Stone capercaillie
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Stone capercaillie ( Tetrao parvirostris ) |
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| Tetrao parvirostris | ||||||||||||
| Bonaparte , 1856 |
The stone capercaillie ( Tetrao parvirostris ), also known as the rock capercaillie , is a species of the capercaillie genus . This species of bird from the family of pheasant-like (Phasianidae) belongs to the order of chicken birds (Galliformes). The stone wall grouse occurs exclusively in eastern Siberia. Three subspecies are distinguished for the species. Although the distribution area overlaps with that of the closely related capercaillie , hybrids are very rare.
Appearance
Males reach a body length of 89 to 97 centimeters. Females are slightly smaller and reach a body length between 69 and 75 centimeters. Males weigh between 3.3 and 4.6 kilograms, while females weigh between 1.7 and 2.2 kilograms. Compared to the capercaillie, the stone capercaillie is somewhat smaller with a noticeably smaller beak. The tail is a little longer. The beak is black in the male and blackish in the female. The legs are feathered black-brown, the toes are bare. The eyes are dark brown.
The adult male has a black head, neck, and sides of the chest. The underside of the body is predominantly black-brown and has isolated white spots and feather edges. The under tail feathers are blackish with white feather tips. The wings are matt dark brown.
The females have predominantly brown plumage. The top of the head, the nape of the neck and the sides of the neck and the coat are cinnamon-colored with black, fine stripes. The back half of the body is light brownish with fine dark stripes. The call is crackling loudly.
In its area of distribution, the stone capercaillie can hardly be confused with other grouse. In the regions where both species of capercaillie occur sympatricly, such as on the river Wiljui or on the upper reaches of the Lower Tunguska, the males of the capercaillie can be distinguished from the capercaillie by their black coloration with the contrasting white spots on the wings and tail-coverts, the long tail and distinguish the smaller beak. The females, on the other hand, can only be reliably distinguished from close up. The main distinguishing feature is the lack of the white wing mirror.
Distribution area and habitat
The distribution area of the stone capercaillie is eastern Siberia. The habitat is predominantly larch forests of the East Asian taiga. The species also occurs in open birch forests and the forest steppe. In the far east of its range, the Kamchatka Peninsula, the stone capercaillie lives in birch groves.
food
The stone capercaillie is usually closely tied to the occurrence of larch trees . The branch ends with the buds and occasionally also the cones of these trees form the main food, especially in winter. Larch trees have a thick layer of bark and cambium . With the help of gastroliths , these layers are rubbed off the buds in the stomach, leaving only the pulp of the stem. In mixed forests, in which there are also pines, Swiss stone pines and firs, the capercaillie also eats their needles and the end shoots and buds of birch and willow trees. When the snow depth is low, it also eats the leaves and berries of cranberries and bearberry as well as the fruits of juniper and dog rose .
In summer the stone capercaillie feeds mainly on seeds, flowers and the green shoots of grasses and perennials. At the same time, they eat a lot of insects. In late summer and autumn, berries are the main part of the diet.
The gastroliths, which are important for nutrition, are already consumed by the dune boys.
Reproduction
The way of life of the stone capercaillie is largely similar to that of the capercaillie. Similar to this, the stone capercaillie lives mostly solitary. However, the females form loose groups towards the end of the breeding season. The males are polygamous and form small harems. During the breeding season, the males court each other in small arenas. However, they form looser and smaller groups than capercaillie. The courtship areas are located on areas with berry bushes, in sparse larch forests, on river terraces or at the foot of mountain slopes. With a high population density, up to 200 roosters can gather at individual courtship areas. Typically, however, there are courtship areas where between three and ten roosters gather.
The nests are usually created not far from the courtship grounds. The nest is a shallow hollow in the bottom lined with tree needles and feathers. It is usually in the immediate vicinity of a tree trunk, under a fallen tree or between broken wood. The eggs are laid between May and June. The clutch consists of six to seven eggs. The breeding season is 26 to 28 days. Chicks develop very quickly. The young birds can already flutter when they are six to seven days old. They can already fly when they are 15 to 25 days old. They are fully fledged at 50 to 70 days.
The females reach sexual maturity at the age of two and the males at the age of three.
literature
- Steve Madge , Phil McGowan, and Guy M. Kirwan : Pheasants, Partridges and Grouse. A Guide to the Pheasants, Partridges, Quails, Grouse, Guineafowl, Buttonquails and Sandgrouse of the world. Christopher Helm, London 2002, ISBN 0-7136-3966-0 .
- RL Potapov, VE Fling (ed.): Handbook of the birds of the Soviet Union. Volume 4: Galliformes, Gruiformes. Aula Verlag, Wiesbaden 1989, ISBN 3-89104-417-8
- Richard Sale: A Complete Guide to Arctic Wildlife , published by Christopher Helm, London 2006, ISBN 0-7136-7039-8
supporting documents
- ↑ Madge, p. 374
- ↑ http://www.soundeffects.ch/surround-sound-effects-_e.php?soundeffects=black+billed+capercaillie&soundcategory=&type=
- ↑ RL Potapov, VE Fling (ed.): Handbook of the birds of the Soviet Union. Volume 4: Galliformes, Gruiformes. Aula Verlag, Wiesbaden 1989, ISBN 3-89104-417-8 , p. 143
- ↑ RL Potapov, VE Fling (ed.): Handbook of the birds of the Soviet Union. Volume 4: Galliformes, Gruiformes. Aula Verlag, Wiesbaden 1989, ISBN 3-89104-417-8 , p. 149
- ↑ RL Potapov, VE Fling (ed.): Handbook of the birds of the Soviet Union. Volume 4: Galliformes, Gruiformes. Aula Verlag, Wiesbaden 1989, ISBN 3-89104-417-8 , p. 150
- ↑ Sale, p. 164
- ↑ RL Potapov, VE Fling (ed.): Handbook of the birds of the Soviet Union. Volume 4: Galliformes, Gruiformes. Aula Verlag, Wiesbaden 1989, ISBN 3-89104-417-8 , p. 146
- ↑ RL Potapov, VE Fling (ed.): Handbook of the birds of the Soviet Union. Volume 4: Galliformes, Gruiformes. Aula Verlag, Wiesbaden 1989, ISBN 3-89104-417-8 , p. 146
- ↑ RL Potapov, VE Fling (ed.): Handbook of the birds of the Soviet Union. Volume 4: Galliformes, Gruiformes. Aula Verlag, Wiesbaden 1989, ISBN 3-89104-417-8 , p. 148
- ↑ Sale, p. 164
Web links
- Tetrao urogalloides in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2013.1. Listed by: BirdLife International, 2012. Retrieved September 21, 2013.