Red-billed maggot chopper
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Red-billed maggot chopper on a buffalo |
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| Buphagus erythrorhynchus | ||||||||||||
| ( Stanley , 1814) |
The red-billed maggot chopper ( Buphagus erythrorhynchus ) is a songbird from the family of the maggot chopper (Buphagidae) widespread in East and South Africa .
features
The red-billed maggot chopper grows to 18 to 20 centimeters tall and has a striking red beak, sometimes with a yellow tip on the upper beak. The back and upper tail plumage are colored anthracite, the lower tail plumage is grayish to cream-colored. The head plumage is anthracite. This maggot chopper wears a striking and fleshy yellow ring around his red eyes. The legs are black and have strong claws.
Distribution and way of life
The species is native to the savannah areas of eastern Africa from Eritrea to South Africa. The sociable birds live together in small groups of up to 20 animals. During the day they fly over the savannah in search of food. They find their food ( ticks , fleas and other skin parasites ) in and on the epidermis and in the wounds of larger grazing animals (for example antelopes , hippos or domestic cattle ). Their strong, curved legs with well-developed claws give the birds a secure hold on the skin of their host animals. As a rule, the birds return to their nests at dusk.
On the surface, the picture emerges that this is a typical example of symbiosis , because the carrier of the bird is finally freed from its parasites. This not only contributes to the health of the carrier, but also to the health of the entire herd by reducing the risk of disease. However, the British zoologist Paul Weeks came to the conclusion that the maggot chopper's relationship with their hosts was also parasitic. By examining the feeding behavior of red-billed maggot cattle on a group of domestic cattle in Zimbabwe , Weeks found that they spend only 15% of their time killing parasites. The rest of the time they spend pecking in the animals' wounds, keeping them open, eating their earwax or looking for food in the fur in some other way . In this case, the blood and small bits from the wound edges were preferred as food. A further investigation showed that cattle from which the maggot chopper were driven away were no more infested with parasites than a “cleaned” comparison group. It remains to be clarified whether these results can be transferred to the approximately 25 other large game species in Zimbabwe.
In 2020 it was discovered that black rhinos - because they can smell well but see less well - only detect 23% of people approaching when they come from the leeward without a red-billed maggot chopper . However, if such a bird sits on the rhinoceros, it warns the rhinoceros of the human with a sound and the rhinoceros then turns in the direction in which the wind is blowing and regularly discovers the human who could be a hunter. In Kiswahili , which is spoken in East Africa, this bird is called Askari wa Kifaru - “guardian of the rhinoceros”, so the function of the bird has long been known to Africans.
Reproduction
The nest, which is usually in tree hollows, is lined with parts of plants and animal hair. The clutch consists of one to six eggs that are incubated for up to 18 days. The nestling duration of the young is about 18 days.
status
Due to the increased use of synthetic insecticides in livestock, the availability of existing food sources is decreasing. This species also suffers from this. The IUCN lists the red-billed maggot chopper as Least Concern due to a lack of population numbers .
Systematics
The red-billed maggot chopper was first described by Edward Smith Stanley in 1814 as Tanagra erythrorhyncha , but is now part of the genus Buphagus together with the yellow-billed maggot chopper ( Buphagus africanus ) . In addition to the nominate form , six subspecies have been described so far, the validity of which is assessed differently. While BirdLife lists the subspecies, only the nominate form is listed in the IOC World Bird List :
- Buphagus erythrorhynchus angolensis da Rosa Pinto , 1968
- Buphagus erythrorhynchus archeri Cunningham-van Someren , 1984
- Buphagus erythrorhynchus bestiarum Brooke , 1970
- Buphagus erythrorhynchus caffer Grote , 1927
- Buphagus erythrorhynchus erythrorhyncha Stanley , 1814
- Buphagus erythrorhynchus invictus Clancey , 1962
- Buphagus erythrorhynchus scotinus Clancey & Lawson , 1961
The Madenhacker were long considered subfamily Buphaginae the family of Stare assigned (Sturnidae). Due to genetic comparisons, they are now classified as a separate family Buphagidae, since they represent a basic representative of the group that has survived in its ecological niche. The origins of the genus, which is close to the starlings and mockingbirds (Mimidae), are said to be in Southeast Asia .
literature
- Christopher M. Perrins (Ed.): The FSVO encyclopedia birds of the world. Translated from the English by Einhard Bezzel. BLV, Munich / Vienna / Zurich 2004, ISBN 978-3-405-16682-3 , pp. 530-531 (title of the English original edition: The New Encyclopedia Of Birds. Oxford University Press, Oxford 2003).
- Goetz Rheinwald (ed.), Cyril Walker: Atlas of the bird world. Unipart, Remseck near Stuttgart 1994, ISBN 978-3-8122-3399-6 , p. 147.
- Wilhelm owner (ed.), Erna Mohr: Encyclopedia of the animals. Volume 2, Weltbild, Augsburg 1991, ISBN 978-3-89350-361-2 , p. 384.
- Weeks, P. (1999): Interactions between red-billed oxpeckers, Buphagus erythrorhynchus, and domestic cattle, Bos taurus, in Zimbabwe. Anim Behav. 58 (6): 1253-1259. PMID 10600147
- Zuccon, D. et al. (2006): Nuclear and mitochondrial sequence data reveal the major lineages of starlings, mynas and related taxa. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution Volume 41, Issue 2: 333-344, doi : 10.1016 / j.ympev.2006.05.007 .
- Lovette, IJ, Arbogast, BS, Curry, RL, Zink, RM, Botero CA, Sullivan JP, Talaba, AL, Harris RB, Rubenstein, DR, Ricklefs RE & E. Bermingham (2011): Phylogenetic relationships of the mockingbirds and thrashers (Aves: Mimidae) . In: Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 63: 219-229.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Birds warn rhinos about poachers orf.at, April 9, 2020, accessed April 9, 2020.
- ↑ Lovette, IJ, Arbogast, BS, Curry, RL, Zink, RM, Botero CA, Sullivan JP, Talaba, AL, Harris RB, Rubenstein, DR, Ricklefs RE & E. Bermingham (2011): Phylogenetic relationships of the mockingbirds and thrashers (Aves: Mimidae) . In: Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 63: 219-229.
Web links
- Buphagus erythrorynchus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2012. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2012. Retrieved on April 1, 2013.
- Buphaginae on WordBirdNames. Retrieved on April 3, 2013 ( Memento of February 3, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
- Study: Birds can warn rhinos about poachers