Wavy beard bird

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Wavy beard bird
Wavy beard bird

Wavy beard bird

Systematics
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Woodpecker birds (Piciformes)
Family : African bearded birds (Lybiidae)
Genre : Toothbeard birds ( Lybius )
Type : Wavy beard bird
Scientific name
Lybius undatus
( Rüppell , 1837)

The wave barbet ( Lybius undatus ) is a kind from the family of African barbets . It occurs in Africa north of the equator. Several subspecies are distinguished. The IUCN classifies the whiskered bird as not endangered ( least concern ).

Appearance

The males of the nominate form reach a wing length of 7.4 to 8.2 cm. The tail length is 4.2 to 4.9 cm. The beak reaches a length between 1.7 and 2.1 cm. Females have similar body measurements. There is no noticeable sexual dimorphism .

Males and females have a red spot on their foreheads. The rest of the head is black up to the front back. A narrow white streak runs behind the eye. However, this stripe is not clearly visible in all individuals of the nominate form and in several subspecies. The back is black-brown from the middle to the upper tail-coverts and has a fine white transverse wave. At the rump , the feathers have yellowish tips, so that the plumage here looks black-brown and yellow crosswise. The control feathers are black-brown on the upper side with yellow to white feather edges, on the underside the feathers appear a little gray.

The underside of the body is wavy brown-white crosswise from the lower breast to the lower tail-coverts. On the belly, this horizontal drawing is occasionally interrupted and the white is washed out with yellow. The beak is matt black and lightens to a gray or a horn-colored tone towards the tip. The featherless skin around the eyes is brown, the eyes are yellow to creamy white. The legs are blue-violet or blue-gray, the toes black. Young birds have duller plumage, which looks grayer overall on the upper side of the body.

It can be confused with the bearded beard , which belongs to the hair bearded species . The distribution areas of Wellenbartvogel and this species partially overlap. The tiara bearded beard also has red feathered head sections and resembles the beard bird in body size. However, it is paler on the underside of the body and has spots instead of a horizontal mark.

Distribution area

The distribution area of ​​the wavy beard bird stretches from the middle of Ethiopia and Eritrea to the border with Kenya . It occurs between 400 and 2,000 meters above sea level. Its habitat is forests, scrubland and bushes that border on rivers.

Way of life

The wavy bearded bird is one of the so far little researched bearded birds. It is observed only individually or in pairs. When foraging for food, it sometimes hangs upside down on branches like a tit. The food spectrum consists of various fruits and berries. It also eats insects that it occasionally catches in flight. The purple mask bearded bird is a potential competitor for nesting sites and for food. However, this populates somewhat more humid forest areas. Nothing is known about reproductive biology.

supporting documents

literature

  • Lester L. Short, Jennifer FM Horne: Toucans, Barbets and Honeyguides - Ramphastidae, Capitonidae and Indicatoridae . Oxford University Press, Oxford 2001, ISBN 0-19-854666-1

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Short et al., P. 189
  2. ↑ Short et al., P. 190
  3. ↑ Short et al., P. 190

Web links