Inca divers
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Inca diver ( Podiceps occipitalis ) |
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| Podiceps occipitalis | ||||||||||
| Garnot , 1826 |
The silvery grebe ( Podiceps occipitalis ) is a kind from the family of grebes . Its distribution area is limited to the south of South America and the Falkland Islands. It is a relatively small, predominantly gray-feathered grebe from the genus Podiceps . There are two subspecies.
The first scientific description was made in 1826 by the French doctor and natural scientist Prosper Garnot on the basis of the bellows of an individual killed in the east of the Falkland Islands towards the end of 1822 .
Appearance
The Inca diver reaches a height of between 25 and 28.5 centimeters. About 17 centimeters are allotted to the body. The wing length is 12.1 to 13.5 centimeters. The weight varies between 340 and 397 grams. Males tend to be slightly larger than females.
The Inca diver is generally rather short-necked with a very small, conical beak. The body plumage is predominantly light slate gray. The feathers are relatively long, which gives the Inca diver a somewhat fluffed appearance. The head cap is dark slate gray, the feathers on the sides of the head are somewhat elongated in the magnificent dress and form tufts of feathers that shimmer copper-colored. The rear neck is black and ends in a thin line. The front neck is white. The sides and flanks of the body are whitish with small dark gray spots. The underside of the body is white. The eyes are orange-red, the beak is black. The legs and feet are black. In the simple dress , the elongated feathers on the head sides are missing.
Distribution area
The Inca diver is widespread in the extreme south of the South American continent. The nominate form occurs from Tierra del Fuelgo to Cordoba and Santa Fé in Argentina as well as in central Chile. It rarely settles at altitudes above 1,300 meters. The subspecies Podiceps occipitalis juninensis occurs in the highlands of the Andes, from northern Chile to northwestern Argentina and the Junín region in Peru, as well as in Ecuador and the highlands of Colombia. The subspecies inhabits open wetlands. This subspecies has a brown plumage and a lighter front neck. Since there are also differences in body structure and behavior, it cannot be ruled out that the subspecies native to the Andes is an independent species.
Way of life
In the Falkland Islands, Inca divers are common in the same waters as the Rolland diver . Although they are small and conspicuously pinnate, they are more noticeable than this species of grebe because several specimens can often be observed at the same time. They are colony breeders, which occurs proportionally among grebes. On the Falkland Islands, no fewer than 16 nests of the Inca divers were counted along a 50 meter stretch of shore. The breeding season begins in the Falkland Islands in September. The two bluish-white eggs are laid between November and January. Outside the breeding season, they are often observed in the kelp on the coasts.
supporting documents
literature
- Josep del Hoyo et al .: Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Ostrich to Ducks. Lynx Edicions, 1992, ISBN 84-87334-10-5 .
- Jon Fjeldså: The Grebes . Oxford University Press, 2004, ISBN 0-19-850064-5
- Hadoram Shirihai: A Complete Guide to Antarctic Wildlife - The Birds and Marine Mammals of the Antarctic Continent and Southern Ocean , Alula Press, Degerby 2002, ISBN 951-98947-0-5
- Robin and Anne Woods: Atlas of Breeding Birds of the Falkland Islands , Anthony Nelson, Shorpshire 1997, ISBN 0904614-60-3
Single receipts
Web link
- Podiceps occipitalis inthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Endangered Species . Listed by: BirdLife International, 2012. Retrieved February 2, 2014.