally even common bird of the genus pipit. It occurs in most of the regions of the northern half of Europe and Asia . It is a short-range migrant and usually overwinters in southern Europe, northern Africa, and southern Asia. In Ireland , Great Britain and the coastal regions of western Europe, however, it is a resident bird . Occasionally there are also meadow pipits that overwinter in Central Europe.
The meadow pipit is a breeding bird on damp meadows and pastures , in moor areas , also in mountains . During the migration to the south you can often see him in larger groups in fields and at the edges of ponds .
Breeding biology
The meadow pipit is a breeding bird in open landscapes. Breeding birds can be found in marshes, dunes and damp meadows to heaths and high moors. The breeding season begins in the southern range in the period from early to mid-April and in the northern range in early June. As a rule, two annual broods are raised, in exceptional cases meadow pipits even brood a third time.
The nest is on the ground and is usually well protected from being seen from above. It is built by the female alone. The nest is an inconspicuous structure made of stalks and moss and is padded with hair. The clutch usually consists of three to five eggs that are laid every day. They are only incubated by the female who takes the brood after the last egg has been deposited. The eggs are very variable in color. The basic color can be blue-gray, beige or pink. They are speckled brown and light gray and occasionally drawn so densely that an almost uniform gray or brown color develops. The incubation period is between 11 and 15 days.
The nestlings are nestlings that are brownish-gray booths. They are then fed by both parents for 12 to 14 days.
Others
Meadow pipits are very common host birds for the cuckoo .
literature
- Per Alström and Krister Mild: Pipits & Wagtails of Europe, Asia and Northamerica. Christopher Helm Ltd., London 2003, ISBN 0-7136-5834-7 .
- Einhard Bezzel : FSVO manual birds. BLV Verlagsgesellschaft, Munich 1996, ISBN 3-405-14736-0 .
- Colin Harrison and Peter Castell: Fledglings, Eggs and Nests of Birds in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. 2nd, revised edition. Aula-Verlag, Wiebelsheim 2004, ISBN 3-89104-685-5 .
Web links
- Meadow pipit at www.reuber-norwegen.de
- Anthus pratensis in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2008. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2004. Retrieved on January 4 of 2009.
- Videos, photos and sound recordings on Anthus pratensis in the Internet Bird Collection
- Entry at the Swiss Ornithological Institute
- Age and gender characteristics (PDF; 1.8 MB) by Javier Blasco-Zumeta and Gerd-Michael Heinze (English)
- Meadow pipit's feathers
Single receipts
- ↑ Allström and Mild: pipits & Wagtails of Europe, Asia and North America . P. 132.
- ↑ a b J. del. Hoyo: Handbook of the Birds of the World , vol. 9 . Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2004, ISBN 84-87334-69-5 , p. 763.
- ^ Einhard Bezzel: FSVO Handbook Birds . P. 370
- ^ Colin Harrison and Peter Castell: Fledglings, Eggs and Nests of Birds in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East . P. 215
- ^ Einhard Bezzel: FSVO Handbook Birds . P. 370.
- ^ Colin Harrison and Peter Castell: Fledglings, Eggs and Nests of Birds in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East . P. 216.