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Birds of the World Four Birds of the World IV: Parrots through Woodpeckers Order Psittaciformes, Parrots and Allies Order Cuculiformes, Cuckoos and Allies Some authors recognize three families in this order, others recog- Nearly cosmopolitan land birds with zygodactyl feet (fourth toe nized only one. We will follow the latter approach. permanently reversed), large, often decurved bills, and long tails. Three families, two presented here. Family Psittacidae, Parrots (80/360) Family Cuculidae, Cuckoos, Anis, Roadrunner (21/97) Distribution.— Pantropical and south temperate. (the North temperate Carolina Parakeet was driven to extinction in the Distribution.— Cosmopolitan in temperate and tropical regions 1920’s). except Oceania. Characteristics.— Small to large birds (10–100 cm). Powerful Characteristics.— Small to medium-sized birds (15–80 cm). hooked beak, upper mandible articulated and movable. The Bill stout, decurved. Body slim, legs typically short, feet zygodactyl. bulging cere is feathered in some species. Large head and short Tail long, graduate. Plumage loose, usually dull colored. Sexes alike. neck. Feet zygodactyl. Well developed crop. Oil gland often absent. Habitat.— Wide range of habitats, forests or open brushland typ- Plumage sparse, hard, and glossy. Most are brightly colored, often ical. green. Powder downs are scattered throughout the plumage. Sexes Habits.— Northern species are migratory. Most are solitary alike. Calls usually noisy, harsh, and screeching; not imitative in except the anis. Most species are arboreal and insectivorous (many nature. Very long lived (up to 80 years in captivity). Considered to eat hairy caterpillars). Voice is loud and non-musical. be highly intelligent. Breeding.— About fifty species are brood parasites, some obli- Habitat.— Mostly found in forests, especially tropical lowland gate. Some of these produce eggs that mimic those of their hosts. rainforest. Parasitic species lay many eggs per breeding season. Non-parasitic Habits.— Nonmigratory. Usually gregarious. Typically arboreal, species are monogamous: incubation and care of young done by climbing using the bill, and using the feet to manipulate food. Diet both sexes. Eggs 2–6. Anis are communal breeders: groups consists generally consists of fruit, grains, nuts, and nectar, but many of 1–4 monogamous pairs and unmated helpers. All group mem- species are sometimes carnivorous. bers contribute to nest building, rearing young, and territory Breeding.— Monogamous, some species forming a long-term or defense. Females sometimes removed the eggs of other females lifetime pair bond. Many species with subtle courtship displays. from the communal nest. Young of all Cuculids are naked, nidi- Nest is usually an unlined hollows in a tree, a bluff, a bank, or ter- colous, and altricial. Young of parasitic species are capable of eject- mite mound. Eggs 1–12, pure white. Both sexes incubate and feed ing host eggs and young from the nest. young by regurgitation. Young are naked, nidicolous, and altricial. Illinois species: Notes.— The Kakapo or owl parrot of New Zealand is a large, [ ] Black-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus erythropthalmus) Fairly nocturnal, ground dwelling parrot that may be doomed to extinc- common migrant, uncommon summer resident (N) / tion since current population is extremely small. Its initial decline Breeds [M58] was caused by introduced predators. Many other Psittacines are endangered by the caged bird trade. [ ] Yellow-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus) Common migrant and winter resident / Breeds [M59] Birds of the World IV 23 Opisthocomidae Family Opisthocomidae, Hoatzin (1/1) size. Generally golden-brown dorsally and whitish ventrally and marked with gray and black. Eyes dark. Conspicuous white facial Distribution.— Northeastern South America. disk is somewhat reminiscent of a monkey’s face. Characteristics.— Somewhat pheasant-like. Long crest of stiff Habits.— Nocturnal and usually solitary. Lifelong pairbond. feathers; bare, bright blue skin on face; bill short and stout; neck Voice is eerie screech, but typically not very vocal except around long; large rounded wings and tail; legs short, feet large. Gizzard nest. Flies silently. Eggs 4–7, laid in large tree cavity, abandoned degenerate; crop large and muscular. Plumage loosely webbed, building, sinkholes, or sometimes on ground; no nest built. Female ruddy brown marked with white. Tail with buffy terminal band. incubates. Young nidicolous, but born with down. Both parents Have strong, musky odor. Sexes alike. feed. Eat small mammals, birds, insects, and herps. Habitat.— Trees and shrubs along forested stream banks. Notes.— Extremely acute hearing. In experiments where mice Habits.— Gregarious, sedentary. Flight quite weak; mainly glide. were placed in total darkness with a barn owl the mice were safe as Use wings to climb around in trees, often breaking off primaries in long as they remained motionless. At the first rustle, however, the the process. Eat leaves of the Water-arum and White Mangrove barn owl quickly captured its prey. almost exclusively; will eat some fruits and flowers of same species. Illinois species: Breeding.— Communal breeders; mating may be polygamous; all [ ] Barn Owl (Tyto alba) Rare resident / Breeds (endan- members of group incubate and care for young. Nest built of gered) [M60] sticks; placed in tree or bush overhanging water. Eggs 2–5, buff with brown spots. Incubation period unknown. Young are fed plant material from crops of adults; naked at hatching; first and Family Strigidae, Typical Owls (23/156) second digit of wing carry claw for grasping branches (these disap- pear with age); flight feather development is slow. Young able to clamber about in vegetation; escape predation by diving into water, swimming and hiding close to shore; will climb back to nest later. Order Strigiformes, Owls Eyes face forward in a pronounced facial disk. Soft, fluffy plumage aids silent flight. Comb-like filaments at leading edge of flight feathers (particularly first primary) present in nocturnal species. Bill strongly hooked; cere present. Large head on relatively short neck. Strong raptorial feet. Outer toe reversible. Sexually mono- chromatic, but female often larger than male. Sclerotic ring fused Distribution.— Worldwide except for some oceanic islands and to skull, so eyes are immobile. Right and left ear openings differ in Antarctica. size and shape; this characteristic, in addition to the sound funnel- Characteristics.— Facial disk rounded. Legs shorter in length ing effect of the facial disk, enhances hearing efficiency. Most are than tail. Middle toenail not pectinate. Third toe longer than sec- nocturnal. No crop. Undigested prey regurgitated as pellets. Two ond. Small to large birds with front facing eyes. Many species have families. ear tufts. Flank feathers elongated. Long, soft feathers are often brown, black, gray, and/or rufous. Tails usually short. Wings large Family Tytonidae, Barn Owls, Bay Owls, and Grass and rounded. Owls (2/17) Habitat.— Various: many in forest, but also savannahs, deserts, Distribution.— Cosmopolitan except for poles, New Zealand, tundra, etc. and Oceania. Barn owl has largest range of any nocturnal bird Habits.— Most nest in cavities, but a few use abandoned hawk species. nests, cliffs, or burrows. Eggs 1–7, both sexes incubate. Young nidi- Characteristics.— Facial disk heart-shaped. Legs longish, gen- colous, but born with down. Both parents feed. Eat small mam- erally greater in length than tail. Middle toenail pectinate. mals, birds, insects, Some species catch insects in flight. Seven Powderdown feathers present. Tarsi feathered (except for grass species in Africa and Asia catch fish and have unfeathered tarsi and owls), but toes bare. No ear tufts. Second and third toes of equal feet (like Osprey). 24 eee 335 Strigidae Notes.— Polychromatism is fairly common. Most are nonmigra- Eyes reflect light at night. Cryptically marked in brown, black, and tory, but several northern species irrupt southward during severe gray. Sexes subtly dimorphic. Most species have loud, unusual winters when northern prey populations are low. songs which are monotonously repeated from the ground Illinois species: (nighthawks call only while in flight). Habitat.— Forest edges, savannas, and deserts; some species [ ] Eastern Screech-Owl (Otus asio) Common resident / found in the forest interior. Breeds [M61] Habits.— Nocturnal or crepuscular. Catch insects in flight, many by flying up from the ground to capture prey overhead. Most [ ] Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus) Common resi- species perch on the ground, but when perched in trees they align dent / Breeds [M62] themselves lengthwise on horizontal branches. Breeding.— Monogamous. Two (rarely one) cryptic eggs laid on [ ] Snowy Owl (Nyctea scandiaca) Occasional winter resi- the ground. Nighthawks nest on flat-topped buildings. Incubation dent decreasing southward (16–20 days) shared by both sexes. Will do elaborate broken-wing distraction displays in the vicinity of the nest. Young nidicolous [ ] Barred Owl (Strix varia) Common resident / Breeds and hatch with down, fed by both adults by regurgitation. [M63] Notes.— Aestivation recorded in the Poor-will. Some species will move eggs or young to new location if disturbed. [ ] Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) Uncommon migrant and Illinois species: winter resident, rare summer resident / Breeds [M64] [ ] Common Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor) Common [ ] Short-eared Owl (Asio flammeus) Uncommon migrant migrant and summer resident / Breeds [M66] and winter resident,
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