Rock jumpers (birds)

Rock diver
	Orange-breasted rock diver ( Chaetops aurantius )
Systematics
Subclass :	New-jawed birds (Neognathae)
Order :	Passerines (Passeriformes)
Subordination :	Songbirds (passeri)
without rank:	Passerida
Family :	Rock diver
Genre :	Rock diver
Scientific name of the family
	Chaetopidae
	Fjeldsa , Ericson , Johannson , & Zuccon , 2015
Scientific name of the genus
	Chaetops
	Swainson , 1832

The rock jumpers ( Chaetops ) are a two-species sparrowbird genus and the only representatives of the rock jumpers (Chaetopidae) family of the same name established in 2015 . The occurrence is limited to southern Africa.

features

The rock jumpers reach total lengths of 21 to 25 cm. The plumage is strongly patterned with white stripes and spots and dashed gray on the upper side. The underside has a reddish and cinnamon color. The medium-short wings are rounded. The long, rounded tail is graduated. The medium-sized body is cylindrically ovoid. The medium-long, thin beak is very slightly curved. The head is medium in size, the iris is bright red. The neck is medium short and thick. The medium-length legs and feet are stocky. The plumage of the females is mostly brown, that of the males is lighter colored.

Systematics

Rock jumpers belong to a small group of loosely related songbirds informally known as basal songbirds . Although they have often been regarded as relatives of the babblers, Molecular phylogenetic studies have shown that Chaetopidae instead with the families of Felshüpfer (Picathartidae) (Beresford et al. 2005, Irestedt & Ohlson 2008) and the rail-babbler (Eupetidae) are related. The only studies that have covered all three taxa indicate that Picathartidae is a sister group that includes Eupetidae and Chaetopidae together (Jønsson et al. 2007, Jønsson et al. 2011).

Species and their distribution

The distribution area of the Cape Diver ( Chaetops frenatus ) extends to the Western Cape and the southwestern Eastern Cape in the south of South Africa .
The orange-breasted rock diver ( Chaetops aurantius ) occurs in the highlands of Lesotho , in the montane province of Free State , in KwaZulu-Natal and in the Eastern Cape of South Africa.

habitat

Rock divers inhabit steep, grassy slopes with extensive rocky outcrops.

Way of life

Rock divers feed primarily on insects and other invertebrates. Small vertebrates such as lizards and frogs enrich the food supply. The rock divers find their food by searching the ground and sandy rock subsoil for prey.

Rock jumpers are monogamous with biparental care and cooperative youngsters, in which family groups of up to 12 individuals are involved. The bulky nests are bowl-shaped. They are mostly built from grass and twigs and lined with finer materials, including roots, fur, lichen, and moss. Nests are often made flat above the ground near the base of a large rock or shrub, or in a tuft of grass. Females usually lay 2 or 3 eggs. Both males and females contribute to nest building, incubation and feeding of the nestlings. In cooperative breeding groups, helpers also take part in the incubation and feeding of the nestlings. The incubation period lasts 19 to 21 days. The chicks stay in the nest for 18 to 21 days, which they leave on foot. Seven to ten days later they are fully fledged. The young birds are fed by parents and helpers for up to a month after leaving the nest.

status

The cap diver and the orange-breasted rock diver are both on the IUCN Red List's warning list.

literature

David W. Winkler , Shawn M. Billerman & Irby J. Lovette : Bird Families of the World , The CornellLab of Ornithology & Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, 2015. ISBN 978-84-941892-0-3 , pp. 33, 401

Individual evidence

↑ P Beresford, FK Barker, PG Ryan, TM Crowe: African endemics span the tree of songbirds (Passeri): molecular systematics of several evolutionary "enigmas". Proc. Royal Soc. London (Ser. B Biol. Sci.) 272, 2005, pp. 849-858.
↑ M. Irestedt, JI Ohlson: The division of the major songbird radiation into Passerida and 'core Corvoidea' (Aves: Passeriformes) - the species tree vs. gene trees. Zoologica Scripta 37 (3), 2008, pp. 305-313.
↑ KA Jønsson, J. Fjeldså, PG Ericson, M. Irestedt: Systematic placement of an enigmatic Southeast Asian taxon Eupetes macrocerus and implications for the biogeography of a main songbird radiation, the Passerida. Biology Letters 3 (3), 2007, pp. 323-326.
^ KA Jønsson, PH Fabre, RE Ricklefs, J. Fjeldså: Major global radiation of corvoid birds originated in the proto-Papuan archipelago. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 108 (6), 2011, pp. 2328-2333.

[1] P Beresford, FK Barker, PG Ryan, TM Crowe: African endemics span the tree of songbirds (Passeri): molecular systematics of several evolutionary "enigmas". Proc. Royal Soc. London (Ser. B Biol. Sci.) 272, 2005, pp. 849-858.

[2] M. Irestedt, JI Ohlson: The division of the major songbird radiation into Passerida and 'core Corvoidea' (Aves: Passeriformes) - the species tree vs. gene trees. Zoologica Scripta 37 (3), 2008, pp. 305-313.

[3] KA Jønsson, J. Fjeldså, PG Ericson, M. Irestedt: Systematic placement of an enigmatic Southeast Asian taxon Eupetes macrocerus and implications for the biogeography of a main songbird radiation, the Passerida. Biology Letters 3 (3), 2007, pp. 323-326.

[4] KA Jønsson, PH Fabre, RE Ricklefs, J. Fjeldså: Major global radiation of corvoid birds originated in the proto-Papuan archipelago. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 108 (6), 2011, pp. 2328-2333.