Thick-billed longspur
Thick-billed longspur | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Passeriformes |
Family: | Calcariidae |
Genus: | Rhynchophanes Baird, 1858 |
Species: | R. mccownii
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Binomial name | |
Rhynchophanes mccownii (Lawrence, 1851)
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Breeding Migration Nonbreeding
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The thick-billed longspur, also known as McCown's longspur (Rhynchophanes mccownii), is a small ground-feeding bird in the family Calcariidae, which also contains the other longspurs and snow buntings. It is found in North America and is the only species in the genus Rhynchophanes.
Taxonomy
The thick-billed longspur was described in 1851 by the American amateur ornithologist
"McCown's longspur" is no longer used by the
The name "McCown" refers to Captain John P. McCown, an American army officer who collected the specimen in 1851 that led to the species first being scientifically described.[6] McCown later fought for the Confederacy,[10] which led to controversy starting in 2018, with parallels drawn to the removal of Confederate memorials. The pressure to change the name increased following the George Floyd protests and Black Birder's Week (itself a response to the Central Park birdwatching incident).[6][11]
Description
The thick-billed longspur is about 15 cm (5.9 in) long, has a wingspan of 28 cm (11 in) and weighs around 25 g (0.88 oz).[12] It has a large cone-shaped bill, a streaked back, a rust-coloured shoulder and a white tail with a dark tip. In breeding plumage, the male has a white throat and underparts, a grey face and nape and a black crown. Breeding females are largely gray, with a pale bill and rusty tinged median coverts and scapulars. Non-breeding males are similar to females but with crowns spotted rather than streaked, and more chestnut on their median coverts and scapulars.[13]
Juveniles are seen briefly in late summer and are more uniformly sandy, with a streaked upper breast and white belly.[13]
Distribution and habitat
Thick-billed longspurs breed in the northwestern
Their non-breeding range stretches from south Oklahoma into Texas and Northern Mexico. Here, they prefer open habitats with sparse vegetation such as shortgrass prairie, plowed fields, grazed pastures and dried lake beds.[13]
Behavior
The male produces a distinctive tinkling song, often in flight. The calls include a dry rattle.[13]
Nests are constructed in a shallow depression on the ground, and incubate the eggs for about 12 days. Both parents feed the young, and fledglings leave the nest about 10 days after hatching, before they can properly fly. Outside the breeding season, thick-billed longspurs occur in flocks, sometimes with other species like Lapland longspur and horned lark.[13]
The diet consists of seeds and insects.[13]
Conservation
The numbers and range of these birds have declined since the early 1900s, likely due to habitat loss.[13]
References
- . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
- .
- ^ Baird, Spencer F. (1858). Reports of explorations and surveys to ascertain the most practical and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean made under the direction of the secretary of war in 1853-1856. Vol. 9 Birds. Washington: Beverly Tucker, printer. pp. xx, xxxviii, 432.
- PMID 12565028.
- .
- ^ a b c "A Bird Named for a Confederate General Sparks Calls for Change". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 2020-08-08.
- ^ "2020 Proposals". American Ornithological Society. Retrieved 2020-08-08.
- .
- Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (August 2022). "Finches, euphonias, longspurs, Thrush-tanager". IOC World Bird List Version 12.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 3 December 2022.
- ^ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael (2003). Whose Bird? Men and Women Commemorated in the Common Names of Birds. London: Christopher Helm. p. 224.
- ^ Lewis, Zachary. "A small bird sheds its Confederate past with a new name". The Washington Post. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
- ^ "Wyoming Species Account" (PDF). September 28, 2020.
- ^ S2CID 240904071. Retrieved 3 December 2022.