Rock martin
Rock martin | |
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At the Karoo National Park, Western Cape, South Africa. | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Passeriformes |
Family: | Hirundinidae |
Genus: | Ptyonoprogne |
Species: | P. fuligula
|
Binomial name | |
Ptyonoprogne fuligula (
Lichtenstein, MHC, 1842)[2] | |
Approximate range
| |
Synonyms | |
Hirundo fuligula |
The rock martin (Ptyonoprogne fuligula) is a small
The rock martin builds a deep bowl nest on a sheltered horizontal surface, or a neat quarter-sphere against a vertical rock face or wall. The nest is constructed with mud pellets and lined with grass or feathers, and may be built on natural sites under cliff overhangs or on man-made structures such as buildings, dam walls, culverts and bridges. It is often reused for subsequent broods or in later years. The rock martin is a solitary breeder, and is not gregarious, but small groups may breed close together in suitable locations. The two or three eggs of a typical
The rock martin is often predated on by several fast and agile species of falcon, such as the hobby, and it sometimes carries parasites. Because it is common within its large range with an apparently stable population, it is assessed as a least-concern species on the IUCN Red List.
Taxonomy
The rock martin was formally described in 1842 as Hirundo fuligula by German physician, explorer and zoologist
The four Ptyonoprogne species are members of the swallow family, and are placed in the subfamily Hirundininae, which comprises all swallows and martins except the very distinctive
The genus Ptyonoprogne is closely related to the larger swallow genus, Hirundo, but a DNA analysis published in 2005 showed that a coherent enlarged Hirundo should contain all mud-builder genera. Although the nests of the Ptyonoprogne crag martins resemble those of typical Hirundo species like the barn swallow, the DNA research suggested that if the Delichon house martins are considered to be a separate genus, as is normally the case, Cecropis, Petrochelidon and Ptyonoprogne should also be split off.[7]
Subspecies
There are several subspecies differing in plumage shade or size, although the differences are
Subspecies[a] | |||
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Subspecies | Authority | Range | Comments |
P. f. fuligula | (Lichtenstein, 1842) | Eastern Cape. | The nominate subspecies .
|
P. f. fusciventris | (Vincent, 1933) | Southern Sudan and Ethiopia south to northern Mozambique. | Smaller than the nominate subspecies with dark plumage. |
P. f. bansoensis | (Bannerman, 1923) | West and central Africa. | Small, and very dark plumage. |
P. f. anderssoni | (Sharpe & Wyatt, 1887) | Southwestern Cape north to southern Angola. | Size similar to nominate, but paler plumage. |
P. f. pretoriae | Roberts, 1922 | Eastern South Africa. | Plumage as nominate, but larger. |
Description
The rock martin of the nominate subspecies P. f. fuligula is 12–15 cm (4.7–5.9 in)
The rock martin's flight is slow, with rapid wing beats interspersed with flat-winged glides, and it is more acrobatic than the larger Eurasian crag martin. It is a quiet bird; the song is a muffled twitter, and other calls include a 'trrt' resembling the call of the
The rock martin is much drabber than most African swallows, and confusion is unlikely except with other crag martins or with sand martins of the genus
Distribution and habitat
The rock martin breeds in suitable habitat in Africa north to Nigeria, Chad and Ethiopia. It is largely resident apart from local movements or a descent to lower altitudes after breeding. This species has been recorded as a vagrant in Gabon, and its status in Congo is uncertain.[1][15][16]
The natural breeding habitat is hilly or mountainous country with cliffs, gorges and caves up to 3,700 m (12,100 ft) above sea level,[17] but this martin also breeds in lowlands, especially if rocks or buildings are available, and may be found far from water. It readily uses man-made structures as a substitute for natural precipices.[9]
Behaviour
Breeding
Rock martin pairs often nest alone, although where suitable sites are available small loose
The clutch is usually two or three buff-white eggs blotched with sepia or grey-brown particularly at the wide end. The average egg size in South Africa was 20.8 mm × 14.1 mm (0.82 in × 0.56 in) with a weight of 2.17 g (0.077 oz).[9] Both adults incubate the eggs for 16–19 days prior to hatching and feed the chicks about ten times an hour until they fledge and for several days after they can fly. The fledging time can vary from 22–24 days to 25–30 days, though the latter estimates probably take into account fledged young returning to the nest for food.[9]
Feeding
The rock martin feeds mainly on insects caught in flight, although it will occasionally feed on the ground. When breeding, birds often fly back and forth along a rock face catching insects in their bills and feed close to the nesting territory. At other times, they may hunt low over open ground.[9] The insects caught depend on what is locally available, but may include mosquitoes and other flies, Hymenoptera, ants and beetles. This martin often feeds alone, but sizeable groups may gather at grass fires to feast on the fleeing insects, and outside the breeding season flocks of up to 300 may form where food is abundant.[9] Cliff faces generate standing waves in the airflow which concentrate insects near vertical areas. Crag martins exploit the area close to the cliff when they hunt, relying on their high manoeuvrability and ability to perform tight turns.[18]
A study of nine bird species including four hirundines showed that the more young there are in a nest, the more frequent are the parents' feeding visits, but the visits do not increase in proportion to the number of young. On average a solitary nestling therefore gets more food than a member of a pair or of a trio. Since the nestling period is not prolonged in proportion to the drop in feeding rate, an individual fledgling from a larger brood is likely to weigh less when it leaves the nest. However, a subspecies of the rock martin (P. f. fusciventris) was an anomaly in respect of both feeding rate and nestling time. There was no difference in parental feeding rate for members of a pair and members of a trio, but the nestling period averaged 1.5 days longer for trios than pairs.[19]
Predators and parasites
Some falcons have the speed and agility to catch swallows and martins in flight, and rock martins may be hunted by species such as the peregrine falcon,[20] Taita falcon,[21] African hobby and wintering Eurasian hobby.[22] Rock martins often share their nesting sites with little swifts,[23] which sometimes forcibly take over the martin's nests.[24] In 1975, one of the first findings of the tick Argas (A.) africolumbae was in a nest of Ptyonoprogne f. fusciventris in Kenya,[25] at that time the martin was described under its synonym Ptyonoprogne fuligula rufigula (Fischer & Reichenow).[26]
Status
The rock martin has a very large range of 4,160,000 km2 (1,610,000 sq mi). The total global population is unknown, but the bird is described as generally common, although scarce in Botswana and Namibia. The population is thought to be stable, mainly due to the absence of evidence of any declines or substantial threats. Its large range and presumably high numbers mean that the rock martin is not considered to be threatened, and it is classed as
Notes
References
- ^ from the original on 22 October 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2021.
- ^ Lichtenstein, Martin (1842). Verzeichniss einer Sammlung von Säugethieren und Vögeln aus dem Kaffernlande, nebst einer Käfersammlung [Directory of a collection of mammals and birds from the Kaffir country] (in German). Berlin: Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. p. 18.
- ^ Reichenbach (1850) plate LXXXVII figure 6.
- ^ Turner (1989) pp. 158–164.
- ^ Scopoli (1769). "Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris". BirdFacts. British Trust for Ornithology. Archived from the original on 20 December 2012. Retrieved 28 March 2010.
- ISBN 0-550-10013-X..
- ^ PMID 15737595.
- PMID 8516319.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Turner & Rose (1989) pp. 160–163.
- ^ Cabanis, Jean (1850). Museum Heineanum Verzeichniss der ornithologischen Sammlung des Oberamtmann Ferdinand Heine auf Gut St. Burchard vor Halberstadt. Mit kritischen Anmerkungen und Beschriebung der neuen Arten, systematisch bearbeitet von Dr. Jean Cabanis, erstem Kustos der Königlichen zoologischen Sammlung zu Berlin [The directory of the ornithological collection of bailiff Ferdinand Heine at the Museum Heineanum in Gut St. Burchard, Halberstadt. With critical remarks and descriptions of new species by Dr. Jean Cabanis, first curator of the Royal Zoological collection in Berlin.] (in German). Vol. 1. Halberstadt: R. Frantz. p. 50.
- ^ Dunning (1993) p.327.
- ^ a b Irwin, Michael P S (1977). "Variation, geographical arcs and gene-flow within the populations of the rock martin Hirundo (Ptyonoprogne) fuligula in eastern, southern and south-western Africa". Honeyguide. 91: 10–19.
- ^ a b Sinclair et al. (2002) p. 298.
- ^ Mullarney et al. (1999) p. 240.
- ^ a b c Snow & Perrins (1998) pp. 1058–1059.
- ^ "Species factsheet Hirundo fuligula ". BirdLife International. Archived from the original on 20 June 2021. Retrieved 21 November 2012.
- ^ a b Baker (1926) pp. 238–239
- ^ Fantur, von Roman (1997). "Die Jagdstrategie der Felsenschwalbe (Hirundo rupestris)" [The hunting strategy of the crag martin] (PDF). Carinthia (in German and English). 187 (107): 229–252. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 April 2020.
- JSTOR 1495.
- ISBN 9788392096962.
- .
- ^ Barlow et al. (1997) p. 165.
- ^ Chantler & Driessens (2000) p. 241
- .
- PMID 1159742.
- ^ Bergier, Patrick (2007). "L'Hirondelle isabelline Ptyonoprogne fuligula au Maroc [The Rock Martin in Morocco]". Go-South Bulletin (in French). 4: 6–25.
Cited texts
- Taylor and Francis.
- Barlow, Clive; Wacher, Tim; Disley, Tony (1997). A field guide to birds of The Gambia and Senegal. ISBN 1-873403-32-1.
- Chantler, Phil; Driessens, Gerald (2000). Swifts. ISBN 1-873403-83-6.
- Dunning, John Barnard (1993). CRC handbook of avian body masses. Boca Raton: ISBN 0-8493-4258-9.
- ISBN 0-00-219728-6.
- Reichenbach, Heinrich Gustav (1850). Avium systema naturale [The natural system of birds] (in German). Dresden and Leipzig: F. Hofmeister.
- Sielicki, Janusz (2008). Mizera, Tadeusz (ed.). Peregrine Falcon Populations – status and perspectives in the 21st Century. ISBN 978-83-920969-6-2.
- Sinclair, Ian; Hockey, Phil; Tarboton, Warwick (2002). SASOL Birds of Southern Africa. ISBN 1-86872-721-1.
- ISBN 0-19-854099-X.
- Turner, Angela K; Rose, Chris (1989). A Handbook to the Swallows and Martins of the World. London: ISBN 0-7470-3202-5.
External links
- Media related to Ptyonoprogne fuligula at Wikimedia Commons
- Data related to Ptyonoprogne fuligula at Wikispecies
- Species text of the rock martin in The Atlas of Southern African Birds