dodging bullets ( foaled 16 april 2008 ) is a british thoroughbred racehorse , best known for his performances in national hunt races .

bred by the leading jockey frankie dettori he had a flat racing career of limited importance , winning two minor races from nine starts as a three-year-old in 2011 .

he showed better form when switched to hurdles , winning the sharp novices ' hurdle in 2012 .

he proved even better when he began to compete in steeplechases , winning the november novices ' chase and the wayward lad novices ' chase in 2013 .

in the 2014/2015 national hunt season he emerged as one of the best chasers in britain , recording three consecutive grade 1 wins in the tingle creek chase , clarence house chase and queen mother champion chase .

dodging bullets

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dodging bullets is set to make a belated seasonal reappearance in the betfair exchange chase at newbury on saturday .
all the latest horse racing form , betting odds , news , breeding , jockey and trainer information for dodging bullets . dodging bullets is a gelding born in 2011 august 24 by dash for cash out of young love
young urban black gangster dodging bullets from a drive by shooting . the concrete background is full of bullet holes .
the current race record for dodging bullets is 7 wins from 30 starts with prizemoney of $ 521 , 600 . 00 .
dodging bullets ( 5 / 1 ) ended a frustrating run of placed efforts when coming good under ben curtis in the urltoken handicap .
if dodging bullets was establishing one new world order , his win also marked the changing tide in the balance of power at this meeting .
paul nicholls admits dodging bullets needs to raise his game significantly if he is to successfully defend his crown in the betway queen mother champion chase .
one of rob ' s favorite categories ,
dodging bullets
is relived and sterling brings back
your friend ' s a dick
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dodging bullets , bred by flat jockey frankie dettori , won the queen mother champion chase at cheltenham for rider sam twiston - davies and trainer paul nicholls .
dodging bullets has been collaborating with reacch pna at the university of washington to edit together presentations on climate change and the future of farming . learn more at urltoken
with a new year comes a new start for dodging bullets , as the company has moved to the greater seattle area in washington ! dodging bullets will continue to serve clients in virginia , but is excited to explore new opportunities in a new area in 2015 . to find out what dodging bullets is all about , check out the new video demo reel by clicking the link below ! there are major announcements coming soon , so stay tuned ! thank you all for your continued support !
dodging bullets’ breeder frankie dettori has his hat knocked off by jockey sam twiston - davies after their win in the champion chase . photograph : tom jenkins for the guardian
i haven ' t shouted like that since watching my beloved arsenal .
- frankie dettori , breeder of the nicholls - trained queen mother champion chase winner dodging bullets .
middle - aged marvel : at 53 , tom cruise is still hurtling about on motorbikes and dodging bullets . brian viner , who ' s the same age , doffs his cap
however , showing a resolution he lacked last year , dodging bullets galloped up the hill to beat somersby by a length and a quarter with special tiara the same distance away third .
dodging bullets confirmed himself as the top two - mile chaser in training this season by taking the betway queen mother champion chase , the highlight on day two of the cheltenham festival .
the feature race on the card this evening at sligo , the rosses point handicap went to the 11 / 4 second favourite dodging bullets for trainer andy oliver with ben curtis aboard .
grade schoolers in del city found themselves dodging bullets after a “drive - by” shooting near se 27th street sunday . police say two men who were walking were hit in the arm , leg and the hip by the barrage of bullets . police say the two men also . . .
at their first cheltenham festival since teaming up , the wins of aux ptits soins and , more particularly , dodging bullets were hugely significant to the nicholls / twiston - davies association - it cemented it .
dodging bullets at cheltenham was left to account by just over a length for the admirable veteran somersby , who 12 months previously had bravely succumbed to an on - song sire de grugy by almost six times that margin .
in leopardstown’s three - year - old maiden over a mile , jim bolger’s unraced colt tobar na gaoise and kevin manning overhauled long - time leaders dodging bullets and eagle canyon 100 yards out to score by half a length .
cleveland - the fox 8 i team has obtained exclusive video showing how cleveland police officers and firefighters became heroes without dodging bullets or flames . police body camera video shows how they saved a 4 - pound chihuahua after an . . .
it was dodging bullets and twiston - davies who found the finishing kick to win by a length and a quarter , with somersby nearly two lengths ahead of special tiara and sire de grugy , last year’s winner , another seven lengths away in fourth place . for paul nicholls , the trainer of dodging bullets , it was a fifth victory in the race , but somersby , an 11 - year - old running at his seventh festival , emerged with almost as much credit .
the shawnee high school softball team put seven runners on base in the first two innings of its hammonton invitational quarterfinal against kingsway saturday . none of them scored . after dodging a couple bullets the first two innings , kingsway plated . . .
as dodging bullets walked a lap of honour around the parade ring no one clapped louder than nicholls , but it is perhaps the trainer who should be applauded having , in a season , turned the horse from a weak finisher into a champion .
are you interested in becoming a vendor or just learning more about the western virginia sport show ? hear from past celebrities and vendors about their experiences with this time - tested annual virginia event in this latest video produced by dodging bullets , llc .
dodging bullets is tough business . but that ' s just what happened in one brazilian rural community during the truckers ' strike that left millions without gasoline , medicine and many foodstuffs . the brazilian government folded like a lawn chair , and the . . .
some birds come to the world for fulfilling their duties rather than just dodging bullets . —luo yonghao , founder of smartisan . from bullog—luo yonghao ' s blog started in 2006—to luo and his friends education and technology co . , ltd ( 老罗和他的朋友们 . . .
raya star was rated just 3lb higher than dodging bullets over hurdles but the paul nicholls camp are quietly confident that their gelding could prove to be even better over fences . if he does win , dodging bullets will give owner martin broughton plenty to think about as his taquin de seuil was the impressive winner of the steel plate and sections novices’ chase here yesterday . the rest of the field is made up by my brother sylvestre and ted veale , who won the vincent o’brien county hurdle at the festival earlier this year .
by policeone staff . cleveland , ohio — recently released video shows a group of cleveland officers dodging bullets after a gunman opened fire in a drive - by shooting . police responded to reports of shots fired into a house on april 14 , wews - tv reports .
both dodging bullets and raya star have already opened their respective accounts over fences , with the former winning in good style at kempton at the end of october while raya star got the better of tanerko emery in a good race at uttoxeter at the beginning of this month .
it appears that claiborne commissioner bill keck spent a bit of time late last year , dodging bullets in his own home . keck allegedly entered his residence during the early morning hours of nov . 27 , unaware that a couple of uninvited guests were in the . . .
as the sun begins to go down on the third day of thin line , festival goers file into the green seats of the campus theatre to view the world premiere of “dodging bullets . ” moments before the lights dim , co - director bob trench and special guest meskwaki . . .
the man demanded kluting hand over his louis vuitton bag , but kluting refused to give it up , even dodging three bullets to protect the designer bag . “it happened very fast . in one motion he took the gun out of his waist belt and with the other hand put . . .
paul nicholls believes dodging bullets
deserves to be favourite
for the queen mother champion chase at cheltenham . the seven - year - old beat somersby in the tingle creek chase at sandown in december before lowering the colours of the mighty sprinter sacre in the clarence house chase at ascot last month .
“i know the other two were past champions , ” nicholls said of sprinter sacre and sire de grugy , “but i couldn’t see why they were ahead of us in the betting , it must have been on sentiment . dodging bullets was the progressive young horse and it’s them that usually come out on top .
dodging bullets , bred to win a derby by frankie dettori but now winning on jumping’s biggest stage , was going best . but for a few strides after the last the 11 - year - old somersby , a nearly horse , ranged alongside as if he was finally going to have his day in the sun .
dodging bullets was given the opportunity to film presentations at the fourth annual meeting of regional approaches to climate change for pacific northwest agriculture in moscow , idaho . you can watch the 7 full presentations from the extension mini - grant program at urltoken , or view the beautiful art and music interpretations of reacch themes at urltoken .
the future , though , belongs to dodging bullets and his rider , who is a strong candidate to be the first champion jockey of the post - tony mccoy era next season . twiston - davies’s rapid rise to the top of his profession owes much to the decision of paul nicholls , national hunt’s champion trainer in eight of the last nine seasons , to appoint him as stable jockey at the start of this campaign . dodging bullets had already recorded a grade one win for trainer and rider at sandown back in december , and victory in one of the festival’s feature events underlined the success of a partnership that should only grow stronger with time .
stocks survived day one of the trade war on friday . it ' s anyone ' s guess if they can keep dodging bullets . dow jones industrial average futures rose 119 points on monday as of 3 : 26 a . m . , s & p 500 futures gained 9 points , and nasdaq composite futures . . .
dodging bullets had beaten sprinter sacre in a grade one event at ascot in january , when the former champion was running for the first time since suffering an irregular heartbeat in a race at kempton on 27 december 2013 . the betting suggested that the former champion would find enough improvement to reverse the form , but nicholls was not surprised by the outcome .
he won the easter cup at caulfield on shoreham ( $ 61 ) and the bendigo mile on dodging bullets ( $ 51 ) . daniel moor and king river combine to win the third leg of saturday ' s huge $ 61 , 604 . 70 quaddie . moor said he didn ' t believe it was coincidental he ' d had . . .
if tuesday belonged to willie mullins , a treble courtesy of dodging bullets , aux ptits soins in the coral and qualando in the fred winter meant wednesday very much belonged to nicholls and with the first two favourites in thursday ' s ladbrokes world hurdle and the favourite in friday’s gold cup , mullins may yet have competition in the race to be the week’s leading trainer .
dodging bullets is humbled to announce that it ' s video ,
just a tree ,
was selected as a finalist in a contest hosted by urltoken ! unilever ' s
a special tree
project asked participants to support their sustainable living plan by creating a video that
captures the relationship between humans and trees .
out of 119 entries , dodging bullets ' video placed 4th !
just a tree
features the story of how maple trees encompass an important part of the community in one small rural county . thank you so much to highland county maple syrup producers , including nearly all of the footage here from highland hills farm , as well as puffenbarger ' s sugar orchard and back creek farms . check out the 60 second video below !
dodging bullets , llc is now seed and fruit media , inc . more on that later , but for now , here is one of the newest commercials , this one promoting the blue grass valley bank . thanks so much for the support , and be on the lookout for this commercial as it airs before movies at warner ' s drive - in in franklin , wv this summer ! urltoken
it had seemed a straight forward case of either - or ; either sprinter sacre or sire de grugy , but the two former betway queen mother chase champions were consigned to yesteryear’s heros and mere red herrings as the season ' s form two - miler , dodging bullets , galloped home to give jockey sam twiston - davies his most important winner since joining paul nicholls at the start of the season .
whilst dodging bullets was the nicholls representative in last year’s triumph hurdle at the cheltenham festival , this year he could well saddle far west who was a very impressive seven lengths winner of the grade two triumph hurdle trial at this meeting on saturday . the win gave the three year old his second win of the season and a quotes as short as 8 / 1 favourite for the 2013 triumph hurdle .
as the field in the sodexo clarence house stakes turned for home at ascot on saturday , there was a spontaneous surge of excitement within the crowd as the expectation of a winning return by the much - missed sprinter sacre seemed about to be completed . in the event barry geraghty’s skilful handling of nicky henderson’s star was foiled by the equally subtle noel fehily on the hitherto under - heralded dodging bullets .
sprinter sacre missed a planned run in the tingle creek trophy but performed well in a racecourse gallop at newbury in late december . after an absence of over a year , the gelding returned in the clarence house chase at ascot on 17 january . after racing in fourth place for most of the way , he moved up to take the lead in the straight but was overtaken approaching the final fence and finished second to dodging bullets . at the cheltenham festival 11 march 2015 , sprinter sacre started favourite for the queen mother champion chase but faded by the last two jumps and pulled up in a race won by dodging bullets . the gelding was treated for a back problem following the race and returned to contest the celebration chase at sandown on 25 april , finishing second of the seven runners behind special tiara .
was another nice winner on day one of the meeting , landing the grade two , sharp novices hurdle , which made it two from two over course and distance this season for the juvenile but due to the reluctance of any of the jockeys to take up the running , it wasn ' t a truly run race . nonetheless , dodging bullets seems to be a much better horse than the current 14 / 1 on offer about him winning the
as i mentioned , henderson has had 12 chase wins . i can quickly point out that nicholls has had at least 13 individual winners of a major prize , either a big handicap , or graded event . the group are in prize order silvianico conti , saturday’s much - improved winner dodging bullets , caid du berlais , sam winner , vibrato valtat , ptit zig , virak , hawkes point , unioniste , mr mole , southfield theatre , irish saint and al ferof .
the last two winners of the race were expected to fight out the finish in the queen mother champion chase but their ageing bodies proved to be no match for youth , both in the saddle and underneath . dodging bullets , who was bred to win a derby by the flat jockey frankie dettori , gave sam twiston - davies the biggest win of a career that is still mostly in front of him . for sprinter sacre , however , the glory days are surely gone beyond recall .
the 2015 highland county maple festival is just around the corner ! are you ready for some maple magic ? the second promotional video dodging bullets produced for highland county is now available to view online ! check out
maple magic
directly at urltoken or at www . highlandcounty . org . a huge thank you goes out to all of the maple producers and sugar camps in the county who allowed me complete access to their facilities , as well as the tourism council and chamber of commerce !
on 11 march , sire de grugy attempted to repeat his 2014 success in the queen mother champion stakes in which he was opposed by two previous winners of the race in sprinter sacre and sizing europe . after being restrained in the early stages he began to make progress four fences from the finish but was never able to reach the leaders and finished fourth behind dodging bullets , somersby and special tiara . he was moved up in distance for the melling chase at aintree but fell at the sixth fence .
sprinter sacre produced one of the finest individual performances that the festival has ever seen when victorious in the champion chase two seasons ago . he was sent off as favourite on a wave of sentimental money by fans who were desperate to see one more tour de force , but they did not even see him cross the line . instead , barry geraghty pulled him up before the last , as dodging bullets and the outsiders somersby and special tiara set off up the run - in with the race between them .
most people believe that the matrix movies are fictional , but that ' s not entirely true . some people are born with the same ability as neo to slow down time and dodge bullets . don ' t believe me ? these pictures are the proof !
explorers tend to be a lucky bunch , but nathan drake of naughty dog ' s uncharted series is seemingly the offspring of two leprechauns who bedded down on a hill of rabbits ' feet . yesterday , naughty dog animator jonathan cooper revealed bullets straight . . .
on 23 april , sprinter sacre ended his season in the celebration chase at sandown park on 23 april . he started the 11 / 10 favourite ahead of un de sceaux with the best fancied of the other four runners being sire de grugy and dodging bullets . nico de boinville settled sprinter sacre behind the leaders , un de sceaux and sire de grugy , before making rapid progress to take the lead at the third last . he drew away from his rivals over the last two fences and won by fifteen lengths from un de sceaux .
the red bulls dodged a few bullets in the opening half as keeper luis robles was forced to make two diving saves to his right to deny sebastian lletget and giovanni dos santos in the second and fifth minutes , respectively . five minutes later , romain . . .
cuetzalan , mexico — one evening in early march , in the northern mountains of puebla state , gunmen ambushed a van belonging to the indigenous union de cooperativas tosepan . bullets struck one of the van ' s tires , the driver ' s side window and the . . .
, whilst the other eight runners included dodging bullets , sire de grugy , felix yonger ( punchestown champion chase ) , special tiara , and somersby . special tiara and un de sceaux set a very fast pace with nico de boinville settling sprinter sacre behind the leaders . despite a mistake three fences from home , sprinter sacre made rapid progress to take the lead approaching the second last and quickly went several lengths clear . he stayed on up the run - in to win the race by three and a half lengths and a nose from un de sceaux and special tiara .
with saphir du rheu , rebel rebellion , silviniaco conti , dodging bullets , vibrato valtat , and sound investment showing great promise for the future , paul nicholls can perhaps relax a bit , at least until november of this year , when the ‘jumps season proper’ kicks off once again . he’s patient but eager to see what his new crew can do , and he’s already thinking ahead and looking at the programme book to place each candidate in the right race for the upcoming season . when paul nicholls says , “it’s all about looking to the future , ” he means it .
last year’s champion chaser dodging bullets has endured a brief and disappointing season . the paul nicholls trained 8 year old never stopped improving last season and after running two lengths third to uxizandre in the shloer chase in november 2014 , he swept all before him . he defeated somersby by 2 ½ lengths in the grade 1 tingle creek chase in december 2014 and followed up with a 3 lengths defeat of sprinter sacre in the grade 1 clarence house chase at ascot in january of last year . even then there were plenty of people willing to oppose dodging bullets , but he confounded them all with a terrific performance to beat somersby by 1 ¼ lengths in the grade 1 queen mother champion chase at cheltenham last march . a splint disrupted his season and he did not return to action until running in the grade 2 game spirit chase at newbury in mid - february , finishing 10 lengths second of 4 to top gamble in tiring ground . he then made a bid to defend his cheltenham crown but was beaten a long way out , eventually coming home 27 lengths 7 th of 10 to sprinter sacre . he has had time to recover since then and encounters better ground here and may well prove fresher than several of these rivals .
a bullet is a projectile propelled by a firearm , sling , slingshot , or air gun . bullets do not normally contain explosives , but damage the intended target by impact and penetration . the word
bullet
is sometimes colloquially used to refer to ammunition in general , or to a cartridge , which is a combination of the bullet , case / shell , powder , and primer . this use of ' bullet ' , when ' cartridge ' is intended , leads to confusion when the components of a cartridge are discussed or intended .
on 16 march 2016 , sprinter sacre contested his third queen mother champion chase at the cheltenham festival . he started the 5 / 1 second favourite behind the irish - trained un de sceaux , whilst the other eight runners included dodging bullets , sire de grugy , felix yonger ( punchestown champion chase ) , special tiara , and somersby . special tiara and un de sceaux set a very fast pace with nico de boinville settling sprinter sacre behind the leaders . despite a mistake three fences from home , sprinter sacre made rapid progress to take the lead approaching the second last and quickly went several lengths clear . he stayed on up the run - in to win the race by three and a half lengths and a nose from un de sceaux and special tiara . [ 30 ] commenting on the ten - year - old ' s return to form , henderson said ,
he’s just been so feisty and aggressive all season . . . i’ve been looking at him every night for the last three weeks and i just knew that it was still there , and his whole body said that it was . it’s just talent , isn’t it ?
[ 31 ]
“he would have liked the ground a bit slower and i thought sam gave him a fantastic ride . sam is so much more confident this season , it all just takes a bit of bedding in but he’s been awesome this year . he rides really well and we’re all very fond of him .
“the horse won’t run again this season and i expect we’ll be dreaming all summer . the whole aim will be to come here again in a year’s time . ”
dettori , who sent his mare nova cyngi to be covered by the top flat sire dubawi in the hope of producing a classic winner , echoed the approval of twiston - davies’s performance in the saddle .
“sam gave him a fantastic ride , he jumped like a stag and was gutsy all the way to the line , ” dettori said . “he was bred to win the derby but this is second best . it’s the equivalent of the 100m final at the olympics and what a horse . he didn’t make very much [ when sold ] as a yearling because his legs were pointing in the wrong direction , although they have got better with time .
“i watched it with the owners and my legs were shaking a little bit walking down the steps because i was so excited . it’s completely different to have those feelings when i don’t have anything to do with it . sam was tactically very astute . riding is all about confidence and for a young man , you’ve got to say that sam is top class . ”
this was the biggest success of twiston - davies’s career to date and will remain so until next season , at least unless he wins friday’s gold cup or the grand national at aintree next month .
“i’ve always said my dad [ nigel ] is the best trainer i’ve ridden for , but paul nicholls is some man , ” twiston - davies said . “it is a massive win and hopefully means i keep hold of the job for years to come .
“big winners make up for the days when things don’t go so well , we didn’t have a great day yesterday but paul said : ‘i’ll leave it [ how to ride the race ] to you , so get on with it . ’ it eases the pressure and hopefully i’ll ride better and better as the week goes on . ”
after willie mullins’s grade one four - timer on tuesday , nicholls moved into second place among the trainers this week with a treble on the day , as aux ptits soins took the coral cup handicap hurdle with twiston - davies in the saddle , and then qualando beat stablemate bouvreuil in the fred winter handicap hurdle . nicholls will saddle silviniaco conti , the favourite , in the gold cup , a race that mullins , who trains three of the 18 declared runners , has yet to win .
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the 9 - 2 chance won by one and a quarter lengths from somersby ( 33 - 1 ) with special tiara ( 18 - 1 ) third .
last year ' s winner sire de grugy finished fourth while the 2013 victor sprinter sacre - in his second run in 15 months after a heart scare - was pulled up .
victory gave twiston - davies and eight - time champion trainer nicholls a double after aux ptit soins won the previous race , the coral cup .
nicholls said :
i know the other two were past champions but i couldn ' t see why they were behind us in the betting , it must have been on sentiment .
dettori praised the winning jockey for a
fantastic
ride and said the horse was
gutsy
.
however successful during the rest of the year , it ' s at the major events , like cheltenham , where reputation - sealing wins are to be found .
ground conditions had , as trainer gary moore feared , probably dried up too much for sire de grugy , but he ' ll be back , though whether the same applies to sprinter sacre is surely a moot point .
he was bred to win the derby , but this is second best . it ' s the equivalent of the 100m final at the olympics and what a horse ,
said the italian .
and nicholls completed a treble when 25 - 1 chance qualando , ridden by nick scholfield , won the day ' s sixth race - the fred winter handicap hurdle .
the champion chase , in which champagne fever was a morning withdrawal , was billed as a battle of the champions .
but sire de grugy , who has had an interrupted season , and sprinter sacre struggled to keep pace as the two - mile contest developed .
three - time champion flat jockey dettori , famous for his magnificent seven winning spree at ascot in 1996 , has played down his role in breeding the seven - year - old , but revelled in this triumph at the home of jump racing .
it was a fifth champion chase victory for nicholls , who also scored with call equiname ( 1999 ) , azertyuiop ( 2004 ) and master minded ( 2007 and 2008 ) .
trainer willie mullins , who scored a historic four - timer on the opening day , clocked up a fifth win of the meeting with don poli in the rsa chase .
jockey bryan cooper triumphed on the 13 - 8 favourite , a potential gold cup candidate next year , 12 months after breaking his leg at the same fixture .
one bookmaker paid out on mullins being the top trainer with just a third - 9 of 27 - of the races having been run .
the opening neptune hurdle went to 9 - 1 chance windsor park , ridden by davy russell for dermot weld .
retiring champion jockey ap mccoy , without a win so far , was second on parlour games .
russell was scoring in the same purple and yellow colours of owner dr ronan lambe , for whom he won last year ' s cheltenham gold cup on lord windermere .
photographer patrick mccann suffered a broken leg when a horse was carried out , went through the rail and caught him during the cross country chase .
mccann , who works for the racing post , could have been more badly hurt but took evasive action as the unexpected drama unfolded .
nina carberry , on quantitativeeasing , was forced to the left by another horse in an incident which went viral on social media .
russell completed a wednesday double as he emerged the winner on 16 - 1 chance rivage d ' or , trained by tony martin .
wednesday was ladies day at the festival and the duchess of cornwall ( right , with daughter laura lopes and katie price , left ) was among the high - profile patrons .
as long as he stays in ireland , i ' m dead happy ,
- paul nicholls , after a treble himself , on the success of fellow trainer willie mullins , who has five victories .
it is a massive win and hopefully means i can keep hold of my job for years to come .
- winning rider sam twiston - davies jokes about his role with nicholls . he was appointed first jockey less than 11 months ago .
jockey tom scudamore overcame a tardy start by moon racer , trained by david pipe , to lead a 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 for horses trained in great britain in the concluding champion bumper .
afterwards , former trainer michael dickinson - who made history by saddling the first five home led by bregawn in the 1983 cheltenham gold cup - was among those to congratulate him .
i emailed tom after he took the wrong course at cartmel earlier in the season and was banned ,
dickinson told bbc sport .
i said tommy stack did the same thing years ago , and there was no reason why tom wouldn ' t go on to be champion jockey .
victory made it six wins for great britain against the eight of ireland , with 13 races to come .
trainer paul nicholls bids to build on his wednesday treble when he saddles two leading contenders in thursday ' s world hurdle .
saphir du rheu and zarkandar will try to fill the void left by big buck ' s when they run in the three - mile contest ( 15 : 20 gmt ) .
nicholls won the race four times with his great stayer , who is now retired , but hopes his new generation can shine .
meanwhile , the gordon elliott - trained don cossack is favourite for the ryanair chase at 14 : 40 .
saphir du rheu carries the same red , black and white silks of owner andy stewart ' s family as big buck ' s and will be ridden by stable jockey sam twiston - davies .
sam thinks he may win a gold cup with him one day . whereas big buck ' s didn ' t jump a fence , this lad will jump in the future some time as he is a big , scopey horse ,
said the trainer .
rider noel fehily believes zarkandar has a better chance than when he finished fourth in the race won by more of that last year .
he ' s in much better form this year and hopefully he has a great chance .
you can watch an expert preview of day three with former gold cup winning jockey andrew thornton and commentator john hunt on the bbc radio 5 live website .
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indeed as the race unfolded between the 9 - 2 shot , the evergreen somersby and the front - running special tiara off the last bend , the previous two winners of the race , both beset with problems since their finest hour , were nowhere to be seen . a lacklustre sprinter sacre was about to be pulled up while sire de grugy , eventually fourth , was staying on having never really been at the races on the good ground .
“he should have been favourite on form but i understand sometimes with those old champions the heart rules the head , ” he said . “we had the same with big buck’s , but they don’t often come back as good . i thought i’d missed a trick when i saw the other two vying for favouritism .
“last spring he had a few little issues with his breathing and gastric ulcers . i think it is why he wasn’t finishing his races . we’ve sorted them out , he has run three times in a tongue tie and won three , i’ve learned how to train him and he’s grown up mentally .
“i thought he was a good thing first time out this season but he either blew up or wasn’t as good as i thought , so we took him home and got stuck into him . i would never have been able to train him like that before because he’d have run up light and been far too buzzy . now i can really stick the work into him . ”
for twiston - davies , already a front - runner in the race to be the next champion after ap mccoy’s immiment departure , it was a huge step forward and a coming of age in his partnership with nicholls . “someone said he would be my first jockey until i retire , ” joked nicholls . “i don’t know if he’ll last that long ! ”
“it’s a massive win and hopefully means i keep hold of the job for years to come , ” said twiston - davies . “big winners make up for the days when things don’t go so well . we didn’t have a great day yesterday . he is some trainer . if i ' d said this horse would win three grade ones this time last year you would have said i was a moon man . ”
dettori , who watched the race as a guest of the winning owners headed by sir martin broughton before driving on to kempton to ride on wednesday night , said : “he had me on the edge of my seat for the last three fences . it’s a pity he couldn’t win the derby , but i’ve bred the best jumping horse in the world in 2015 . sam gave him some ride , he jumped like a stag . ”
broughton , a former chairman of british airways and , closer to home , the british horseracing authority , was up in the clouds . “in business you don’t have instant moments , ” he explained . “things go right or wrong over a long period . this has been a while coming , but in business you don’t get moments like this . i’m ecstatic and i was very happy being under the radar as everyone was talking about sprinter versus sire . ”
nicholls , who has now won five champion chases , said the next engagement for the new champion would be a grass field and that he would not run again this season .
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cheltenham fri , 17th mar , 17 p . u . , 8 / 1 , n d fehily
sizing granite makes his first start since joining colm murphy in the betway queen mother champion chase at cheltenham today .
hot favourite un de sceaux will face nine rivals in the betway queen mother champion chase at cheltenham .
un de sceaux will face a maximum of 11 rivals in the betway queen mother champion chase at next week ' s cheltenham festival .
for most people lucky enough to have a birthday coinciding with the cheltenham festival , a pair of tickets to the meeting is a valued present - but colm o ' connell might just enjoy the best celebration of all , a betway queen mother champion chase win for un de sceaux .
don cossack and vautour are among 21 horses still in contention for the timico cheltenham gold cup following the latest scratchings deadline for the six non - novice grade one events at the festival .
un de sceaux headlines 23 entries for the £350 , 000 betway queen mother champion chase at cheltenham on wednesday , march 16 .
qualando completed a day to remember for paul nicholls when beating stablemate bouvreuil in the fred winter juvenile handicap hurdle to bring up a sensational 1 , 429 / 1 treble for the champion trainer .
henry de bromhead was thrilled with the performance of special tiara in the betway queen mother champion chase at cheltenham .
former winners sprinter sacre and sire de grugy headline 12 horses still in contention for the betway queen mother champion chase at cheltenham on wednesday .
sire de grugy will be sporting some eyecatching footwear as he defends his betway queen mother champion chase title at cheltenham next week .
paul nicholls admits it was a
close call
for stable jockey sam twiston - davies over which of the yard ' s two runners he will ride in the ladbrokes world hurdle at cheltenham .
hinterland has been ruled out of the betway queen mother champion chase , with paul nicholls instead hoping for some consolation at sandown in april .
ruby walsh believes champagne fever ' s course form will be an asset when he lines - up at the cheltenham festival .
acceptors for the five main grade one championship contests at cheltenham were revealed today .
tom george believes module will be back to his best at the cheltenham festival where he will be aimed at the ryanair chase .
john ' shark ' hanlon is looking forward to hidden cyclone taking on the best two - milers around in the betway queen mother champion chase at cheltenham .
gonebeyondthemoon got off the mark in good fashion when claiming the opening maiden at fairyhouse this afternoon .
noel meade completed an across the card double ( jakros won in cork ) as his still point ran out an comfortable winner of the 7f barclay communications ebf maiden under fran berry .
after race at sligo tue , 16th aug , 2011 ( 1st ) it looked like a competitive enough race beforehand . ben gave him a super ride . we decided to settle off the pace today and he picked up well . we will see what the handicapper does with him now . he is not lacking in pace and will go for a race between a mile to a mile and two furlongs next . a oliver
after race at galway wed , 27th jul , 2011 ( 1st ) everything worked out well , and ben gave him a great ride . he ' s been improving all year , although it took him a few runs for the penny to drop . he ' s hardy and i ' ve been keeping him busy but he ' s got his reward now . a oliver
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the bronze mannikin or bronze munia ( lonchura cucullata ) is a small passerine ( i.e. perching ) bird of the afrotropics .

this very social estrildid finch is an uncommon to locally abundant bird in much of africa south of the sahara desert , where it is resident , nomadic or irruptive in mesic savanna or forest margin habitats .

it has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 8,100,000 km ² .

it is the smallest and most widespread of four munia species on the african mainland , the other being black-and-white , red-backed and magpie mannikin .

it co-occurs with the madagascan mannikin on the comoro islands , and was introduced to puerto rico .

especially in the west africa , it is considered a pest in grain and rice fields .

it is locally trapped for the pet bird trade .

bronze mannikin

bronze mannikin ( spermestes cucullatus fam . estrildidae ) kruger park birds & birding .
the bronze mannikin is neither endemic or near endemic to the kruger national park .
in terms of distribution of the bronze mannikin in the kruger national park you may not see it in all areas . bronze mannikin : see above distribution map .
the bronze mannikin averages 9 - 10cm in length , including its long black tail .
you will normally see the bronze mannikin in pairs or flocks and not as single birds .
museum specimens indicate historical distributions . the map below shows locations from which museum specimens of bronze mannikin were collected . you can see more information on the individual museum specimens of bronze mannikin here .
the bronze mannikin ( latin name spermestes cucullatus ) is described in roberts birds of southern africa , 7th edition . this bird has a unique roberts number of 857 and you will find a full description of this bird on page 1065 also a picture of the bronze mannikin on page 1057 . the bronze mannikin belongs to the family of birds classified as estrildidae . according to the percy fitzpatrick institute of african ornithology the bronze mannikin is also known by these other names : bronzewing , bronze - winged mannikin , hooded finch .
the bronze mannikin is monogamous unless its mate dies . in the event of a partner dying spermestes cucullatus will seek out a new mate
the bronze mannikin is a tiny gregarious bird which feeds mainly on seeds . it frequents open country and cultivation , especially near water .
this book includes the six african species in this genus - madagascar mannikin lonchura nana , bronze mannikin l . cucullatus , black - and - white mannikin , magpie mannikin , african silverbill l . cantans and pearl - headed mannikin l . caniceps ( absent from plates at rear of book ) . the information given for these species compares favourably with the much scantier information provided within finches and sparrows ' .
the bronze mannikin feeds on a variety of seeds . insects may be taken during the breeding season , when their requirement for protein is higher .
during the breeding season in summer the bronze mannikin is often seen singly or in pairs . out of the breeding season they tend to be in flocks .
male and female bronze mannikins look alike . immatures are a more plain buffy brown .
5 - inch ) bronze mannikin ( l . cucullata ) has large communal roosts in africa ; it has been introduced into puerto rico , where it is called hooded weaver . abundant in southern asia are the nutmeg mannikin ( l . punctulata ) , also called spice finch or spotted munia , and the striated mannikin ( l . …
the nesting habit of bronze mannikin is to create the nest in branches of a tree or shrub . the bird lays eggs which are white in colour and number between 2 to 8
additional notes the madagascar mannikin is the only estrildid endemic to the island of madagascar .
one of the first indicators to take note of when trying to identify a bird is it relative size . for example how big is the bird compared to a well known familiar bird . the bronze mannikin is an extremely small bird about half the size of a house sparrow . the height of the bronze mannikin is about 10 cms and its weight is about 10 gms
the bronze mannikin ( lonchura cucullata ) is a small estrildid finch that breeds in much of africa south of the sahara desert . they are found in open country and cultivation , particularly near water .
bronze mannikins also build communal roosting nests , which they use overnight and dismantle and rebuild the next day .
the bronze mannikin or bronze munia ( lonchura cucullata ) is a small passerine ( i . e . perching ) bird . this estrildid finch is an abundant resident breeding bird in much of africa south of the sahara desert of dry savanna habitats . it has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 8 , 100 , 000 km² .
for chestnut mannikin , see munia . for the south american manakins ( family pipridae ) , see manakin .
bronze - winged mannikins live in flocks and family parties outside of the breeding season and may associate with other species of waxbill and mannikin . allo - preening is common among birds on friendly terms . they eat grass seeds ( from the genera
the bronze mannikin is 9–10 cm in length with a long black tail . the adult has a stubby grey bill , brown upperparts , a dark purple head and white underparts with dark flank markings . there is an iridescent green shoulder patch .
bronze - winged mannikin , lonchura cucullata , is found in africa , south of the sahara except for the southwest . also found on the islands of fernando po , principe , sao tome’ , pemba , zanzibar , mafia , comoros ; introduced to puerto rico .
distribution of bronze mannikin in southern africa , based on statistical smoothing of the records from first sa bird atlas project ( © animal demography unit , university of cape town ; smoothing by birgit erni and francesca little ) . colours range from dark blue ( most common ) through to yellow ( least common ) .
above and below - bronze and red - backed mannikins are similar in looks but there are a number of differences . sometimes they may feed together and , side by side , it is quite easy to tell them apart . the bronze mannikin ( above ) is a plain brown on the back and doesn ' t have too much black on the head . it has quite a bit of barring on its white underparts . the red - backed mannikin is a more attractive and clean - cut bird . the back is a reddish brown and there is extensive black on the head . the white underparts do not have other markings .
munia , any of several small finchlike asian birds of the mannikin and waxbill groups ( family estrildidae , order passeriformes ) . the black - headed munia , or chestnut mannikin ( lonchura malacca , including atricapilla and ferruginosa ) , is a pest in rice fields from india to java and the philippines ; as a cage bird it is often…
housing : the chestnut - breasted mannikin like most other mannikins are quite placid and mix well in a communal aviary . however as with most species of mannikins and munias breeding success is more likely by keeping a single pair in an aviary / cage of its own . there is also danger of hybridisation if kept with other mannikin species .
description : the dusky mannikin is similar to the java mannikin but without the white on the belly . they are completely brownish black with darker tips creating a scaled look . there are variations in colour of each individual some being more scaled than others . the upper beak is black and the lower beak is a bluish grey as are the legs .
payne , r . ( 2018 ) . bronze mannikin ( spermestes cucullata ) . in : del hoyo , j . , elliott , a . , sargatal , j . , christie , d . a . & de juana , e . ( eds . ) . handbook of the birds of the world alive . lynx edicions , barcelona . ( retrieved from urltoken on 9 july 2018 ) .
the bronze mannikin is a native of sub - saharan africa , where it ranges widely from senegal in the west to ethiopia in the east , and south to south africa . in the neotropics it is more or less confined to puerto rico , where it is speculated to have arrived on spanish slave ships at some time between the early 16th and the early 19th centuries . it was abundant there by the mid 1860s and by the 20th century had spread to neighboring vieques island . on puerto rico , the bronze mannikin is rarely reported above 300 m . they are particularly fond of feeding on rice . the species was also reported on st . croix , in the virgin islands , in the late 1970s , but to date it has not been reported on any of the other islands in the greater antilles .
bronze - winged mannikins prefer to live in groups of like species . males may become aggressive toward each other and other species during the breeding season ; fighting birds will fan out the wing that is further away from their enemy during spats .
introduction : bronze mannikins ( spermestes cucullata ) congregate in breeding groups of up to 30 , otherwise they can be observed in pairs or smaller family groups . evergreen woodland is favoured as well as suburban gardens . will fly into cover when disturbed
above and below - bronze mannikins are quick to find bird feeders in gardens . they prefer the fine ' wild bird ' seed . during winter they tend to feed in large flocks while during the summer breeding season they are often seen singly .
breeder ' s notes like some other small african mannikins such as the rufous - back and bronze - wing , the madagascar mannikin can be rather aggressive when breeding . they are usually not a hazard to others in a mixed colony , but can be to each other in a small flight cage . colony breeding in a large flight would probably be safe ( walk in size ) . there simply needs to be enough space for the birds that are being chased to fly and hide .
the line of striking black , chestnut and white munia and mannikin species perched on plant fronds against the white dust jacket of this book provides an arresting cover design , which prepares the reader well for the remainder of the book .
housing : the magpie mannikin quite a shy bird that will flee to dense cover if disturbed . more often found in pairs or small family groups not often seen in flocks of more than 10 unless found in where bamboo is seeding .
housing : the dusky mannikin is little different from other munias within its range . it is somewhat a skulking bird described as mouse like . keeping low in vegetation and feeding on the ground mostly . one of its characteristics is little fear of man .
distribution and habitat : there are 6 species of chestnut - breasted mannikin 2 are native to australia and 4 are native to new guinea . the nominate l . c . castaneothorax comes from australia is found in and around grassy river banks and reed beds . the more commonly kept new guinea species l . c . sharpii is a bird that prefers drier areasand prefers to not inhabit the jungle clearings of other munias / mannikins . l . c . sharpii commonly form small flocks with the grey - headed mannikin .
housing : the indian silverbill is not aggressive toward other species if kept in a mixed aviary . breeding success can be achieved when kept a small flock in an outside aviary . there may also be a danger of hybridisation if kept with other mannikin species .
housing : the white - headed nun is not aggressive toward other species if kept in a mixed aviary . breeding success can be achieved by keeping a small flock in an outside aviary dependant on size . there is a danger of hybridisation if kept with other mannikin species .
the 16 plates at the front of the book illustrate all of the world ' s species of munias and mannikins , and many of the races . amongst the six african species represented in the book , the only omissions are illustrations of the somali race of black - and - white mannikin lonchura bicolor minor and , perhaps rather more surprisingly , southern magpie mannikin lonchura fringilloides pica , given this subspecies ' relatively extensive distribution in southern and eastern africa . this series of plates is rather regimented and stylised , but does allow comparisons between species and subspecies .
housing : the black - headed nun is quite a placid bird and mixes well in a communal aviary . however breeding success is more likely by keeping a single pair in an aviary / cage of its own . there is a danger of hybridisation if kept with other mannikin species .
most are sensitive to cold and require warm , usually tropical , habitats , although a few , such as the eastern alpine mannikin , mountain firetail and red - browed finch , and the genus stagonopleura , have adapted to the cooler climates of southern australia and the highlands of new guinea .
distribution and habitat : there are 2 subspecies of the magpie mannikin spreading across from the west to east coast of africa from senegal and gambia to kenya , tanzania and natal . it is a bird seldom found far from water preferring to roost in reed beds preferring to habit near thickets of bamboo .
distribution and habitat : there are 3 recognised subspecies of the five - coloured mannikin finch which are found on some of the indonesian islands like timor , sumba , flores and sermata to name a few . they are found in grasslands , paddy fields , scrub even in cultivated land where cereals grow .
housing : the tri - coloured munia is generally considered not to be aggressive toward other species if kept in a mixed aviary . however there is little doubt that best breeding success will be achieved by keeping a small flock in an aviary of its own . there is a danger of hybridisation if kept with other mannikin species .
description : head is glossy black , back is dark brown as are the wings . tail is black with white below with black and brown barring on the flanks . bill is heavy long and pointed . as with many mannikins the sexes are difficult to tell apart . juveniles are similar to bronze - winged mannikins and black & white mannikins but are distinguishable by their size .
weaver - finch , , any of numerous songbirds belonging to the family estrildidae ( order passeriformes ) , individually called grass finch , mannikin , and waxbill ( qq . v . ) . they are finchlike old world birds . most of the 107 species are small or tiny seed - eaters with short conical bills . they occur in…
the upper photo shows adult and immature bronze mannikins , courtesy of karine van der vurst . the middle photo ( dar es salaam , 10 - 15 ) , is courtesy of michael oates . the lower photo of an adult was taken in olasiti ( 11 - 08 ) : click it to see nine enlargements . the first four enlargements are of a nesting pair whose nest was destroyed by house crows , courtesy of andy perkin .
breeding : wfs records show that this species is progressively being bred each year . in its natural habitat , the nest is usually found in holes in banks , among exposed roots and in holes in trees . the dusky mannikin accepts various nesting receptacles in captivity from wicker baskets to half - open nest boxes . average clutch size is 3 to 6 and incubation is about 13 days . youngsters fledge in approximately 3 weeks .
for best results , keep a group ( at least 3 pairs and with equal numbers of cocks and hens ) of these birds together to allow the birds to choose their own partners . birds aged 1 to 4 years are best suited to breeding . newcomers to the flock may be attacked , intensely courted , and mounted , but are usually accepted before long . because they can become pugnacious while breeding , bronze - winged mannikins may be best kept in a group on their own while breeding . birds are most successfully bred in a community fashion in larger aviaries , though some may breed in cages in pairs with increased productivity .
the various phases of the reproductive behaviour of the bronze mannikin are described in detail and discussed . this species possesses rather specialised fighting patterns which are different from those of the other estrildine finches . in an all - out attack it charges in a frontal - horizontal posture like other species , but in an equally matched bout , the contestants do not adopt the typical sleeked vertical postures of most species , but instead crouch in latero - horizontal postures . when fighting in this position , the far wing is spread and raised vertically both as a balancing device and also as a display . nesting behaviour is described and the differences between breeding and sleeping nests are discussed . the process of pair - formation is mentioned and it is pointed out that in communal species such as the present one , this is in many respects a negative process ; i . e . the narrowing down of social responses from all , to one particular member of the colony . when a male and female are paired , they begin to construct a nest together and a special ceremony takes place repeatedly in the nest cavity . this has evolved from simple nesting patterns , but is now sexual in character and may lead to copulations inside the nest . the typical precopulatory patterns are analysed in detail and it is shown that they contain a number of the ritualised components of the nest ceremony . the latter therefore provides a valuable derivational clue , linking nesting proper with pre - copulatory displays . other aspects of the male courtship , such as the dancing movements of inverted curtseying and pivoting , can be derived from intention movements of fleeing
diet a basic finch maintenance diet will serve this rather small african mannikin well . they are hardy birds like most mannikins . a finch seed mix is fine , but these small finches will prefer the larger seeds such as large white prosso , so i actually mix 50 / 50 mix of finch mix with white prosso . in addition , they will readily eat my egg food ( roy ' s egg food ) , some gamebird crumbles and green food . soaked or sprouted paddy rice was also accepted . calcium can be provided in the form of crushed egg shell and crushed oyster shell . i have a cuttlebone available to them , but like so many mannikins , they don ' t really eat a lot of it off the bone . live food in the way of small mealworms can be offerred to the birds , but generally i like to try and raise the birds without the addition of live food whenever possible . it makes my life easier . using a few mealworms might act as a breeding trigger for these birds if they seem reluctant to start a nest .
the clutch size ranged from 4 to 7 eggs and the incubation period was 12 - 13 days . the tiny young hatch out with little down and are pinkish in color . ( see the gape markings ) . the parents really begin to eat the eggfood when the chicks hatch and continue this voracious eating until the chicks fledge . i would leave the young with the parents for at least 3 weeks after fledging to be certain that the young are weaned . i did not see any aggression towards the young after they fledged as is seen with the rufous - back mannikin . the young fledge with a dark brown back and tan belly . the beak is solid black and there is just a hint of the throat bib ( see below ) . the parents will quite often return to nest before the first clutch is fully weaned . the male will continue to feed while the hen starts incubating the new clutch . they can be quite prolific with repeated clutches and rather large clutches of 6 - 7 young . as is always the safe recommendation , it is best not to overtax your breeders by taking more than 2 - 4 clutches . ( depends on clutch size and condition of the parents )
hbw alive contains information on descriptive notes , voice , habitat , food and feeding , breeding , movements , status and conservation plus a list of bibliographical references for this species account .
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adults and juveniles bathing in a small puddle of water , next to orange - cheeked waxbills .
juan sanabria , josep del hoyo , greg baker , pieter de groot boersma , daniêl jimenez , doug and denise norris , pascal vagner , marc de bont , yoël jimenez , keith blomerley .
paul van giersbergen , éric roualet , stefan helming , lars petersson , robert erasmus , laurent demongin , holger teichmann , james kashangaki , paul a guris , markus lilje , juan josé bazán hiraldo , tadeusz stawarczyk , bernard . guevorts , frank sandvoss , bruno schmetz , jacek nalepa , ossewa , jmdebruyn , klaus lachenmaier , frédéric pelsy , keithedward , ruben gaasenbeek , abe and jenny , alexander viduetsky , marco valentini , ken havard , mlanguy , dolapo805 , morten venas , rafael merchante , mattias hofstede , juan gonzalez valdivieso , buchert .
races intergrade in ne drcongo and uganda . proposed race tessellata , described from nampini ( middle r zambezi valley ) , in nw zimbabwe , is synonymized with scutata . two subspecies recognized .
swainson , 1837 – senegambia , s mali , guinea - bissau and guinea , sierra leone and liberia e to nigeria , s chad , central african republic and south sudan , s to gabon , congo , and w kenya ( w of rift valley ) ; also bioko , príncipe , são tomé and annobón , in gulf of guinea .
heuglin , 1863 – ethiopia and kenya ( e of rift valley ) s to s drcongo , angola , namibia ( caprivi strip ) , n & e botswana , mozambique and ne & se south africa ; also islands off tanzania ( pemba , zanzibar and mafia ) , and comoro is .
9 cm ; 7·7 - 11·8 g . nominate race has head and upper breast brownish - black , browner on hindneck and neck side , with variable amounts of greenish gloss on cap and . . .
contact and flight calls a wheezy
tsek
or
chik - chik
, twittering in flocks ; . . .
grassy open woodland and grassy semi - arid scrub ; areas with seeding grasses , including cultivations . . .
season prolonged , jan–sept ( mainly beginning with mar rains ) in ghana , aug–oct in ethiopia , mainly apr , may , oct and nov in . . .
resident . some local movements in response to rains and seeding of grasses ; longest distance of . . .
not globally threatened . common to abundant and widespread throughout most of range ; one of the commonest avian species in africa . estimated population in s mozambique ( sul . . .
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this map displays aggregated data from ibc and my birding ( anonymously ) ; markers do not indicate precise localities .
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myavibase allows you to create and manage your own lifelists , and produce useful reports to help you plan your next birding excursion .
there are more than 12 , 000 regional checklists in avibase , offered in 9 different taxonomies , including synonyms more than 175 languages . each checklist can be viewed with photos shared by the birding community , and also printed as pdf checklists for field use .
there are a few ways by which you can help the development of this page , such as joining the flickr group for photos or providing translations of the site in addition languages .
howard and moore 4th edition ( incl . corrigenda vol . 1 - 2 ) :
you must be logged in to view your sighting details . to register to myavibase click here .
avibase has been visited 263 , 293 , 256 times since 24 june 2003 . © denis lepage | privacy policy
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thank you for taking the time to provide feedback on the iucn red list of threatened species website , we are grateful for your input .
del hoyo , j . , collar , n . j . , christie , d . a . , elliott , a . , fishpool , l . d . c . , boesman , p . and kirwan , g . m . 2016 . hbw and birdlife international illustrated checklist of the birds of the world . volume 2 : passerines . lynx edicions and birdlife international , barcelona , spain and cambridge , uk .
justification : this species has an extremely large range , and hence does not approach the thresholds for vulnerable under the range size criterion ( extent of occurrence < 20 , 000 km2 combined with a declining or fluctuating range size , habitat extent / quality , or population size and a small number of locations or severe fragmentation ) . the population trend appears to be stable , and hence the species does not approach the thresholds for vulnerable under the population trend criterion ( > 30 % decline over ten years or three generations ) . the population size has not been quantified , but it is not believed to approach the thresholds for vulnerable under the population size criterion ( < 10 , 000 mature individuals with a continuing decline estimated to be > 10 % in ten years or three generations , or with a specified population structure ) . for these reasons the species is evaluated as least concern .
the global population size has not been quantified , but the species is described as common and widespread ( clement 1999 ) . trend justification : the population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats .
to make use of this information , please check the < terms of use > .
calls from a flock of at least 30 - 40 birds moving through open , disturbed secondary forest .
a small flock of bird seen sunning themselves in a tree in the early morning near a seed feeder in the garden .
small group feeding on the ground . habitat : secondary evergreen forest , shrubland , field , papyrus swamp .
bird seen calling from a phone wire in a suburb in the early morning .
several birds moving around in some tall grass next to a restaurant . frog calling from a well .
these birds sat silently for a 10 - 15 minutes . i had to throw things at them to get the to make noises . this recording documents the noises that the flock of 8 made as they flew off in response to me throwing a stick in their direction .
sonogram images © xeno - canto foundation . sonogram images share the same license terms as the recording they depict .
there are many ways to contribute—we need species information , photographs , audio , video , translations , maps , distribution data , and bird sightings . there ' s a role for everyone !
) , in neotropical birds online ( t . s . schulenberg , editor ) . cornell lab of ornithology , ithaca , ny , usa . retrieved from neotropical birds online :
in africa , south of the sahara except for the southwest . also found on the islands of fernando po , principe , sao tome ' , pemba , zanzibar , mafia , comoros ; introduced to puerto rico .
active , vivacious , but may become sluggish if housed in a smaller enclosure . generally gregarious , but can become dominating while breeding .
black upper bill , silver lower bill ; brownish black head with metallic green or purplish sheen ; brownish black throat and upper breast ; brown back & wings ; shoulders sport a metallic green patch ; flanks are mottled brown & white ; black tail with brown - and - black cross - barred rump ; white belly ; dark grey or blackish legs .
subspecies tends to lack . juveniles have a black beak and are dark grey - brown with light grey - brown throat and breast , buff belly , brownish - buff flanks .
sexes appear similar , though the hen may appear a little less glossy , browner above , and sport a narrower head with a beak that tapers more than the cock ' s . only the male bird appears to show a courtship display where he erects his body ( but not head or breast ) fathers , presents himself in an upright posture to the female with his head pointed downward ; he will then click his bill , open it widely , and sing , at intervals protruding and vibrating his tongue , bobbing up - and - down or pivoting side - to - side toward and away from , and sometimes in a circle around , the female , while keeping his tail pointed toward her . the female may respond by crouching and quivering her tail .
small mixed millet , greens , egg food , mealworms , ant pupae , soaked seed .
savannahs & scrub , open woodland , forest edge , along rivers , marsh and swamp edges , cultivated areas , open clearings , farms & gardens .
) , soft greens , & flying termites on the wing , and feed both on the ground & on plants . birds may gather at a watering hole prior to roosting for the night . individual families roost in brooding or
slovenly
roosting nests ( which may be dismantled and rebuilt each afternoon ) . the cock tends to collect the nesting material while the hen tends to build the nest , often near active wasp nests ( presumably for protection from predation ) . nests are rounded and constructed of grass stems and blades , lined with fine grasses , vegetable down and fiber , hair and feathers , and built in small ( 3 to 10 feet tall ) trees ( mango & orange trees ) , although some pairs may make use of abandoned weavers ' or waxbills ' nests , bushes , shrubs , and niches in buildings . families may build nests close together and share the same tree . both cock and hen share incubation duties during the day , and both sit together in the nest at night . young are reared on green ( half - ripe ) seeds , greens , and insects . after fledging , young are lead back to the nest each night to roost . an alerted or active bird may flick its tail from side - to - side and flick the wings up and down . birds may try to ' escape ' to a dark area and become motionless , attempting to hide .
potential health problems include : overgrown toenails that require frequent trimming , obesity if given inadequate opportunity to exercise , a possibility for developing intestinal parasites due to insect - eating and ground - feeding habits , and egg - binding if suffering from nutritional deficiency or bred in cold conditions .
may be parasitized by the pin - tailed whydah . has produced hybrids with : spice finch (
breeding is restricted to the warm ( rainy / wet ) season , but may occur year - round near the equator .
introduce a breeding diet about one month prior to breeding . pairs may make use of semi - open nest boxes , nest baskets , or they may build their own nests in bushes using coconut fiber , leaves , grass , and feathers for padding . copulation tends to occur inside the privacy of the nest , and may be interrupted by other males if taking place outside of the nest . for rearing food , provide varied options of ample
nest checks tend to be tolerated . parents usually cease brooding the young around 10 days of age , so it is important to ensure an adequately warm enclosure at this time .
fledged young raise the wing furthest from the parent bird when begging for food . parents may escort fledglings back to the nest for about 2 weeks . after the young fledge , they do not need to be separated from the parents / breeding pairs , and may form a peaceful extended family from successive clutches . sometimes captive young from older clutches may try to feed their younger siblings . parent birds may drive these older juveniles out of the nest , but will often permit them to feed their younger siblings after they have fledged . if removing juveniles , wait 4 weeks until after they have fledged to ensure they are fully weaned . the spent nest can be removed so the parents build a fresh one for the next brood .
birds should be transitioned to an austerity diet after breeding , where soft foods , egg food , live food , and greens are limited , and ideally housed in flights or aviaries for exercise .
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animal , ( kingdom animalia ) , any of a group of multicellular eukaryotic organisms ( i . e . , as distinct from…
horse , ( equus caballus ) , a hoofed , herbivorous mammal of the family equidae . it comprises a single species , …
diet : forages and feeds on the ground . eats mainly grass seeds , some insects , fruit and nectar .
description : a blackish head ( cucullata is latin for ' hooded ' ) with violet - tinged cheeks . a grey - brown back and wing coverts with blackish - brown flight feathers .
breeding : both male and female build a round nest with a side entrance in around 14 days . from 2 to 8 eggs are laid from august to may and incubated for an average of 14 days .
a luxurious house boat on the chobe river which offers 2 or 3 night cruises on the chobe river . an excellent way to celebrate a special occasion or just to relax in these splendid surroundings
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the reference for the information following is
roberts birds of southern africa
, 7th edition * edited by par hockey , wrj dean and pg ryan , published by
the trustees of the john voelcker bird book fund .
- this is an old template for this website . please visit the home page for more : birds in sa
finch information . . . index of finch species . . . photos of the different finch species for identification . . . common health problems of finches . . . finch / canary diet / nutrition
males and females look alike . the adult has a stubby grey bill and a dark purple head . it is brown above and white below , with dark flank markings . they have iridescent green shoulder patches .
the nest is a large domed grass structure in a tree . the average clutch size consists of 4 - 8 white eggs .
its varied calls , includes a rreep - rreeep in flight and a twittering made when perched .
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the articles or images on this page are the sole property of the authors or photographers .
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throughout history , crows , ravens and other black birds were feared as symbols of evil or death . …
please note : any content published on this site is commentary or opinion , and is protected under free speech . it is only provided for educational and entertainment purposes , and is in no way intended as a substitute for professional advice . avianweb / beautyofbirds or any of their authors / publishers assume no responsibility for the use or misuse of any of the published material . your use of this website indicates your agreement to these terms .
the map of the kruger you see on this page shows the areas ( coloured orange ) where this bird has been identified . the basic information was provided by the avian demographic unit based at uct and i created the maps from that information . . . the green dots show the locations of the various kruger national park rest camps
for in - depth birding information please refer to these authoritative avian references . . .
the main reference source for this data was
roberts - birds of southern africa , 7th edition
. other references were
newmans birds of the kruger park
by keith newman published circa 1980 . names in foreign languages were obtained from the percy fitzpatrick institute of african ornithology , university of cape town website , urltoken
habitat : savannahs & scrub , open woodland , forest edge , along rivers , cultivated areas , open clearings , farms & gardens .
description : black upper bill , silver lower bill ; brownish black head with metallic green or purplish sheen ; brownish black throat and upper breast ; brown back & wings ; shoulders sport a metallic green patch ; flanks are mottled brown & white ; black tail with brown - and - black cross - barred rump ; white belly ; dark grey or blackish legs . l . c . cucullata may also have some variable glossy green patches along the flanks which the l . c . scutata subspecies tends to lack . juveniles have a black beak and are dark grey - brown with light grey - brown throat and breast , buff belly , brownish - buff flanks . sexes appear similar , though the hen may appear a little less glossy , browner above , and sport a narrower head with a beak that tapers more than the cock’s .
breeding : breeding is restricted to the warm ( rainy / wet ) season , but may occur year - round near the equator . they like semi - open nest boxes , nest baskets , or they may build their own nests in bushes using coconut fiber , leaves , grass , and feathers for padding . copulation tends to occur inside the privacy of the nest . for rearing food , provide varied options of ample sprouted seed , egg food , and live food . after the young fledge , they do not need to be separated from the parents / breeding pairs , and may form a peaceful extended family from successive clutches .
diet : paradise pet products premium finch blend , dried insect blend , greens and eggfood .
description male s and females are similar in appearance . i sexed these birds by behavior . watching for pair bonding and for males to protect their females by aggressively chasing others away . otherwise , males have a nice , high pitched song with a bit of a dance . mostly just posture . i found no visual differences at all .
i bred these birds as single pairs in my standard breeding cage with some fake plants fixed to the outside of the cage ( madigascar cage ) with one pair i used an outside nesting box of standard dimensions and in another i placed a converted milk box ( milk box nest ) they readily took to both types of boxes . i offered strands of coco fiber for them to construct their nests . small white feathers and other soft materials were offered , but for the most part the nest was a nice weave of coco fibers .
i did successfully foster a clutch under society finches , but quite frankly , i found the madagascars to be excellent parents quite capable of rearing the young on their own .
resting birds were housed as a colony . some feather plucking may start if crowded or the birds begin to get anxious to start breeding again , otherwise they were quite peaceful together .
robin restall in
munias and mannikins
indicates that captive bred birds showed signs melanism and that the belly color had darker tones . thus far i have not encountered this .
the southern african bird atlas project ( sabap1 ) in namibia gathered a huge amount of distribution data between 1970 and 1993 .
ver time , these will give valuable information on population distribution , habitat requirements , trends and so on .
if you have a lot of records and it would be very time - consuming to enter them manually you can also send us a spreadsheet with the details , and associated photos . use the contact us form to get in touch .
advertise your bnb , guest house , hotel , private game park or whatever on this site for only r25 . 00 per month !
it is a small finch - like bird weighing around 10 grams . it is about 9 cm in length .
this is a very common species , even in urban areas , and is a familiar sight in gardens over the eastern portion of the country .
their nests are a grassy structure in a tree . sometimes they nest by themselves and other times in colonies . up to 8 eggs are laid .
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mannikins are finchlike birds , mostly brownish and often with black throats and fine barring . large flocks occur in open country from africa to australia . many are popular cage birds . the 9 - centimetre ( 3 . 5 - inch )
) , also called white - backed munia . the former is established in hawaii , where it is called
manakin , ( subfamily piprinae ) , common name given to about 60 species of small , stubby , generally short - tailed birds abundant in american tropical forests . manakins are short - billed birds that range in size from 8 . 5 to 16 cm ( 3 . 5 to 6 . 5 inches ) long and weigh a mere 10–40 grams ( 0 . 35–1 . 4 ounces ) . females and immature…
estrildidae , songbird family , order passeriformes , consisting of approximately 140 species of waxbills and other small finchlike birds of the old world , many of which are favourite cage birds . members range in size from 7 . 5 to 15 cm ( 3 to 6 inches ) long . they have short , stout bills and short legs…
silverbill , , any of several birds named for bill colour . some finches of the genus lonchura ( see munia ) are called silverbill . lichenops ( hymenops ) perspicillata , the spectacled tyrant , or silverbill , of central south america , is a tyrant…
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woodland kingfisher , kruger national park , south africa . [ photo trevor hardaker © ]
the woodland kingfisher is common across sub - saharan africa , occupying a wide variety of woodland and savanna habitats . it is quite an adaptable hunter , feeding mainly insects but also small vertebrates , such as fish , snakes and even other birds ! it is an intra - african migrant , arriving in southern africa around september - december , breeding then leaving for central africa around march - april . it usually nests in tree cavities , either natural or excavated by barbets or woodpeckers , laying 2 - 4 eggs incubated by both sexes . the chicks grow rapidly , cared for by both parents , leaving the nest at about 18 - 24 days old . they remain dependent on their parents for about 5 more weeks after fledging , after which they usually disperse .
common across sub - saharan africa , although absent from arid areas such as the deserts of somalia . in southern africa it occurs in northern namibia ( including the caprivi strip ) , northern and eastern botswana , zimbabwe , mozambique and north - eastern south africa . it is highly adaptable , occupying a wide range of woodland and savanna habitats , provided there are streams , rivers or lakes . it also occurs in man - altered areas , such as parks , gardens and farmland .
distribution of woodland kingfisher in southern africa , based on statistical smoothing of the records from first sa bird atlas project ( © animal demography unit , university of cape town ; smoothing by birgit erni and francesca little ) . colours range from dark blue ( most common ) through to yellow ( least common ) . see here for the latest distribution from the sabap2 .
intra - african migrant , arriving in southern africa from september - december , going through its breeding cycle before leaving for central africa in the period from march - april .
it is quite an adaptable hunter , feeding mainly on insects , supplemented with small vertebrates , such as fish , snakes and even other birds ! it usually hunts from a perch , searching for food . once it spots prey it dives down to the ground , grabs the prey item with its bill then flies back up to its perch , where it usually beats the animal to death . the following food items have been recorded in its diet :