Chaetura

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Chaetura
Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica)

Chimney Swift ( Chaetura pelagica )

Systematics
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Sailor birds (Apodiformes)
Family : Sailors (Apodidae)
Tribe : Chaeturini
Genre : Chaetura
Scientific name
Chaetura
Stephens , 1826

Chaetura is a genus of birdsinthe sailor family (Apodidae). Partly also is the German for this species common name Actual white-throated needletail used. The genus includes nine small species of sailor, seven of which are restricted to the Neotropical FaunalRegion, while two, the chimney swift and the gray-bellied Swift , also breed in North America and migrate to the Neotropical region in the winter of the northern hemisphere.

Most species in the genus use man-made breeding grounds, especially on chimneys and in underground shafts. All the nests of the species of this genus examined were very similar: a shallow hollow on a vertical surface, formed from thin twigs glued with saliva.

features

The body length is between 10 and 14 centimeters. The plumage of the species is very similar. The upper side is uniformly dark with the exception of a paler colored rump, some species also show paler upper tail-coverts. The underside is usually paler only on the throat and chest, but also on the under tail-coverts in two species.

The shape of the wings is typical of the Tribus Chaeturini, the outer hand wings are clearly curved, the inner hand wings and the arm wings are very dense. The tail is cut short and straight, the head protrudes almost as far as the tail, which gives the classic impression of a "cigar with wings".

Systematics

The genus Chaetura originally comprised many more species. David Lack formed subgroups for the species-rich genus at that time and oriented himself on the plumage and distribution, but without naming these subgroups. RK Brooke divided the genus in 1970 according to the Lacks proposal and introduced the additional genera Zoonavena , Telacanthura , Rhaphidura and Neafrapus .

The internal system of the now reduced genre is still very controversial. The biggest problem is the status of some subspecies of the gray- tailed swift , which are also very similar to the pale-necked swift and question its species status. In 1997, MA Marin suggested that C. chapmani viridipennis and C. andrei meridoonalis are separate species, but this is not yet generally recognized. Also C. spinicauda fumosa is seen by some authors as a separate species.

The following species are included in the genus:

literature

  • Phil Chantler, Gerald Driessens: A Guide to the Swifts and Tree Swifts of the World. Pica Press, Mountfield 2000, ISBN 1-873403-83-6 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ This and all information not specially marked are taken from the following source: A Guide to the Swifts and Tree Swifts of the World . Page 179, see literature
  2. ↑ Chantler, Driessens: A Guide to the Swifts and Tree Swifts of the World . Page 20, see literature
  3. ↑ Chantler, Driessens: A Guide to the Swifts and Tree Swifts of the World . Page 25, see literature

Web links

Commons : Chaetura  - collection of images, videos and audio files