Posts Tagged ‘bird’

Spotted at Monte Horizonte in the Alentejo region of Portugal.     Common Buzzard song    

The Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo) is a medium to large bird of prey, whose range covers most of Europe and extends into Asia. It is usually resident all year, except in the coldest parts of its range, and in the case of one subspecies.

Common Buzzard, Buizerd, Mäusebussard, Águia-d'asa-redonda, Ratonero común

The Common Buzzard measures between 40 and 58 cm (16 and 23 in) in length with a 109–136 cm (43–54 in) wingspan and a body mass of 427–1,364 g (0.94–3.01 lb), making it a medium-sized raptor.

This broad-winged raptor has a wide variety of plumages, and in Europe can be confused with the similar Rough-legged Buzzard (Buteo lagopus) and the only distantly related Honey Buzzard (Pernis apivorus), which mimics the Common Buzzard's plumage for a degree of protection from Northern Goshawks[citation needed]. The plumage can vary in Britain from almost pure white to black, but is usually shades of brown, with a pale 'necklace' of feathers.

The Common Buzzard breeds in woodlands, usually on the fringes, but favours hunting over open land. It eats mainly small mammals, and will come to carrion. A great opportunist, it adapts well to a varied diet of pheasant, rabbit, other small mammals to medium mammals, snakes and lizards, and can often be seen walking over recently ploughed fields looking for worms and insects. The birds have incredible strength and are therefore able to pick up food of all weights.

Buzzards do not normally form flocks, but several may be seen together on migration or in good habitat. The Victorian writer on Dartmoor, William Crossing, noted he had on occasions seen flocks of 15 or more at some places. Though a rare occurrence, as many as 20 buzzards can be spotted in one field area, approximately 30 metres apart, so cannot be classed as a flock in the general sense, consisting of birds without a mate or territory. They are fiercely territorial, and, though rare, fights do break out if one strays onto another pair's territory, but dominant displays of aggression will normally see off the interloper. Pairs mate for life. To attract a mate (or impress his existing mate) the male performs a ritual aerial display before the beginning of spring. This spectacular display is known as 'the roller coaster'. He will rise high up in the sky, to turn and plummet downward, in a spiral, twisting and turning as he comes down. He then rises immediately upward to repeat the exercise.

The call is a plaintive peea-ay, similar to a cat's meow.

Other synonyms:

Afrikaans: Bruinjakkalsvoel, Bruinjakkalsvoël
Asturian: Pardón, Zaperu
Azerbaijani: Adi sar
Bulgarian: obiknoven mišelov
Breton: Ar vaou boutin, baou, Zapelatz arrunt
Catalan: aligot, Aligot comú
Catalan (Balears): Aligot
Valencian: Aligot comú
Welsh: Bod teircail, Boda, Boda llwyd, Boncath, bwncath
Danish: Musvåge
German: Bussard, Maeusebussard, Mäusebussard, Mäusebussard-buto
Emiliano-romagnolo: Puiàn
English: Buzzard, Common buzzard, Eurasian buzzard, European Common Buzzard, Steppe Buzzard
Esperanto: buteo
Spanish: Aguila ratonera, buharro, Busardo Común, Busardo Ratonero, Ratonero común
Estonian: hiireviu
Basque: Aligot comú, zapelatz, Zapelatz arrunt, Zapelatz arrunta
Finnish: Hiirihaukka
Faroese: músvákur
French: buse, Buse des steppes, Buse variable, Épervier d'Europe
Friulian: cagne, poiane
Frisian: Mûzebiter, mûzefalk
Irish: bexato, clamhán, miñato
Gaelic: Clamhan
Galician: Aligot comú, Bexato, Miñato, Miñato común
Manx: shirragh
Croatian: mišar, Škanjac, Škanjac mišar
Hungarian: Egerészölyv, ölyv
Indonesian: Elang Buteo
Icelandic: Músvákur
Italian: Matàs, Poiana, Poiana comune, Poiana delle steppe, Poiana eurasiatica
Brescian: Matàs, Poiana
Japanese: Kuso-tobi, nosuri
Karelian: Hiirihaukku
Cornish: bargos
Kwangali: Siimbi
Latin: Buteo buteo, Buteo buteo buteo, Buteo vulpinus
Ladino: gabinel
Ladin: Gabinel
Lithuanian: Klykuolis, Paprastasis suopis, Piepis, suopis, Vakarinis suopis
Malay: Helang Gempal
Dutch: buizerd
Norwegian: musvåk, Ormhauk, Skjorvengje, Vasspip
Occitan: tartana
Polish: myszolów
Portuguese: águia de asa redonda, Águia-d'asa-redonda, Águia-de-asa-redonda, Bútio-comum, milhafre
Romansh: girun da mieurs
Romanian: sorecar
Romany: Worla, Worolo, worolo worla
Russian: kanjuk
Sardinian: Apayoni, atturistu, istore pudarzu, lepperadore, Pigana, pilloni farrancau, Spraperi, stori furapuddas, sutzulia, tappàiu, Tappayu,  tzampaghe, tzueddia, tzurrulliu, tzurulia, Zueddìa
Scots: àrmhaigh, Clamhan
Northern Sami: sáhpánboaimmáš, sáhpánfálli
Slovak: Myšiak hôrny, myšiak lesný, myšiak lesný (myšiak hôrny)
Slovenian: kanja, navadna kanja
Albanian: huta
Serbian: Jastreb mišar
Sotho, Southern: Khajoane
Swedish: Ormvråk
Swahili: Shakivale-nyika
Tswana: Phakwê
Venetian: Poia
Sorbian, Lower: pašturlica
Sorbian, Upper: paskulica, pašturlica

Birdwatching Alentejo Portugal

Spotted at the Santo André Lagoon in the Alentejo region of Portugal.     Marsh Harrier song    

The marsh harriers are birds of prey of the harrier subfamily. They are medium-sized raptors and the largest and broadest-winged harriers. Most of them are associated with marshland and dense reedbeds. They are found almost worldwide, excluding only the Americas.

Marsh Harrier, Bruine Kiekendief, Rohrweihe, Tartaranhão-ruivo-dos-pauis, Aguilucho Lagunero Occidental

Until recently two species were generally recognized: the Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus) and the African Marsh Harrier (C. ranivorus). The Marsh Harrier is now usually split into several species, sometimes as many as six. These are the Western Marsh Harrier (C. aeruginosus), Eastern Marsh Harrier (C. spilonotus), Papuan Harrier (C. spilonotus spilothorax or C. spilothorax), Swamp Harrier (C. approximans), Réunion Harrier (C. maillardi maillardi or C. maillardi) and Madagascar Marsh Harrier (C. maillardi macrosceles or C. macrosceles).

The Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus), often simply called the Marsh Harrier, breeds widely across Europe and Asia. It is migratory except in the mildest regions, and winters mainly in Africa. It hunts small mammals, insects and birds, surprising them as it drifts low over fields and reedbeds.

The Western Marsh Harrier is a typical harrier, with long wings held in a shallow V in its low flight. It also resembles other harriers in having distinct male and female plumages, but its plumages are quite different from those of its relatives. The male has wings with grey and brown sections and black wingtips. Its head, tail and underparts are greyish, except for the chestnut belly. The female is mainly brown with a cream crown and cream leading edge to her wings.

The Eastern Marsh Harrier (C. spilonotus) breeds in the grasslands and wetlands of southern Siberia, northern Mongolia, north-east China, Manchuria and Japan, and migrates for the northern winter to South-east Asia, the Philippines and northern Borneo.

Like all marsh harriers, it favours open, wet environments, and is frequently seen drifting low over ricefields, interspersing long, watchful circling glides with two or three slow, powerful wingbeats. Two subspecies are recognised: C. s. spilonotus of east Asia, and C. s. spilothorax, of New Guinea and the islands nearby, which is sometimes thought to be a separate species and is often called the Papuan Harrier.

The Swamp Harrier (C. approximans) at about 50 to 58 cm is slightly larger than C. spilonotus, often a little darker, and has less heavily barred wings and tail. It is commonly found in suitable habitat anywhere in Australasia, particularly in the higher rainfall areas to the east, south-east, and south-west, of Australia and throughout New Zealand, but also in the tropical north of Australia and the island groups of New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji, Tonga and the Society Islands. It is also known as the Australasian Harrier or Pacific Marsh Harrier.

The Madagascar Marsh Harrier or Madagascar Harrier (C. maillardi) is found on the Indian Ocean islands of Madagascar, Réunion and the Comoros. It is sometimes split into two species: Madagascar Harrier (Circus macrosceles) and Réunion Harrier (C. maillardi).

The African Marsh Harrier (C. ranivorus) is a distinct non-migratory species that has not usually been included as a subspecies of C. aeruginosus. It inhabits southern and eastern Africa.

Other synonyms:

Afrikaans: Europese Paddavreter, Europese Vleivalk
Asturian: Aguiluchu Prietu, Aiglina Llagunera
Breton: Ar skoul-korz
Catalan: Arpella, Arpella vulgar, Arpellot de marjal
Catalan (Balears): Arpella
Valencian: Arpellot de marjal
Czech: Moták pochop, pochop rákosný
Welsh: Bod y gwerni, Bod y wern, Boda'r gwerni, Boda'r y gors, Hebog y gors
Danish: Rørhøg
German: Europäische Rohrweihe, Rohrweihe
English: Eurasian Marsh Harrier, Eurasian Marsh-Harrier, European Marsh Harrier, European Marsh-Harrier, Marsh Harrier, Northern Marsh Harrier, Swamp Harrier, Western Marsh Harrier, Western Marsh-Harrier
Spanish: Aguillucho Lagunero, Aguilucho lagunero, Águilucho lagunero, Aguilucho Lagunero Occidental, Águilucho Lagunero Occidental
Estonian: Roo-loorkull
Basque: Arpella vulgar, Zingira mirotz, Zingira-mirotza
Finnish: Ruskosuohaukka
Faroese: Blotaheykur, Blotheykur
French: Busard des roseaux, Busard harpaye, Circaète Jean-le-Blanc
Irish: Cromán mona, Cromán Móna, Préachán na gcrearc
Gaelic: Clamhan Loin
Galician: Arpella vulgar, Tartaraña das xunqueiras
Manx: Shirragh ny bogleeyn
Hungarian: Barna rétihéja
Indonesian: Elang rawa, Elangrawa Katak
Icelandic: Brúnheiðir
Italian: Falco di palude
Japanese: chuuhi, yoaroppachuuhi, Yooroppa chuuhi, Youroppa-Chuuhi
Cornish: Helghyer gwern
Latin: Circus aeruginosus
Lithuanian: Nendrine linge
Latvian: Niedru lija
Maori: kahu
Dutch: Bruine Kiekendief
Norwegian: Brun kjerrhøk, Sivhauk
Polish: blotniak stawowy
Portuguese: tartaranhão dos pauis, Tartaranhão-dos-pauis, Tartaranhão-dos-pauis-africano, Tartaranhão-ruivo-dos-pauis, Tartaranhão-ruivo-dos-paúis
Romansh: Melv da channa
Scots: Clamhan loin
Slovenian: rjavi lunj
Albanian: Shqipja e kënetës
Serbian: eja mocvarica
Swedish: Brun kärrhök
Swahili: Kipondya wa Ulaya

Travel Birdwatching Holiday Alentejo, Vacation Portugal for birders to see birds on your trip.

800