the rock bunting ( emberiza cia ) is a passerine bird in the bunting family emberizidae , a group now separated by most modern authors from the finches , fringillidae .

the genus name emberiza is from old german embritz , a bunting .

the specific cia is from a local italian name for this bird , from zirlare , " to chirp " .

rock bunting

discovering alpine birds : here rock bunting , here rock bunting , come on . . .
rock bunting , emberiza cia , linnaeus , 1766 , also known as the western rock bunting , eurasian rock bunting or european rock bunting , or as the meadow rock bunting , photographed ríospaso in the principality of asturias , spain ( europe ) .
first rock bunting photo - sun playing havoc with my photo success . . .
rock bunting ( emberiza cia ) is a species of bird in the emberizidae family .
high - pitched rock bunting song with insects , flies and some bird calls in the background .
on my way to looking for the rock buntings [ kill two metaphoric birds with one stone ] . as i was about to enter the ehnbachklamm ( a very tight little gorge ) , i heard my first rock bunting singing in the trees above me .
the corn bunting can be seen all year round - they form flocks in the winter .
cinnamon - breasted bunting , kruger national park , south africa . [ photo trevor hardaker © ]
atuo , f . a . & manu , s . 2013 . territory size and habitat selection of cinnamon - breasted rock bunting emberiza tahapisi in nigeria . ostrich 84 ( 1 ) : 71 - 78 .
is the call on this file of the rockbunting ? i am not shure because there where some other birds like black redstart , goldfinch , common linnet , cirl bunting , i also did see some rock buntings .
although the rock bunting is not especially shy , it lives quite secretively and is easily overlooked . the sharp tsi calls give away its presence but the birds are not easy to locate . the rock bunting loves warm and rocky terrain and occurs mainly in climatically favoured areas in switzerland , where it almost reaches the northern limit of its area of distribution . its main range is in the mediterranean area , in the middle east and in central asia .
rock buntings are resident birds but they are altitudinal migrants , moving to lower levels of mountain sides when it snows .
cinnamon - breasted bunting , hammanskraal , south africa . [ photo peet van schalkwyk © , see also urltoken ]
song , normally from rock or top of tree , a melodic verse with sudden scale changes , and sometimes . . .
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spp . ) , their principal food in most areas . the gyrfalcon is a ptarmigan specialist and its breeding distribution is strikingly similar to that of the rock ptarmigan (
so i headed back down the hill and up the other side of the gorge , towards martinswand and the zirler steinbruch ( quarry ) . it did not take me long to find the next pair to rock buntings , doing just what rock buntings do : sitting on a dead tree , right on a cliff , singing . wonderful .
during the breeding season , the socotra bunting is found in the highland areas of the island , between elevations of 700 and 1 , 200 metres , where it inhabits rocky , grassy slopes and meadows with scattered trees and bushes . in the non - breeding season the bunting migrates down to the flat coastal plains at sea - level ( 2 ) .
this species breeds on steep , boulder - strewn or rocky mountain slopes just above tree line or in glades and alpine meadows just below tree line , although they can be found in coastal regions all the way down to sea level . they can also be identified on the basis of their song . this video captures a male rock bunting singing from a bush :
15–16·5 cm ; 17–29 g . fairly large bunting , with proportionately short wing and long tail . male nominate race in fresh plumage has pale ash - greyish head , . . .
monogamous solitary nester , building a shallow cup of grass , rootlets and fine twigs on a foundation of large twigs , neatly lined with fine grass and rootlets . it is typically placed in a shallow depression in the ground at the base of a grass tuft or rock , on an earthen bank , in a crevice in a small rock face or among scattered rocks in a hollow .
response : this is an adult male rock bunting , emberiza cia , a member of the species - rich passerine family , emberizidae , or sparrows and buntings . in europe , the emberizids are mostly known as buntings whereas they are mostly known as sparrows in the americas , despite the fact that they are only distantly related to the old world sparrows ( family : passeridae ) .
copete , j . l . ( 2018 ) . rock bunting ( emberiza cia ) . 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 ) .
breeding in the varied bunting also depends on rainfall . in arizona , when summer rains are delayed , nesting may not begin until august . eggs are polymorphic in color among populations , a rare phenomenon in passerine birds .
wright , d . & jones , p . 2005 . population densities and habitat associations of the range - restricted rock firefinch lagonosticta sanguinodorsalis on the jos plateau , nigeria . bird conservation international 15 ( 3 ) : 287 - 295 .
brandt , m . s . & cresswell , w . 2008 . breeding behaviour , home range and habitat selection in rock firefinches lagonosticta sanguinodorsalis , between the wet and the dry season in central nigeria . ibis 150 : 495 - 507 .
heading out towards the kaiser max grotte ( a cave overlooking innsbruck in the martinswand ) , i picked up yet another rock bunting . it was ridiculous to see how many i was finding of a lifer that has , for all this time , lived just a few minutes walk behind my house . i blame at least part of this on the
i did not expect it so did not find it
psychology . the other part is , quite clearly , my incompetance ; - )
abalaka , j . i . , ottosson , u . , tende , t . and larson , k . 2010 . rock firefinch lagonosticta sanguinodorsalis in the mandara mountains , north - east nigeria : a new subspecies ? abc bull 17 : 210 - 211 .
the corn bunting is often seen perched prominently on a hedge , post or wire , singing its jangling song . in the summer corn buntings prefer open farmland and in winter they may be found in stubbles , root crops , weedy fields and cattle yards or stockyards .
the socotra bunting occurs only on the island of socotra , yemen , where it is known from just a few localities ( 2 ) . located in the north - western indian ocean , socotra island covers an area of 3 , 625 square kilometres ( 5 ) .
abalaka , j . , hudin , n . s . , ottosson , u . , bloomer , p . & hansson , bengt . 2014 . genetic diversity and population structure of the range restricted rock firefinch lagonosticta sanguinodorsalis . conservation genetics doi : 10 . 1007 / s10592 - 014 - 0667 - z .
although the breeding biology of the socotra bunting is not known , it is believed that this species requires specific habitat for nesting , thus restricting it to higher altitudes during the breeding season . it may breed in loose colonies , as clumps of males have been recorded singing together ( 2 ) .
this rare bunting is not thought to be facing any threats at present , but its small distribution and population makes it vulnerable to any future threats ( 2 ) . potential threats include increased livestock grazing in the highlands , which would degrade or destroy suitable breeding habitat for the socotra bunting , and the accidental or intentional introduction of alien species . there are a number of invasive predators already well - established on socotra island , including the feral cat ( felis catus ) , brown rat ( rattus rattus ) and small indian civet ( viverricula indica ) , which may be limiting the population of the socotra bunting ( 2 ) . recent infrastructure developments on the island , including a sea port , airport and roads , have brought positive changes to the local human inhabitants , but threaten the natural landscape and increase the possibility of the introduction of alien species ( 5 ) ( 6 ) .
holder , k . and r . montgomerie . 1993c .
rock ptarmigan ( lagopus mutus ) .
in the birds of north america , no . 51 , edited by a . poole and f . gill . philadelphia , pa : acad . nat . sci . phila . and am . ornithol . union . close
and i had heard rumours of a few rock buntings ( zippammer ) about on the
hot
, rocky northern slopes of the inn valley . so i started to ask about , and it seemed that they had been seen by a few different people right by my house , on the slopes above the winefarm in zirl .
racing up the road to try to get a better position , i got to the quarry edge and heard another two rock bunting ( territory three and counting ! ) , but i carried on up to the little bridge over the rocky channel where i had seen the second pair . poor photographs ensued , and maniacal climbing of cliffs with telescopes . i still didn ' t get a great photo , but at least i got to watch the pair feeding on the cliff . as the pair flew up from the cliff , it was interesting to see how the female would fly to the lower branches of an exposed tree , and the male would fly directly to the top of the tree / bush / snag to sing his merry little heart out .
while the socotra bunting is sometimes seen perching in bushes and trees , it spends most of the time on the ground ( 2 ) . birds belonging to the emberizidae family feed mainly on seeds ( 3 ) . their large feet are adept at scratching at the ground to locate food , and their small , conical bills efficiently peel away the seed coat ( 4 ) .
distribution of cinnamon - breasted bunting 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 .
status resident . description bird which is brownish all over with black stripes on back . grey head and breast . very conspicuous black lines on head . on bushes or ground . similar species cirl bunting . presence all year round . seeing the species relatively easy , but it may go unnoticed because its density is not high . this bird is not wary of humans . where to watch it sangüesa , lumbier - arbayun , belagua .
abalaka , j . i . & jones , p . j . 2012 . population densities of the rock firefinch lagonosticta sanguinodorsalis and some other estrildine and viduine finches on the jos plateau , nigeria . in : harebottle , d . m . , craig , a . j . f . k . , anderson , m . d . , rakotomanana , h . & muchai . ( eds ) . proceedings of the 12th pan african ornithological congress , 2008 . cape town , animal demography unit .
medium - size but relatively slim bunting , with long , thin tail contributing to more attenuated outline than any other congener . shares rufous - buff ground - color to plumage with five other emberiza , best distinguished by rather small , lead - colored bill , strong head pattern of blackish crown - stripes and complete black surround to ear - coverts on greyish ground , and strongly rufous rump . terrestrial , rarely far from rocks . one call distinctive . sexes dissimilar , some seasonal variation in male .
the government of yemen , together with numerous organisations , are working to preserve the biodiversity of the socotra archipelago . a biodiversity conservation zoning plan was developed in 2000 , which integrates the human population’s development needs with environmental protection and the sustainable use of natural resources ( 5 ) . this led to the socotra archipelago being designated a unesco biosphere reserve in 2003 , which recognises the island group as a site which innovates and demonstrates approaches to conservation and sustainable development ( 7 ) . such efforts to preserve the natural biodiversity of socotra will no doubt benefit the island’s vulnerable bunting .
a breeding male indigo bunting is blue all over , with slightly richer blue on his head and a shiny , silver - gray bill . but , like all other blue birds , indigo buntings lack blue pigment . their jewel - like color comes instead from microscopic structures in the feathers that refract and reflect blue light , much like the airborne particles that cause the sky to look blue . females are basically brown , with faint streaking on the breast , a whitish throat , and sometimes a touch of blue on the wings , tail , or rump . immature males are patchy blue and brown .
late april to mid june in switzerland , early may to mid july in hungary , mid may in greece , april to mid june in algeria . nest sit , on or close to ground in cleft in rock or between boulders on slope , usually by bush , etc . , generally hidden by vegetation though sometimes exposed , also in wall or earth bank , or low in dense tree or bush . nest , foundation of dry grass , stalks , and roots , occasionally leaves and bits of bark , lined with fine grasses , rootlets , and some hair . 4 - 5 eggs , incubation , 12 - 14 days , by female only .
i had to smile when i read where you eventually found your rock buntings . i think many birders must have had similar experiences . i travelled miles to ' good ' areas to find pygmy owls before i worked out they could equally well be living in the woods behind our chalupa , went whistling in the dark and promptly found them . even better ( worse ? ) i spent days following up old stories of montagues harriers breeding in the area driving for 2 or 3 hours 3 times a week whilst my wife went swimming in our local town only to find them nesting within sight of the swimming pool . i still can ' t understand how i managed to miss seeing them ' by accident ' for several years . den
indigo buntings eat small seeds , berries , buds , and insects . common seed forage includes thistles , dandelions , goldenrods , and grain such as oats ; berries eaten include blueberries , strawberries , blackberries , serviceberries , and elderberries . spiders and insect prey , which form the majority of their diet during summer months , may include caterpillars , grasshoppers , aphids , cicadas and beetles such as canker worms , click beetles , and weevils . the brown - tail moth caterpillar , which is covered with noxious hairs that cause nasty rashes and respiratory problems in people , presents no obstacle to a hungry bunting . on arrival to breeding grounds in spring , indigo buntings may feed on twigs , buds , and leaves of trees including aspen , cottonwood , oaks , beech , elm , maple , and hickory .
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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 .
cramp , s . and simmons , k . e . l . ( eds ) . 1977 - 1994 . handbook of the birds of europe , the middle east and africa . the birds of the western palearctic . oxford university press , oxford .
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 km 2 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 increasing , 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 is extremely large , and hence does not 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 .
afghanistan ; albania ; algeria ; andorra ; armenia ; austria ; azerbaijan ; bosnia and herzegovina ; bulgaria ; china ; croatia ; cyprus ; france ; georgia ; germany ; gibraltar ; greece ; hungary ; india ; iran , islamic republic of ; iraq ; israel ; italy ; jordan ; kazakhstan ; kyrgyzstan ; lebanon ; liechtenstein ; macedonia , the former yugoslav republic of ; monaco ; mongolia ; montenegro ; morocco ; nepal ; pakistan ; palestinian territory , occupied ; portugal ; romania ; russian federation ( central asian russia , european russia ) ; san marino ; serbia ; slovakia ; slovenia ; spain ( canary is . - vagrant ) ; switzerland ; syrian arab republic ; tajikistan ; tunisia ; turkey ; turkmenistan ; ukraine ; uzbekistan
in europe , the breeding population is estimated to number 1 , 930 , 000 - 4 , 230 , 000 pairs , which equates to 3 , 860 , 000 - 8 , 460 , 000 mature individuals ( birdlife international 2015 ) . europe forms c . 50 % of the global range , so a very preliminary estimate of the global population size is 7 , 700 , 000 - 16 , 900 , 000 mature individuals , although further validation of this estimate is needed . trend justification : in europe , trends between 1998 and 2013 show that populations have undergone a moderate increase ( ebcc 2015 ) .
habitat loss as a consequence of agricultural intensification , urbanisation and reforestation led to a decline in the past between 1970 and 1990 ( copete 2016 ) .
conservation actions underway there are currently no known conservation measures for this species within its european range . conservation actions proposed no conservation measures are currently needed for this species within its european range .
( amended version of 2016 assessment ) . the iucn red list of threatened species 2017 : e . t22720894a111134095 .
to make use of this information , please check the < terms of use > .
linnaeus , 1766 – c & s europe e to turkey and levant , and n africa ( morocco e to tunisia ) .
e . j . o . hartert , 1904 – crimea and caucasus and e turkey e to iran , and c asia e to w mongolian altai , and s to n & c afghanistan and n baluchistan ( pakistan ) .
f . moore , 1856 – nw himalayas from pakistan ( w to afghan border ) , baltistan and kashmir e to n india ( kumaon ) , extreme sw china ( sw xizang ) and w nepal .
sunny places on rocky slopes in hills and high mountains , ravines , and in clearings in conifer . . .
outside breeding season feeds mainly on seeds of herbs and other plants , and during breeding period mostly on invertebrates . among . . .
season from late mar or apr to jul–aug , occasionally to mid - sept , peak of egg - laying in most of range during may ; sometimes two . . .
n populations partly migratory , some moving short to medium distance s in cold winters . in s of . . .
not globally threatened . locally common ; rather sparsely distributed . european breeding population estimated at c . 1 , 300 , 000 pairs . large decline recorded during 1970– . . .
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previously treated in much broader versions , which included calcariidae and passerellidae , and earlier also cardinalidae and thraupidae # r .
sometimes split up , with recognition of other genera such as fringillaria , melophus , granativora , miliaria , latoucheornis , schoeniclus , cristemberiza and ocyris ; but phylogenetic studies # r # r show that melophus and latoucheornis ( each with a single species ) and perhaps others belong to the clade represented by “true” emberiza ; relationships among species may be better indicated by use of subgenera , thus avoiding destabilizing of established nomenclature # r .
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carlos fabregat , josep del hoyo , juan sanabria , jesús laborda , mkennewell , éric roualet , greg baker , juan josé bazán hiraldo , pere monistrol , e . pelayo , christian dortu , alexander grimwade .
stanislav harvančík , gilgit2 , lars petersson , arodris , josep del hoyo , carlos fabregat , juan josé bazán hiraldo , oriol soler ferrer , jeel bharat patel , éric roualet , cedric mroczko , paul cools , bernat garcia espluga , juan , james eaton , jens thalund , josé frade , lad , fran trabalon , marco valentini , ken havard , alberto soria , fast flo , paul van giersbergen , michaelp , frédéric pelsy , p . manjunath , josep batlle , phil kindermann , michel carre , rafael merchante , andrew emmerson , theo mamais , skua nature , markus lilje , bmarnell39 , norbert uhlhaas , missoum , zotyesz , aleix comas , juan gonzalez valdivieso , pascal christe , anisarkisyan , paleasi , w . h . schulenburg , ricardo rodriguez , chiefredearth , lluís copete , lior kislev .
mimicry of sylvia undata call 0 : 45 ; 0 : 51 . . .
sonogram images © xeno - canto foundation . sonogram images share the same license terms as the recording they depict .
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 increasing , 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 is extremely large , and hence does not 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 .
recommended citation birdlife international ( 2018 ) species factsheet : emberiza cia . downloaded from urltoken on 09 / 07 / 2018 . recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species : birdlife international ( 2018 ) iucn red list for birds . downloaded from urltoken on 09 / 07 / 2018 .
image : david álvarez , 4 july 2007 ( with permission , for grrlscientist / guardian use only ) [ velociraptorise ] . canon eos 400d digital , iso : 200 , 300 mm , f / 11 . 0 , 1 / 200 sec .
question : even though this spanish mystery bird comes from a large family , few of its fellow family members reside in europe . why ? can you identify this mystery bird ' s taxonomic family and species ?
based on decreasing species richness , it is likely that the emberizids arose in south america , spread into north america and crossed into eastern asia and expanded westward . this explains the comparative paucity of emberizid species in europe and africa when compared to the americas .
this species has light brown upperparts with darker streaks on its back and an unstreaked rufous coloured rump . the wings are streaked with black , rufous and buff . the head and face have strong contrasty black and white markings that are distinctive ; there are dark stripes on the crown , a dark streak through the eyes and another dark stripe that borders the edge of the cheek . the upper mandible of the beak is darker than the lower mandible , which is pale grey . the tail is long and blunt and has white outer tail corners . its underparts are orange - brown . then throat and upper breast are silvery - white . the sexes are similar although the female may occasionally be paler coloured .
you are invited to review all of the daily mystery birds by going to their dedicated graphic index page .
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extends across lower middle latitudes of west palearctic , from mediterranean to caucasus , from warm temperate to steppe climatic zones . avoids most humid or wet situations , closed forest , and good agricultural land , preferring sunny semi - arid terrain , often stony or rocky , with more or less spare shrub vegetation , and usually with no more than scattered trees . often on slopes or hillsides , up to 1900 m , and extralimitally in asia above 4000 m , frequenting mountain villages and gardens . occupies open areas at upper forest limits , juniper scrub , subalpine meadows with shrubs and screes , stone - walled cultivated areas , and vineyards on hillsides .
emberiza cia is a widespread resident across much of southern europe , which accounts for less than half of its global range . its european breeding population is very large ( > 1 , 300 , 000 pairs ) , but underwent a large decline between 1970 - 1990 . although the trend of the key population in spain was unknown during 1990 - 2000 , the species was stable across most of its european range , and was probably stable overall . nevertheless , its total population size probably remains below the level that preceded its decline .
seeds , mainly of grasses , and other parts of plants , invertebrates in breeding season . feeds principally on ground among rocks and scrubby vegetation , or in short grass in fields , at woodland edges , etc . , but not infrequently in bushes or tall herbs taking both seeds and insects . mostly picks seeds from ground , but will also stand on stems , sometimes several at a time , to bend them over and reach see - head , reaches over to seed - head from neighbouring perch , or pulls seed - head down while standing on ground . catches flying insects in short sallies just above ground .
this species has a large range , with an estimated global extent of occurrence of 1 , 000 , 000 - 10 , 000 , 000 km2 . it has a large global population , including an estimated 2 , 600 , 000 - 8 , 200 , 000 individuals in europe ( birdlife international in prep . ) . global population trends have not been quantified , but the species is not believed to approach the thresholds for the population decline criterion of the iucn red list ( i . e . , declining more than 30 % in ten years or three generations ) . for these reasons , the species is evaluated as least concern . [ conservation status from urltoken ]
avibirds , almere , netherlands 2001 - 2012 - your source to the birds of europe . contact ? mail us : info { @ } avibirds . com
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the bar on the top line indicates during which seasons the species can be observed regularly in switzerland . there can be great seasonal fluctuations of numbers . the middle bar indicates the typical migration seasons of a species . the bottom bar indicates the period during which the species normally breeds . as a rule it spans the period from egg - laying to fledging of the young .
querytime : 0 . 0352 s , querycount : 585 , parsetime : 0 . 5371 s , totaltime : 0 . 5723 s , source : cache
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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 .
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british ornithologists ' union checklist ( 7th edition , incl . jan 2009 suppl . ) :
howard and moore 4th edition ( incl . corrigenda vol . 1 - 2 ) :
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a small , dark goose - the same size as a mallard . it has a black head and neck and grey - brown back .
a nocturnal bird that can be seen hawking for food at dusk and dawn .
male ring ouzels are particularly distinctive with their black plumage with a pale wing panel and striking white breast band .
there ' s so much to see and hear at minsmere , from rare birds and otters to stunning woodland and coastal scenery .
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this nondescript lowland farmland bird is the largest of the buntings and is most usually seen perched on a wire or post . it is a stout , dumpy bird brown which flies off with a fluttering flight and with its legs characteristically ' dangling ' . its dramatic population decline in the uk makes it a red list species .
* this map is intended as a guide . it shows general distribution rather than detailed , localised populations .
1 in 4 uk birds are now on the red list of conservation concern . this is an emergency for uk bird life .
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classification from species 2000 & itis catalogue of life : april 2013 selected by valter jacinto - see more .
grzegorz jagodziński added the polish common name
głuszek
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emberiza cia linnaeus 1766
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jennifer hammock split the classifications by urltoken import from emberiza cia linnaeus 1766 to their own page .
c . michael hogan changed the thumbnail image of
file : emberiza cia martien brand . jpg
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valter jacinto marked
image of emberiza cia
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emberiza cia
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valter jacinto marked
image of emberiza cia
as hidden on the
emberiza cia linnaeus 1766
page . reasons to hide : low quality
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the bonelli ' s warblers ( berglaubsänger ) were back in full force with at least 20 individuals calling across the mountain slope . good to have them back !
you put your left leg in , you take your left leg out , you do the hokey pokey and turn around . . .
a black redstart alit briefly when i was in
hunting
position . the green in the background is from the distant fields .
you see , it does help to know what you are looking for in order to find it - pyschologists have been telling us for years , and it finally makes sense .
hi dale , well you are right , it is better to know where these little creatures are , and their habits to be sure to get nice shots of them . i love your black redstart shot . it is well composed and the background is awesome .
. . . first time here . i saw you on the nature blog network page . one of my degrees is in german lit , but i never get to use my german . i enjoy reading about the german and austrian birds and seeing their names in german too ! glad i found your blog !
that is a great comment , den . i love the montague ' s story . thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment !
i found this mocha emerald on the 16th of june . it was rather fresh at that time . its eyes will be brilliant green when it matures . [ image : ©2018 steve b . . .
july often means travel , which sometimes means tourist attractions , which occasionally means exotic or introduced bird species . following me here ? . . .
fall migration is officially on ! after almost 2 weeks of unbearably hot weather a cold front moved in thursday night , bringing cooler winds and southboun . . .
the antennae farm on haggerman rd . was loaded with dickcissels and bobolinks this evening . lighting was great , and birds were cooperative .
☀26c * tuesday 3rd july 2018 * ~ * ryton wood * : although part of ryton wood was lost to sand and gravel extraction in the 1960s , the wood has been returned t . . .
i was cycling sunday long distance to my favorite felda krau 1 ( oil palm plantation ) , when noticed the road kill by the road side . what a pity beautiful w . . .
at this time of the year with plenty of daylight i like to make early morning excursions into bowland . bowland ' s lanes and backroads are very quiet and espe . . .
i got very jealous of the * rose - coloured starling * at ashington the other week but news of numbers building up in central europe and an impending invasio . . .
ha llegado el momento de tomarse un respiro . en realidad , lo llevo haciendo
de facto
desde hace unos meses y ahora os lo comunico : este blog no se actual . . .
a field herper ' s dream is to have the kind of perfect timing where every outing produces cool herps . to be honest , on the first outing of the year i will b . . .
coffee and birding go together like bacon and more bacon . birds and beans coffee is the only brand of coffee that solely sells organic , shade - grown , and . . .
has it been a year already ? ? on a quick note i just rented the nikon d850 here are a few early pine warbler shots from various locations .
after waking from the afternoon siesta , i stepped out of the darkness into the brilliant sunshine bathing the small balcony of my room . it did not look pro . . .
another photo from my new mexico trip . i ' ve also posted another video on youtube . the first couple of photos were from the south end of the wilderness are . . .
hi further to our conversation , there are four aged invoices outstanding . please can you look at these and provide an update regarding payment . thank y . . .
a remarkable discovery of a new spectacular antbird just a stone throw away from where birders come regularly for scarlet - banded barbet . but the site is th . . .
lots of lifers i spent a week’s holiday in beautiful curaçao and spotted lots of birds i’d never seen before , like magnificent frigatebirds , bare - eyed pi . . .
sunday 9 october and news came in of a * siberian accentor * ( * prunella montanella * ) on shetland – the first record for britain . this is not a bird i thought . . .
hey there all . don ' t know if anyone even reads this blog anymore as i kind of stopped this past summer as i wasn ' t birding as much and my camera broke and . . .
* the islands of pilgrims * by nigel blake television allows us to experience the many great nature spectacles in this world , exotic places that we can oft . . .
i held my breath and my heart stopped beating as the lions walked no more than 10 feet ( 3 . 048 meters ) from joan’s truck , just ambling past up . . .
in august , 2012 i guided a five - day abridged version of my absolute birding tour . it was with ron and ben barkley , a farther son duo from the u . s . a . ben is . . .
i published my first blog on this site back when it was blogspot back in 2004 . for the last year and a half i’ve run a little experiment posting my blog en . . .
gastbeitrag von susanne stöger bei schönstem herbstwetter erlebte eine gruppe holländischer und belgischer journalisten das halltal von seiner charmant - rau . . .
wir sind viel gewandert in diesem jahr – die blogeinträge waren etwas weniger , da wir die meisten fotos auf unserer facbookseite veröffentlicht haben . die . . .
* click on any image to see larger file in seperate window * i think the saltee islands off the coast of co . wexford must be one of irelands greatest wi . . .
parrots are one of my favorite groups of birds . it all started with me getting involved in a research project at university studying the cape parrot ( poice . . .
keeping a weather eye on birdguides , i see there are a few red - footed falcons and white - winged black terns filtering into the uk at the moment . i’d dearly . . .
i ' ve moved everything over to the * blogspot address * . there ' s nothing more to see here ! update your link to : urltoken
so , putting paid to the idea of an official whale shark season in utila , there have been more whale sharks sighted in june this year , than in may . so far , . . .
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recommended observation points : sangüesa , lumbier - arbaiun , belagua , etc . . .
observation : relativamente fácil , pero puede pasar desapercibida , pues no presenta densidades elevadas . es un pájaro confiado .
description : pájaro de tonos pardos por todo el cuerpo con rayado negro en espalda . cabeza y pecho grises . líneas negras en la cabeza muy conspícuas . sobre arbustos o en el suelo .
opening hours , dates and guide prices . we recommend you confirm with the entity in question .
classified as vulnerable ( vu ) on the iucn red list 2007 ( 1 ) .
this information is awaiting authentication by a species expert , and will be updated as soon as possible . if you are able to help please contact : arkive @ urltoken
allaby , m . ( 1992 ) dictionary of zoology . oxford university press , oxford .
thieme , m . l . , abell , r . , stiassny , m . l . j . , skelton , p . , lehner , b . , teugels , g . g . , dinerstein , e . , kamdem toham , a . , burgess , n . and olson , d . ( 2005 ) freshwater ecoregions of africa and madagascar : a conservation assessment . island press , washington , dc .
terms of use - the displayed portlet may be used as a link from your website to arkive ' s online content for private , scientific , conservation or educational purposes only . it may not be used within apps .
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team wild , an elite squadron of science superheroes , needs your help ! your mission : protect and conserve the planet’s species and habitats from destruction .
this species is affected by global climate change . to learn about climate change and the species that are affected , visit our climate change pages .
wildscreen is a registered charity in england and wales no . 299450 wildscreen usa is a registered 501 ( c ) ( 3 ) non - profit organisation in the usa
forest : temperate ; shrubland : temperate ; rocky areas ( eg . inland cliffs , mountain peaks ) : ; artificial / terrestrial : plantations
ioc world bird list ( v7 . 1 ) , gill , f and d donsker ( eds ) . 2017 .
occurs across much of sub - saharan africa , from senegal to ethiopia through the drc , tanzania , zambia , angola and malawi to southern africa . here it is uncommon to locally very common in zimbabwe extending into western and northern mozambique , the eastern half of south africa , lesotho , swaziland , eastern botswana and north - western and central namibia . it generally prefers mountainsides , rocky ridges , dolerite and granite outcrops with scattered bushes and trees , bare rocky clearings in woodland , eroded stony slopes and gullies , dry watercourses and deserted borrow pits and quarries .
largely resident , with some populations ( especially in zimbabwe and north - eastern south africa ) undertaking a northerly winter migration from november - may .
it mainly eats seeds and insects , mainly foraging on bare ground among rocks , occasionally plucking food from grass and hawking termite alates aerially . the following food items have been recorded in its diet :
egg - laying season is from october - june , peaking from january - april .
it lays 2 - 4 eggs , which are incubated by both sexes for about 12 - 14 days .
the chicks are fed by both parents on a diet of mostly seeds , leaving the nester after approximately 14 - 16 days .
hockey par , dean wrj and ryan pg 2005 . roberts - birds of southern africa , viith ed . the trustees of the john voelcker bird book fund , cape town .
vickery , j . & jones , p . j . 2002 . a new ornithological institute in nigeria . bull . african bird club 9 ( 1 ) : 61–62 .
wilson , j . m . & mcgregor , r . 2002 . house sparrow passer domesticus in nigeria . malimbus 24 ( 1 ) : 41–42 .
wilson , j . m . 2002 . first breeding record of little grey woodpecker dendropicos elachus in nigeria . malimbus 24 ( 1 ) : 42–43 .
wilson , j . m . & sallinen , p . 2003 . first records of didric cuckoo chrysococcyx caprius parasitizing cricket warbler spiloptila clamans . malimbus 25 : 95–96 .
ottosson , u . & waldenström , j . 2002 . a yellow - throated leaflove ( chlorochicla flavicollis ) with extra wing feathers among the primaries . afring news 31 ( 1 & 2 ) : 24–25 .
mcgregor , r . & wilson , j . m . 2003 . a major range extension of locust finch ortygospize locustella in west africa . malimbus 25 : 99–101 .
mcgregor , r . 2004 . ortolan buntings rediscovered in nigeria after a 38 year absence . bull . african bird club 11 ( 1 ) : 30 - 31 .
manu , s . , peach , w . & cresswell , w . 2005 . notes on the natural history of the ibadan malimbe malimbus ibadanensis , a threatened nigerian endemic . malimbus 27 : 33 - 39 .
manu , s . , peach , w . , bowden , c . & cresswell , w . 2005 . the effects of forest fragmentation on the population density and distribution of the globally endangered ibadan malimbe malimbus ibadanensis . bird conservation international . 15 : 275 - 285 .
manu , s . , peach , w . & cresswell , w . 2007 . the effects of of edge , fragment size and degree of isolation on avian species richness in highly fragmented forest in west africa . ibis 149 : 287 - 297 .
stervander , m . , ottosson , u . , hulme , m . & molokwu , m . n . 2005 . little rush warbler bradypterus baboecala new to plateau state , nigeria . malimbus 27 : 46 - 47 .
ottosson , u . waldenström , j . hjort , c . & mcgregor , r . 2005 . garden warbler sylvia borin migration in sub - saharan west africa : phenology and body mass changes . ibis 147 : 750 - 757 .
osinubi , t . & agboola , b . 2006 , sighting of the rufous scrub robin cercotrichas galatotes at foot of fusa hills , jos , plateau state , nigeria . malimbus 28 : 46 - 47 .
wilson , j . & cresswell , w . 2006 . how robust are palearctic migrants to habitat loss and degradation in the sahel ? ibis 148 : 789 - 800 .
molokwu , m n . , ottosson , u . & azi , j . observations at a scarlet - chested sunbird chalcomitra senegalensis nest . malimbus 28 : 45 - 46 .
mwansat , g . s . , chaskda , a . a . ; longtong , g . t . 2006 . a preliminary survey of the aquatic insects of amurum forest reserve . scientia africana 5 : 35 - 37 .
wilson , j . m and cresswell , w . 2010 . northern wheatear oenanthe oenanthe in the sahel of west africa : distribution , seasonal variation in abundance and habitat associations . ostrich 81 : 115 - 121 .
mcgregor , r . , whittingham , m . j . & cresswell , w . 2007 . survival rates of tropical birds in nigeria , west africa . ibis 149 : 615 - 618 .
hellgren , o . , waldenström , j . , peréz - tris , j . , szöllősi , e . , hasselquist , d . , krizanauskiene , a . , ottosson , u . & bensch , s . 2007 . detecting shifts of transmission areas in avian blood parasites – a phylogenetic approach . molecular ecology 16 : 1281 - 1290 .
tobler , m . & naurin , s . 2008 . on the occurrence of the alpine swift apus melba in nigeria . malimbus 30 ( 2 ) : 167 - 168 .


the red-faced turtle , emydura victoriae ( gray , 1842 ) , is a species of medium-sized aquatic turtle in the family chelidae .

the species inhabits rivers , streams and permanent water bodies across much of northern australia .

red - faced turtle

northern yellow - faced turtle ( emydura tanybaraga ) in the finniss river catchment , nt .
cann , j . 1997 . the northern yellow - faced turtle . monitor 9 ( 1 ) : 24 - 29 , 34 - 35 .
the red - bellied short - necked turtle , also known as the jardine river turtle ( emydura subglobosa ) , is a species of australian short - necked turtle indigenous to australia and papua new guinea ; in the former location , they are considered highly endangered .
the party had said that the turtle’s limbs had been hacked off and the perpetrators had then sprayed the dead animal’s shell with red paint , an act of “a sick mind” .
a green party announcement condemning the brutal torturing and killing of a sea turtle at a paphos beach caused confusion on social media on tuesday , after it emerged that the turtle had been washed ashore dead and marked as counted with red paint by a government official .
however , local daily phileleftheros later reported that the turtle had been washed ashore and bathers who found it informed the government’s marine turtle protection programme .
post - ocular stripe typically bright red , fading with age ; iris without leading and trailing dark spots ; macrocephaly in adults common .
emydura : ' turtle - tail ' . victoriae : after the victoria river , northern territory .
the following morning , a programme official went to the beach , recorded the turtle’s species , dimensions , and condition , obtained tissue samples for dna testing , and spray - painted its shell red so that it wouldn’t be counted again – and also to prevent use of the shell by anyone .
after being informed of a dead turtle at the yeroskipou beach on sunday night , the department said , it notified the cyprus wildlife society , which implements the turtle protection programme in collaboration with the fisheries department .
chelonoidis chilensis gray , 1870 ( turtle ) the type specimen was labeled
valparaiso
( a port in chile ) , so gray named the turtle chilensis . however , valparaiso was only the ship ' s point of departure . that species of turtle is found only in paraguay and argentina , east of the andes .
ms pearce says freshwater turtle shells can become soft and susceptible to damage if animals are not cared for correctly .
meanwhile , news of the turtle’s ‘brutal killing’ reached the green party and prompted their statement on monday , which claimed that the fisheries department couldn’t be bothered to find the people who carried out the killing and sprayed the turtle .
according to the fisheries department , the dead female turtle was a caretta caretta , measured at 70 by 68 centimetres .
tortoises of australia . angus and robertson , sydney . cann , j . ( 1997a ) georges short - necked turtle
they prefer to spend a majority of their time in shallow , muddy waters . the coloration of hatchlings and juveniles are stunningly red or orange , hence their name , though these vibrant colors will fade as they age .
georges , a . , doody , j . s . , eisemberg , c . , alacs , a . a . & rose , m . ( 2008 ) carettochelys insculpta ramsay 1886 - - pignosed turtle , fly river turtle . chelonian research monographs , 5 , in press .
hydromedusa wagler , 1830 ( snake - necked turtle ) unrelated to the cnidarian hydromedusa , known also as anthomedusa , athecate hydroids , and other names .
turtle taxonomy working group [ van dijk , p . p . , j . iverson , a . rhodin , h . shaffer , and r . bour ]
wells , r . w . ( 2007c ) some taxonomic and nomenclatural considerations on the class reptilia in australia . some comments on the elseya dentata ( gray , 1863 ) complex with redescriptions of the johnstone river snapping turtle , elseya stirlingi wells and wellington , 1985 and the alligator river snapping turtle , elseya jukesi wells 2002 .
meiolania owen , 1886 ( oligocene - to - holocene turtle ) it was named meiolania (
small roamer
) in reference to megalania (
large roamer
) , a monitor lizard which it was first thought to be a smaller relative of . when more remains were found , it was realized that it was a turtle .
webb , r . g . ( 2002 [ 2003 ] ) observations on the giant softshell turtle , pelochelys cantorii , with description of a new species . hamadryad , 27 , 99107 .
encyclopedia of turtles . tfh publications , new jersey . ramsay , e . p . ( 1886 ) on a new genus and species of fresh water turtle from the fly river , new guinea
in a statement , the department expressed surprise at the “false reports” alleging the “brutal torturing of a turtle” , which reproduce claims made in a misleading statement by the paphos branch of the green party .
rhodin , a . , ibarrondo , b . r . & kuchling , g . ( 2008a ) chelodina mccordi , rhodin 1994 - - roti island snake necked turtle , mccord ' s snake necked turtle , kura kura rote . chelonian conservation and biology , 5 , 008 . 1 - 008 . 8 , doi : 10 . 3854 / crm . 5 . 008 . mccordi . v1 . 2008 .
georges , a . , doody , j . s . , young , j . & cann , j . ( 2000 ) the pig - nosed turtle . cooperative research centre for freshwater ecology , canberra .
alacs , a . a . ( 2008 ) forensics , phylogeography and population genetics : a case study using the northern snake - necked turtle , chelodina rugosa . phd thesis , university of canberra , canberra , australia .
thomson , s . & georges , a . ( 2009 ) myuchelys gen . nov . —a new genus for elseya latisternum and related forms of australian freshwater turtle ( testudines : pleurodira : chelidae ) zootaxa 2053 : 32–42 .
according to the reports , an officer then went to the beach and painted the dead turtle , to make sure it wouldn’t be counted twice . the officer then informed the municipality so they could remove the animal from the beach .
stegosaurus marsh 1877 ( dinosaur ) when o . c . marsh described the dinosaur , he thought that its distinctive triangular plates covered the creature like a giant turtle , so he named it stegosaurus , or
roof lizard
.
thomson , s . & georges , a . ( 2009 ) myuchelys gen . nov . - - a new genus for elseya latisternum and related forms of australian freshwater turtle ( testudines : pleurodira : chelidae ) . zootaxa , in press .
natural hybridization and evolution . oxford university press , oxford . artner , h . ( 2003 ) die rezenten schildkrötenarten der erde . emys , 10 ( 6 ) , ivxxxviii . artner , h . ( 2008 ) the world ' s extant turtle species , part 1
emmott ' s short - neck turtle , emydura macquarii emmotti ssp . nov . pp . 6061 in mccord , w . , cann , j . & joseph - ouni , m . ( ed . ) a taxonomic assessment of emydura ( testudines : chelidae ) with descriptions of new subspecies from queensland , australia
wells , r . w . ( 2009 ) some taxonomic and nomenclatural considerations on the class reptilia in australia . a new species of freshwater turtle in the genus wollumbinia wells 2007 ( reptilia : chelidae ) from eastern australia .
australian biodiversity record
, 2009 ( 1 ) , 112 [ privately produced , available from the author ] .
thomson , s . , kennett , r . , tucker , a . d . , fitzsimmons , n . n . , featherstoni , p . , alacs , a . a . & georges , a . ( 2009 ) chelodina burrungandjii thomson , kennett and georges 2000 - - sandstone snake - necked turtle . chelonian monographs , 5 , in press .
wells , r . w . ( 2007b ) some taxonomic and nomenclatural considerations on the class reptilia in australia . notes on the recently described freshwater turtle chelodina canni mccord and thomson , 2002 and a redescription of chelodina rankini wells and wellington , 1985 .
australian biodiversity record
, 2007 ( 1 ) , 15 [ privately produced , available from the author ] .
turtle taxonomy working group [ van dijk , p . p . , iverson , j . b . , rhodin , a . g . j . , shaffer , h . b . , and bour , r . ] . 2014 . turtles of the world , 7th edition : annotated checklist of taxonomy , synonymy , distribution with maps , and conservation status . in : rhodin , a . g . j . , pritchard , p . c . h . , van dijk , p . p . , saumure , r . a . , buhlmann , k . a . , iverson , j . b . , and mittermeier , r . a . ( eds . ) . conservation biology of freshwater turtles and tortoises : a compilation project of the iucn / ssc tortoise and freshwater turtle specialist group . chelonian research monographs 5 ( 7 ) : 000 . 329–479 , doi : 10 . 3854 / crm . 5 . 000 . checklist . v7 . 2014 .
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australian reptile photos , distribution maps and information covering snakes and lizards , crocodiles and turtles , including colubrid snakes , pythons , elapids ( called cobras or coral snakes in some countries ) , sea snakes , file snakes , blind ( or worm ) snakes , sea turtles , freshwater turtles ( or tortoises ) dragon lizards ( agamas ) , gecko ' s , legless lizards , monitor lizards ( often called goanna ' s in australia ) , skinks and crocodilia .
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this service may include material from agence france - presse ( afp ) , aptn , reuters , aap , cnn and the bbc world service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced .
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syntypes : bmnh 1947 . 3 . 5 . 95 and 1947 . 3 . 5 . 96 ; wells and wellington ( 1985 : 14 ) designated bmnh 1947 . 3 . 5 . 95 lectotype .
beolens , bo ; michael watkins , and michael grayson 2011 . the eponym dictionary of reptiles . johns hopkins university press , baltimore , usa - get paper here
bonin , f . , devaux , b . & dupré , a . 2006 . turtles of the world . english translation by p . c . h . pritchard . johns hopkins university press , 416 pp .
bour , r . 2008 . global diversity of turtles ( chelonii ; reptilia ) in freshwater . hydrobiologia 595 : 593–598
cogger , h . g . 2014 . reptiles and amphibians of australia , 7th ed . csiro publishing , xxx + 1033 pp .
cogger , h . g . 2000 . reptiles and amphibians of australia , 6th ed . ralph curtis publishing , sanibel island , 808 pp .
georges , a . 1996 . electrophoretic delineation of species boundaries within the short - necked freshwater turtles of australia ( testudines : chelidae ) . zoological journal of the linnean society ( 1996 ) , 118 : 241–260 .
gray , j . e . 1842 . description of some new species of reptiles , chiefly from the british museum collection . zoological miscellany 2 : 57 - 59 . - get paper here
mccord , w . p . ; joseph - ouni , m . & cann , j . 2003 . chelonian illustrations # 7 . short - neck , western swamp , and pig - nose turtles from australia and new guinea . reptilia ( gb ) ( 27 ) : 64 - 68 - get paper here
wells , r . w . and wellington , c . r . 1985 . a classification of the amphibia and reptilia of australia . australian journal of herpetology , supplementary series , ( 1 ) : 1 - 61 . - get paper here
wilson , s . & swan , g . 2010 . a complete guide to reptiles of australia , 3rd ed . chatswood : new holland , 558 pp .
worrell , e . 1963 . reptiles of australia . angus & robertson ( sydney ) , xv + 207 pp
this database is maintained by peter uetz ( database content ) and jakob hallermann , zoological museum hamburg ( new species and updates ) .
comments on social media charged that the green party rushed to politically exploit the incident without bothering to check the facts .
then , the municipal authorities were notified to collect and bury the dead animal , the statement said .
its body had started to decompose , hence the decayed limbs , but showed no signs of abuse .
he does though – never hear his voice protesting the shooting , netting and lime sticking of european migrating birds , many of whom are protected or endangered in their host countries . . social media has a thread calling a boycott after three hundred song thrushes shot in cyprus in just three days by a couple of hunters who thoughtfully provided a picture . they are protected and prized for their song in the uk .
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triturating surfaces of the maxillary sheath expanded , meeting medially to form a crushing plate on the roof of the mouth ; length of mandibular symphysis in adults about 1 . 5 times the horizontal diameter of the tympanum .
- georges & thomson ( 2010 ) . diversity of australasian freshwater turtles , with an annotated synonymy and keys to species . zootaxa , 2496 : 1 - 37 .
northern australia , extending across the kimberley region of western australia to the fitzroy drainage in the west .
note : these are general threats and may not apply to this particular species .
there are many ways you can help our reptiles . here are my top three suggestions :
georges , a . & thomson , s . ( 2010 ) . diversity of australasian freshwater turtles , with an annotated synonymy and keys to species . zootaxa , 2496 : 1 - 37 . - search web for this article
note : the links below are automatically generated . some may not take you to useful information .
notes and disclaimer this information may not be complete . while all care is taken to ensure the accuracy of the information in this page , primary sources should always be consulted for definitive information . animals have an endearing habit of disobeying the rules , so the information on this page should be interpreted with a degree of flexibility . the author and site operator accepts no responsibility for any losses or damages incurred through using this web site or the information contained herein . don ' t get bitten by anything ! this page may be cited as : emydura victoriae at the australian reptile online database . last updated 2013 - 10 - 02 22 : 20 : 11 . retrieved from urltoken on the 10th of july , 2018 . before citing information contained in arod , please read our citing arod page . copyright notice this page , its content and layout are copyright © 2007 - 2018 stewart macdonald / ug media , unless otherwise stated . all photographs in the australian reptile online database are © the photographer and may not be reproduced in any form without the express written consent of the photographer . no part of the australian reptile online database may be reproduced without written permission from stewart macdonald .
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acinonyx ( cheetah ) from gk . akineo ( no movement ) + onyx ( claw ) , referring to the popular belief that cheetahs have non - retractable claws . this is not true . cheetahs ' claws are fully retractable , but their retracted claws remain exposed because , unlike other cats , they lack a skin sheath to cover them .
alligator ( alligator ) misspelling of
el lagarto ,
spanish for
the lizard .
ambrosia l . ( ragweed ) named after the food of the gods , this genus is a major cause of allergies . linnaeus was probably considering that ancient herbals recommended a . maritima to treat upset stomachs .
apidium ( early oligocene primate , from egypt ) the name means
little bull
( from apis and mnevis , a pair of bulls mentioned on the rosetta stone as being used in egyptian rites ) ; the fossil was orginally thought to be a hoofed animal .
apus apus ( common swift ) from greek for
footless
( see also paradisaea apoda below ) . the swift ' s feet are small but far from absent .
arctocephalos pusillus ( seal )
pusillus
means
very little
, but the seal grows to about 3 meters and one tonne . the type specimen was a juvenile not recognized as such at the time .
arrhinoceratops parks , 1921 ( ceratopsian dinosaur ) name means
without a nose horn face
. parks interpreted the fossil as having
no trace of a horn core
nor even a vestige of one . in 1981 helen tyson restudied it , stating ,
to deny the presence of a horn core in arrhinoceratops , which . . . possesses a distinct horn - like organ , contributes neither to the homology of this structure nor to an accurate characterization of the genus .
barbus viviparus weber , 1897 ( bowstripe barb ) not viviparous but egg - laying , like most fish .
basilosaurus harlan , 1834 ( eocene whale ) not a
king lizard
, and unrelated to dinosaurs . the original misidentified remains of several animals were combined and sent on a tour as a 130 - ft . extinct sea serpent . [ transactions of the american philosophical society 4 : 379 - 403 ]
bufo marinus ( cane toad ) the toad is adaptable to many habitats , but it is not marine .
columbicola extinctus malcolmson , 1937 ( flight - feather louse ) both these lice were reported from the passenger pigeon and were thought to have gone extinct with it , hence their names , but both are still living on other pigeons . c . defectus turned out to be a previously described species c . flavens .
cephalopentandra echirrosa ( cogniaux ) jeffrey , 1896 ( african plant ) generic name means
head - with - five - stamens without - tendrils
, but the flower has only three stamens , and the plant has tendrils .
chaeropus ecaudatus ogilby , 1838 ( pig - footed bandicoot ) the name of this extinct marsupial literally means
pig - foot tailless ,
but it had the longest tail of any bandicoot . it was described from a specimen which had lost its tail , though accounts differ whether the loss happened during the animal ' s life or during taxidermy .
cuniculus brisson , 1762 ( paca ) the name means
rabbit
in latin , but the paca is a rodent , not a lagomorph .
dinosauria owen , 1842 means
fearfully great lizard
( or , as often quoted ,
terrible lizard ,
but terrible in the sense of
awesome
) , but many were small and inoffensive , and none were lizards . it should be noted , however , that there is no latin word for
reptile ,
so
saur
had to stand in .
eonessa anaticula wetmore , 1938 ( eocene bird ) literally
dawn - duck duckling
, the fossil was first described as a primitive duck . the fossil has too little detail to determine its order , but more detailed work shows that it has little similarity to ducks .
epilachna vigintisexpunctata vigintisexpunctata ( 28 - spotted potato ladybird )
vigintisexpunctata
means 26 - spotted .
epilachna vigintioctopunctata pardalis ( 26 - spotted potato ladybird ) .
vigintioctopunctata
means 28 - spotted .
felis lacustris gazin , 1933 (
lake cat
) the name lacustris ( latin ,
lake
) does not indicate that this cat had aquatic habits , but indicates its place of origin , the hagerman lake beds . however , the sediments there are now interpreted as a flood plain rather than an ancient lake .
fregata minor ( greater frigate bird ) it was originally named pelecanus minor , the little pelican ; when moved to a new genus , priority demanded that it still be called minor . the lesser frigate is f . ariel .
gelidiophycus freshwateri boo , park , & boo , 2013 ( marine alga ) named after dr . d . wilson freshwater , who provided the first molecular systematic study of the gelidiales and showed that a new genus may be warrented . the alga is not found in fresh water itself . [ taxon 62 : 1105 - 1116 ]
geosaurus cuvier , 1824 ( late jurassic to early cretaceous marine crocodile ) means
earth lizard
, but it was strictly aquatic .
globicephala macrorhynchus gray , 1846 ( pilot whale ) john gray , working from skeletal materials only , guessed this whale had a large beak , or macrorhynchus in greek . but the pilot whale ' s head is quite rounded , suggesting anything but a beak .
haemophilus influenzae ( bacterium ) so named because it was thought to be the cause of influenza , until the virus was discovered in the 1930s .
hydrangea serratifolia ( hook . & arn . ) f . phil . ( hydrangea ) literally ,
with serrated leaves
, but leaf edges are typically smooth . the specimen hooker received from darwin had apparently been nibbled by pests .
hyracotherium owen , 1841 ( extinct equid ) the name means
hyrax - like beast ,
but it is a primitive horse , not a hyrax .
ixobrychus billberg , 1828 ( dwarf bittern ) the name means
mistletoe - roarer
. at that time , it was a common belief that bitterns blew into a reed in order to produce their booming call . billberg was not only mistaken about that , he also confused ixios ( reed ) with ixos ( mistletoe ) .
lawsonia inermis ( henna ) originally , henna was called by three names , lawsonia inermis , l . spinosa , and l . alba , referring respectively to a young spineless plant , an adult spiny plant , and a white - flowered variety . when botanists realized that these were the same species , they chose the name inermis (
unarmed
) for it , even though henna does have spines .
libycosaurus bonnarelli , 1947 ( miocene anthracothere ) the name means
lizard of libya
, but it is an artiodactyl mammal .
lobodon carcinophagus hombron & jacquinot , 1842 ( crabeater seal ) the scientists who discovered this seal , finding soft shell remains in its mouth , inferred that it fed on crabs and named it accordingly , but in fact it eats krill . crabs are not even found in its antarctic environment .
lygistorrhina sanctaecatharinae thompson 1975 ( fungus gnat ) described from a specimen from st . catherine ' s island , ga , so it should be spelled l . sanctaecatherinae .
megarachne hunicken , 1980 ( fossil terrestrial eurypterid ) named
big spider
based on its interpretation as an enormous upper carboniferous therophosid spider , and formerly listed by guinness as the world ' s largest spider . it is now shown to be a eurypterid , or sea scorpion .
metaspriggina simonetta & insom ( cambrian chordate ) named after , but unrelated to , the ediacaran organism spriggina .
miohippus marsh , 1874 and pliohippus marsh , 1874 ( fossil horses ) these names refer to the miocene and pliocene epochs , respectively . however , most miohippus are found in the oligocene , and all pliohippus are from the miocene . marsh believed that his miohippus fossils were from the miocene , but later work showed him mistaken . since pliohippus was first described , the genus was split in two , with the later pliocene horses reclassified as dinohippus , and the date of the pliocene epoch itself has shrunk . eohippus is still from the eocene , but it is not the scientific name because hyracotherium takes prescedence .
myrmecobius waterhouse , 1836 ( numbat ) the name means
lives on ants
, but this marsupial lives on termites , eating ants only incidentally .
myrmecophaga tridactyla linnaeus , 1758 ( giant anteater ) the specific name means
three fingers
, but it has five on each foot . four fingers on each front foot have claws , two of which are particularly elongate . the anteater does , at least , eat ants .
myxobolus cerebralis hofer , 1903 ( myxosporean parasite ) this parasite , the cause of whirling disease in salmon , was originally thought to infect fish brains . in fact , it is primarily a disease of cartilage .
naashoibitosaurus hunt and lucas , 1993 ( cretaceous hadrosaur ) so named because the type specimen was collected from what was thought to be naashoibito member of the kirtland formation , but in fact it came from an older member .
navicula antonii lange - bertalot ( diatom ) as stated in the paper ' s protologue , the name was intended to honor the late diatomist a . grunow ( the name navicula grunowii was already taken ) . but grunow ' s first name was albert , not anton . ( lange - bertalot later determined this name to be a synonym of n . menisculus var . grunowii . )
neoleptoneta myopica gertsch ( tooth cave spider ) the name implies near - sightedness , but the spider is blind .
neomylodon listai ameghino ( ground sloth ) ground sloths were thought to be still extant in south america during the 19th century . explorer ramon lista once shot at an animal which matched a crude description of one . when fresh - appearing dung and swatches of skin complete with reddish - brown fur and dermal ossicles turned up in an argentinean cave in 1888 , the animal was dubbed
lista ' s new mylodon .
20th century carbon dating revealed the hide to be roughly 13 , 500 years old .
nephanes titan newman , 1834 ( beetle ) this beetle is 0 . 4mm long .
odocoileus virginianus clavium ( key deer ) the subspecies name is from latin clavis , meaning
key ( as for a lock )
, but the florida keys to which the name refers are a completely different kind of key , derived from spanish cayo ,
shoal , reef .
a better latinization would be
cajorum .
the genus , which means
hollow tooth
, is also verges on being misnamed ; the type specimen had tooth cavities , but not moreso than other deer .
ornithocheiroidea ( a subgroup of pterosaurs ) british palaeontologist harry grovier seely was convinced that pterosaurs were the ancestors of birds , though , after much criticism , he altered his position to birds and pterosaurs having a close common ancestor . seely bolstered his arguments by making reference to birds whenever he coined the name for a newly described pterosaur : ornithocheirus (
bird hand
) , ornithostoma (
bird mouth
) , ornithodesmus (
bird link
) - - all within the ornithocheiroidea . seely even proposed replacing pterosauria with
ornithosauria .
in 1993 , ornithodesmus was recognized as a small theropod dinosaur and renamed istiodactylus howse , milner , & martill , 2001 . ornithocheirus and ornithostoma are still valid taxa .
ornithopoda and theropoda ( both dinosaur suborders ) the names mean
bird feet
and
beast feet
respectively . yet theropods are very bird - like ( indeed , birds evolved from this group ) , including their feet , and ornithopods are more beast - like . ornithopods were so - named for their three - toed feet , but those feet are still less birdlike than the three - toed feet of theropods .
ontocetus leidy , 1859 ( miocene walrus ) the - cetus means
whale
, but the tooth it was named for belonged to a walrus . onto - probably was intended to mean
existing
( it can also mean
dung
) , adding to the error .
oviraptor philoceratops osborn , 1924 ( theropod dinosaur ) the name means
ceratopsian - loving egg raider
because the first fossil was found with what was thought to be protoceratops eggs , but the eggs turned out to be its own ; most likely , it was guarding its own nest . ( osborn did note that the name could
entirely mislead us as to its feeding habits and belie its character ,
but he went with the name anyway . )
pan troglodytes ( linnaeus ) ( chimpanzee ) linnaeus , relying on unreliable stories , named a species homo troglodytes . it is not entirely certain which species , since he had no type specimen , but it was probably the chimpanzee , which carries the name today . but
troglodytes
means
cave dweller ,
and chimps do not live in caves .
paradisaea apoda linnaeus , 1760 ( greater bird of paradise )
footless one from paradise
; it was described from two skins brought to seville in 1522 by the victoria , the surviving ship from magellan ' s circumnavigational voyage . the native papuans had removed the specimens ' legs , and the europeans therefore assumed that the birds remained airborne their entire lives ( with the female laying and brooding eggs in a groove between the male ' s wings ) . a live individual captured in 1824 finally revealed that the bird spends most of its life standing on rather massive feet .
paradoxurus cuvier 1821 ( asian palm civet ) . the type specimen , at france ' s vincennes zoo , had a deformed tail , leading cuvier to think it was prehensile ( paradoxurus = ' with a strange tail ' ) . he called the type species p . hermaphroditus , misnaming it on both counts .
pelorovis ( extinct african cattle ) the name means
monstrous sheep
, but it is closely related to cows and buffalo .
peponocephala nishiwaki & norris , 1966 ( melon - headed whale ) the name was supposed to mean
melon head ,
but pepo does not actually mean
melon ,
and
pumpkin - headed whale
has not caught on in popular usage .
phytosauridae jaeger , 1828 ( triassic semi - aquatic reptiles ) name means
plant lizard
because the petrified mud fillings in the jaw of the first specimen found were thought to be herbivore teeth , but the creatures were wholly carnivorous .
picrophilus schleper et al . 1996 ( archaea ) this microbe is an extreme acidophile . the genus description says it derives from
gr . adj . pikros , acidic ,
but greek pikros means
bitter
, which is more often associated with alkaloids . [ ijsem 46 : 814 ]
picus awokera temminck , 1836 ( japanese green woodpecker ) its epithet is almost but not quite a tranliteration of its japanese name , aogera .
primobucco brodkorb 1970 ( fossil bird ) bucco is a genus of puffbird , and primobucco , from its name , should be a primitive bird of that kind , as it was once thought to be . primobucco ' s status is not entirely clear yet , but a puffbird it isn ' t .
procyon storr , 1780 ( raccoon ) the name means
doglike
, but raccoons are more closely related to bears .
prosauropoda von huene , 1920 ( group of long - necked dinosaurs ) mistakenly thought to be ancestral to the sauropods .
raphus cucullatus linnaeus , 1758 ( dodo )
raphus
comes from a vulgar term for
rump .
the dodo ' s common name and former scientific name ( didus ineptus l . ) are also perjorative . however , study of fossils show that wild dodos were sleeker and active ; their modern image came from overfed obese captive specimens and / or overstuffed specimens .
silphium l . ( 1753 ) ( rosinweed ) in classical antiquity ,
silphium
referred to a plant , valuable for seasonings and medicine , in the umbellifer family , probably a now - extinct member of the genus ferula . the genus silphium is in the asteraceae family .
sirenia ( manatees and dugongs ) columbus wrote in his log entry of 9 january 1493 ,
i saw three sirens that came up very high out of the sea . they are not as beautiful as they are painted , since in some ways , they have a face like a man .
columbus and many explorers who followed him thought these inoffensive , rotund , placid , aquatic vegetarians were the deadly sirens or mermaids of fable whose haunting songs lured sailors to their deaths .
speothos venaticus lund , 1842 ( bush dog ) named by danish naturalist peter wilhelm lund as a fossil from caves in brazil , thus its generic name meaning
cave wolf
. it was first described in living form in 1843 by the same person , but he failed to realise they were the same animal and named the living dogs icticyon , which name was used for speothos until well into the 20th century .
synthliboramphus wumizusume temminck , 1836 ( japanese murrelet ) the epithet is a mis - transliteration of the bird ' s japanese name , umi - suzumi .
thalassodromeus sethi kellner & campos , 2002 ( cretaceous pterosaur ) the genus name means
sea runner ,
referring to presumed skimming behavior , but further analysis shows the pterosaur was most likely a terrestrial forager . the pterosaur ' s large crest inspired the name
sethi
, after the egyptian god seth , but kellner probably confused seth with amun , who is depicted with a headdress shaped remarkably like the pterosaur ' s crest .
toninia aromatica ( turner ex sm . ) a . massal . ( lichen ) the lichen is odorless , but turner sent it to smith in a perfumed envelope .
tsaagan mangas norell et al . , 2006 ( cretaceous maniraptor )
tsaagan , mongolian for white ; mangas , mongolian for monster
, except mongolian for white is tsagaan . [ am . mus . nov . 3545 : 2 ]
tupinambis l . ( tegu ) linnaeus apparently got the name from piso & marcgrave ' s historia naturalis brasiliae ( 1648 ) , which , describing the lizard , begins ,
teivgvacv & temapara tupinambis
, or
[ it is called by the ] tupinambas ' teiuguacu ' and ' temapara ' .
rather than using a tupi name for the lizard , though , linnaeus took the name for the tupi ethnic group .
teiu - guacu
means literally
lizard - big
; there is another genus of south american lizard , teius , derived from the tupinamba name .
vulcanodon raath , 1972 ( sauropod dinosaur ) vulcanodon (
volcano tooth
) was described from teeth and a headless partial skeleton found in rocks of volcanic origin . it was later found that the teeth were from another ( non - sauropod ) animal . the skeleton called
volcano tooth
has no known teeth .
zoraptera silvestri , 1913 ( insect ) the name ( from greek ) means
pure wingless
, but some forms , discovered after the family was described , have four wings .
apterocyclus honoluluensis waterhouse , 1871 ( kauai flightless stag beetle ) . named at the british natural history museum from a specimen that was mailed in a package postmarked
honolulu
( on the island of oahu ) . its geographic restriction to the high elevation forests of the island of kauai was not realized until later .
blattella germanica linnaeus , 1767 ( german cockroach ) native to the great lakes region of east africa . carried across the mediterranean to europe over 1000 years ago .
bucco capensis ( collared puffbird ) : from south america , not the cape region of africa .
capsicum chinense although it is used in chinese cooking , it comes , like all other capsica , from the americas .
todus mexicanus lesson , 1838 ( puerto rican tody ) the bird is endemic to puerto rico , not mexico .
chrysolina americana linnaeus , 1758 ( rosemary beetle ) native to the mediterranean region , not america .
cupressus lusitanica mill . ( mexican white cedar )
lusitanica
means
from portugal ,
but the tree is native to central america . apparently it was described from portuguese cultivated trees . [ lorenzi , h . et al . 2003 . árvores exóticas no brasil , p . 30 . ]
cyclamen persicum ( persian cyclamen ) this primrose relative grows in many areas of the middle east , but it is not native to persia .
dacelo novaeguineae ( hermann 1783 ) ( common or laughing kookaburra ) . for novaeguineae = new guinea . sonnerat pictured this solely - australian bird in his new guinea book and claimed to have collected it there . he had in fact probably been given it by joseph banks , whom he met in south africa in 1770 .
eriobotrya japonica ( loquat ) originally from china , though grown in japan for 1000 years .
hibiscus syriacus ( rose of sharon ) from eastern asia ( it is the national flower of south korea ) , not from the levant .
hildewintera polonica ( cactus )
polonica
means
from poland .
the cactus is from bolivia .
hoplias malabaricus ( tiger tetra , a freshwater fish ) pieter bleeker , a dutch medical doctor and ichthyologist , stationed in java between 1848 and 1860 , had a wide network of outposts from where he received his specimens . in 1858 a fish he received was said to originate from
the west ,
which he interpreted as from the malabar coast ( india ' s west coast ) . now we know it came from much farther west , from the rio grande do sul area in brazil .
hoplodactylus duvaucelii ( dumeril and bibron 1836 ) ( duvaucel ' s gecko ) it is from new zealand , but the type specimen was believed to have come from india and so was named after french naturalist alfred duvaucel ( 1796 - 1824 ) who spent much of his life collecting in india .
lagerstroemia indica linnaeus ( crepe myrtle ) from china , not india . lagerström visited several asian countries , and linnaeus got this plant ' s origin wrong when he named it . also , it is a loosestrife , not a myrtle .
lilaeopsis chinensis ( l . ) kuntze ( eastern grasswort ) native to eastern north america , not china .
lodoicea maldivica ( double coconut or coco - de - mer ) native of the seychelles , but first thought to come from the maldives . for centuries , its giant seeds ( up to 44 lbs . ) had been found floating in the indian ocean , but the seeds cannot stand long immersion in sea water . the seychelles is their only home .
nerine sarniensis herb . ( guernsey lily ) sarniensis refers to guernsey (
sarnia
to the romans ) , one of the channel islands between england and france , but the lily is native to southern africa . one story is that a dutch ship carrying bulbs of the lily ran aground on guernsey , and the bulbs washed ashore and took root . another story is that the shipwrecked dutch sailors used the bulbs to barter with the natives , representing them as having come from japan . william herbert named the genus after the nereids , sea nymphs , treating the plant as a gift of the sea goddesses .
numenius madagascariensis ( linnaeus , 1766 ) ( eastern curlew ) linnaeus thought the type specimen came from madagascar . neumann ( 1932 ) presumed the skin arrived from makassar ( a portugal colony in sulavesi is . ) , whose name got confused with the better known name
madagascar
. however , stresemann ( 1941 ) has found that the specimen really was taken in the philippines . the species nests in ne asia and winters from philippines to australia .
opuntia ( cactus ) named after opus , a city in greece , although the cactus is native to the new world only . it is named after opus because pliny said it grew there , but he must have been referring to something else .
panthera pardus japonensis gray , 1862 ( north chinese leopard ) from china , not from japan , where there are no leopards .
pelargopsis ( halcyon ) capensis ( stork - billed kingfisher ) from southern asia , not the cape region of africa .
periplaneta americana linnaeus , 1758 ( american cockroach ) it hails from west africa and was spread worldwide by maritime commerce , reaching north america around 1625 .
pygoscelis papua forster 1781 ( gentoo penguin ) named for papua = new guinea . in his 1776 book on new guinea , pierre sonnerat claimed to have discovered three species of penguin on the island , so this species was named accordingly . in fact sonnerat had stolen the skins from the collection of fellow naturalist philippe commerson . there have never been penguins in new guinea , and sonnerat never travelled as far east as new guinea .
quercus canariensis wild . ( oak ) native to the iberian peninsula and northern africa ; not found naturally in the canary islands .
rattus norvegicus berkenhout , 1769 ( norway rat ) from east asia , not norway .
salvia hispanica l . 1753 ( spanish sage , chia ) described by linnaeus from a specimen apparently growing wild in spain , but it had been introduced from central america by an unknown person , probably for its nutritious seeds .
scilla peruviana ( lily ) from the mediterranean . it was named after a ship , the peru , which brought it from spain to england .
tangara mexicana ( linnaeus , 1766 ) ( turquoise tanager ) found in northern south america , not mexico .
teucrium asiaticum l . ( germander ) grows on the balearic islands in the mediterranean , not in asia .
turnagra capensis sparrman , 1787 . ( piopio , an extinct new zealand bird )
capensis
means
from the cape .
sparrman , who had sailed with captain cook , apparently did not remember the localities where his specimens had been collected and thought the piopio came from south africa . the bird also has a common name of new zealand thrush , although it is unrelated to the thrushes .
varanus indicus ( mangrove monitor ) : from northern australia , new guinea and sulawesi , not india .
zenaida asiatica ( white - winged dove ) from central america and southwest u . s . , not asia .
zonotrichia capensis ( bird , emberizidae ) it lives in south and central america , but was thought to be taken from cape town in south africa .
corydalis mediterranea z . y . su & lidén , 2007 ( herb ) this name is not wrong but may be misleading . mediterranea =
from the middle land
, which in this case is zhongguo , china . [ novon 17 : 490 . ]
echidna forster , 1777 ( eel ) not the echidna . here , the monotreme might more reasonably be considered misnamed , since latin echidna , from greek ekhidna , means
viper
. the monotreme echidna comes from the same word , but may have been influenced by greek ekhinos ,
hedgehog , sea urchin .
erithacus akahige ( robin ) common japanese name : komadori . reputedly , their skins got switched en route to the national natural history museum at leiden , netherlands .
fossa fossa ( fanaloka , or madagascan civet ) the civet with the common name
fossa
is cryptoprocta ferox .
fungia fungites ( linnaeus , 1758 ) ( coral ) it is , if not a fungus , at least a
mushroom coral .
gallinuloides eastman , 1900 ( eocene bird ) named after , but not closely related to , the gallinules ( various aquatic birds in the family rallidae ) .
hilsa regan , 1917 ( shad ) the fish with the common name of hilsa ( also ilish ) is tenualosa ilisha ( f . hamilton , 1822 ) . hilsa kelee , the only species in its genus , has common names of kelee shad , razorbelly , and fivespot herring .
lotus l . ( trefoil ) the common name usually refers to flowers of aquatic plants in the genus nelumbo or nymphaea . the mythical forgetfulness - inducing plant in homer ' s odyssey is thought to be ziziphus lotus , a buckthorn .
nasturtium ( watercress ) not the nasturtium ( tropaeolum ) . the common name came later , so it should be considered the misnamed one .
phoebe ( laurel tree or shrub ) not the phoebe birds , which are genus sayornis .
pinguinus bonnaterre , 1790 ( auk ) not a penguin . the name
penguin
was originally applied to the great auk and later to the antarctic birds . it came to apply exclusively to the latter as the auks were driven to extinction .
platypus herbst 1793 ( a beetle , family platypodidae ) not a platypus ( which is ornithorhynchus shaw 1799 ) .
puffinus puffinus ( manx shearwater ) not the puffin . it was described from a chick by a scientist who thought it was a puffin .
sequoia endl . ( redwood ) the tree with common name sequoia is sequoiadendron giganteum . both , incidentally , were named after sequoyah , a cherokee silversmith who invented a written form for the cherokee language .
thunnus albacares bonnaterre 1788 ( yellowfin , not albacore , tuna ) albacore tuna is t . alalunga . bonnaterre got his specimens mixed up .
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plestiodon is derived from the greek words pleistos meaning
most
and odontos meaning
teeth
. plestiodon = toothy skinks .
laticeps is derived from the latin word latus meaning
broad
and latin suffix ceps meaning
head
.
description : a large skink reaching a maximum snout - vent length ( svl ) of 143 mm ( 5 . 6 inches ) and a maximum total length of 324 mm ( 12 . 8 inches ) ( conant and collins , 1991 ) . in virginia , maximum known svl is 122 mm ( 4 . 8 inches ) and maximum total length is 287 mm ( 11 . 3 inches ) . tail length in the virginia sample was 44 . 1 - 62 . 4 % ( ave . = 58 . 3 ± 4 . 2 , n = 18 ) of total length .
scutellation : body scales smooth , shiny , and overlapping ; scale rows around midbody 28 - 32 ( ave . = 30 . 8 ±1 . 2 , n = 21 ) ; scale rows around tail 10 scales posterior to anal opening 16 - 20 ( ave . = 17 . 4 ±1 . 0 , n = 19 ) , 84 . 2 % of sample is > 16 ; mid - ventral row of subcaudal scales wider than long relative to adjacent scales ; supralabials 8 / 8 ( 52 . 2 % , n = 23 ) , 8 / 7 ( 40 . 4 % ) , or 7 / 7 ( 17 . 4 % ) ; posterior labial scale touching crescent - shaped temporal scale located above ear opening ( 38 . 6 % , n = 44 ; sides counted separately ) , separated from it by 1 or 2 small scales ( 52 . 3 % ) , or separated from it by another temporal scale ( 9 . 1 % ) ; labial scales between rostral and first supralabial entering eye ( = preorbital supralabials ) 5 / 5 ( 53 . 1 % , n = 49 ) , 4 / 5 ( 34 . 7 % ) , or 4 / 4 ( 12 . 2 % ) ; postnasals present ; mental single ; postmentals 2
sexual dimorphism : adult males ( 103 . 3 ± 12 . 5 mm svl , 76 - 122 , n = 26 ) averaged significantly larger than females ( 94 . 9 ±8 . 6 mm svl , 80 - 112 , n = 15 ) . sexual dimorphism index was - 0 . 09 . the heads of adult males were wider ( 13 . 3 - 26 . 6 mm , ave . = 20 . 9 ± 3 . 9 , n = 26 ) than those of adult females ( 12 . 7 - 20 . 3 mm , ave . = 15 . 4 ± 1 . 8 , n = 13 ) . vitt and cooper ( 1985a ) demonstrated that this difference remained after the covariation due to body size was removed . tail length relative to total length ( males 54 . 7 - 61 . 5 % , ave . = 59 . 2 ± 2 . 4 , n = 9 ; females 44 . 1 - 61 . 1 % , ave . = 55 . 3 ± 6 . 6 , n = 5 ) , scale rows around midbody ( males 30 - 32 , ave . = 30 . 6 ± 0 . 7 , n = 8 ; females 29 - 32 , ave . = 31 . 1 ± 1 . 2 , n = 9 ) , and scale rows around the tail 10 scales posterior to the anal plate ( males 16 - 19 , ave . = 17 . 0 ± 1 . 0 , n = 8 ; females 17 - 20 , ave . - 17 . 7 ± 1 . 0 , n = 9 ) were not sexually dimorphic .
adult males lose the body and tail stripes with age , becoming uniformly brown with a brownish - gray tail . the head in males becomes bright orange and enlarged in the temporal region during the mating season ( spring ) but fades and reduces in size in other times of the year . females lack the enlarged orange heads and retain the stripes for life , although they do fade somewhat .
juveniles : juveniles are black to dark brown at hatching , with light - orange head stripes and cream - to - orange - tinted body stripes . sublateral light stripes may be present . the stripes on the tail are blue . the blue tail color is usually retained until sexual maturity is reached ( about 75 - 80 mm svl ) . size at hatching in virginia p . laticeps averaged 32 . 1 ± 2 . 2 mm svl ( 28 - 35 , n = 14 ) and 75 . 9 ± 5 . 2 mm total length ( 65 - 82 , n = 10 ) . body mass at hatching is unknown .
geographic variation : the small sample sizes available from virginia preclude analyses of geographic variation in this species . davis ( 1968 ) examined large samples and noted several differences in scale characters among broad regions .
biology : broad - headed skinks are largely arboreal and , in virginia , inhabit open forested areas . they are most common in open , mature pine stands and in open stands of mixed hardwood - mostly live and turkey oak and loblolly and virginia pines . they have also been found on houses and barns in wooded areas . in south carolina , these skinks were most abundant in stands of live oak ( vitt and cooper , 1985a , 1985b ) . this skink prefers a more xeric habitat than p . fasciatus . all of the known virginia specimens were collected april through august . winter aggregations in underground retreats were found in alabama ( cooper and garstka , 1987 ) . the seasonal activity of this skink and the nature of its changes in habitat use between seasons are unknown .
the population ecology of this species is unknown . large adult males in south carolina guard their territories and the females within them , chasing smaller males away ( vitt and cooper , 1985a ) . this behavior suggests that territory placement is dependent on the availability and spacial distribution of appropriate trees and perch and nesting sites . thus , population sizes may be regulated by the structure of the habitat . adults of this species are probably the longest lived of any virginia lizard . cooper and vitt ( 1987a ) noted a male they collected in south carolina had a potential life span of over 8 years .
remarks : other common names in virginia are big scorpion lizard ( dunn , 1936 ) and greater five - lined skink ( carroll , 1950 ; schmidt , 1953 ; reed , 1957b ) .
conservation and management : plestiodon laticeps is not a species of special concern in virginia because of its wide distribution . in areas of urban development , however , this lizard will have difficulty surviving because of the loss of open wooded stands large enough to support viable populations , and because of mortality from humans and domestic cats . conservation of this element of virginia ' s biodiversity is best approached by the management of large , open wooded areas with mature and dead trees within them , and by control of predation by cats .
broad - headed skink ( top ) vs . five - lined skink ( bottom )
accomack county albemarle county alleghany county botetourt county buckingham county campbell county caroline county charles city county charlotte county chesapeake city chesterfield county clifton forge city cumberland county fairfax county fauquier county fluvanna county greensville county halifax county hanover county henrico county henry county james city county king george county loudoun county montgomery county northampton county northumberland county patrick county pittsylvania county prince william county rockbridge county stafford county suffolk city surry county virginia beach city warren county westmoreland county york county verified in 38 counties / cities .