Burhinus vermiculatus

• Overview
• Interesting Facts
• Common Names
• Description
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Overview

Interesting Facts

Common Names

Click on the language to view common names.

Description

Habitat

Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 5,239 meters (0 to 17,188 feet).[1]

Ecology: Behaviour This species is largely sedentary although some individuals may make local movements to avoid river flooding (returning to exposed riverbanks as the water recedes)1. The timing of breeding is variable but generally coincides with the dry season or the early rains, with the species nesting solitarily1 or in loose associations of several pairs on riverine sandbars4. The species is usually observed foraging nocturnally1 in pairs or small groups2 but is also gregarious at times, gathering in flocks of 30 or more individuals during the non-breeding season3. Habitat It inhabits riverbanks, lake shores , estuaries, mangrove swamps, undisturbed sheltered beaches1 and the shores of coastal creeks and islands2, showing a preference for habitats with bushes or shrubs providing cover (e.g. light woodland)1. It generally avoids heavily vegetated wetlands4 but occasionally forages more than 1 km from water1. Diet Its diet consists of insects1 (e.g. aquatic beetles, grasshoppers, locusts and termites)4, crustaceans1 (e.g. crabs with carapace widths of up to 50 mm)4, molluscs1, worms, frogs and tadpoles , millipedes and grass seeds4. Breeding site The nest is a scrape in the ground often positioned close to water1 on a sandbank, shoreline3 or a small islet2 near a landmark such as a piece of driftwood or a bush1.

[2].

List of Habitats:

•     1     Forest   
  
•     1.7     Forest - Subtropical/Tropical Mangrove Vegetation Above High Tide Level   
  
•     2     Savanna   
  
•     2.1     Savanna - Dry   
  
•     3     Shrubland   
  
•     3.6     Shrubland - Subtropical/Tropical Moist   
  
•     5     Wetlands (inland)   
  
•     5.1     Wetlands (inland) - Permanent Rivers/Streams/Creeks (includes waterfalls )   
  
•     5.5     Wetlands (inland) - Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha)   
  
•     12     Marine Intertidal   
  
•     12.1     Marine Intertidal - Rocky Shoreline   
  
•     12.2     Marine Intertidal - Sandy Shoreline and/or Beaches, Sand Bars , Spits , Etc   
  
•     12.3     Marine Intertidal - Shingle and/or Pebble Shoreline and/or Beaches   
[more info]

Taxonomy

Synonyms

Burhinus vermiculatus (Cabanis, 1868)

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Last scrutiny: 17-Oct-2001

Similar Species

Members of the genus Burhinus

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 22 species and subspecies in this genus:

B. bistriatus (Double-Striped Thick Knee) · B. bistriatus bistriatus (Double-Striped Stone-Curlew) · B. capensis (Cape Thicknee) · B. capensis capensis (Spotted Thick-Knee) · B. capensis damarensis (Dahlak Island Thick-Knee) · B. capensis dodsoni (Arabian Thick-Knee) · B. capensis maculosus (Cape Dikkop) · B. grallarius (Bush Stone-Curlew) · B. indicus (Indian Stone Curlew) · B. magnirostris (Beach Thick-Knee) · B. oedicnemus (Eurasian Stone-Curlew) · B. oedicnemus distinctus (Stone Curlew) · B. oedicnemus harterti (Central Eurasian Thick-Knee) · B. oedicnemus insularum (Eastern Canarian Eurasian Thick-Knee) · B. oedicnemus oedicnemus (Eurasian Stone-Curlew) · B. oedicnemus saharae (East Mediterranean Eurasian Thick-Knee) · B. senegalensis (Senegal Stone-Curlew) · B. senegalensis inornatus (North-East African Senegal Thick-Knee) · B. senegalensis senegalensis (Senegal Stone-Curlew) · B. superciliaris (Peruvian Stone-Curlew) · B. vermiculatus (Water Thick-Knee) · B. vermiculatus vermiculatus (Water Thick-Knee)

More Info

• Search for Pictures: images.google.com
• Search for Scholarly Articles: Google Scholar
• Search using Scientific Name and Vernacular Names: All the Web | AltaVista Canada | AltaVista | Excite | Google | HotBot | Lycos
• Search using Specialized Databases: GenBank | Medline | Scirus | CISTI/CAL | Agricola Periodicals | Agricola Books

Further Reading

• Check-list of birds of the world. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1931-1987. url p. 295.
• Days with birds; studies of habits of some East African species. 38 1956 [Chicago]Chicago Natural History Museum, 1956. url p. 517.
• Memoirs of the San Diego Society of Natural History. 3 1968 San Diego, Calif.: The Society, 1931-1989. url p. 46.
• Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. Washington, Biological Society of Washington url p. 981.
• The scurrying bush, by R.C.H. Sweeney. New York, Pantheon Books, [c1965] url p. 205.
• Type-specimens of birds in the British Museum (Natural History) / by R.L.M. Warren & C.J.O. Harrison. London: BM(NH), 1966-1973. url p. 12.

Notes

Contributors

• BirdLife International 2004. Burhinus vermiculatus. In: IUCN 2006. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 21 October 2006.
• BirdLife International 2004. In IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCNRedList.org. Downloaded July 18, 2008.
• BirdLife International 2009. Burhinus vermiculatus. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloadedon 31January2012.
• Bisby, F.A., Y.R. Roskov, M.A. Ruggiero, T.M. Orrell, L.E. Paglinawan, P.W. Brewer, N. Bailly, J. van Hertum, eds (2007). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2007 Annual Checklist. Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed January 15, 2012.
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed March 11, 2008. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 2 providers.
• IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. . Downloaded on January 28, 2012.
• Peterson, Alan P. Zoological Nomenclature Resource. Accessed June 19, 2009.
• Ruggiero M., Gordon D., Bailly N., Kirk P., Nicolson D. (2011). The Catalogue of Life Taxonomic Classification, Edition 2, Part A. In: Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2011 Annual Checklist (Bisby F.A., Roskov Y.R., Orrell T.M., Nicolson D., Paglinawan L.E., Bailly N., Kirk P.M., Bourgoin T., Baillargeon G., Ouvrard D., eds). DVD; Species 2000: Reading, UK.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal March 11, 2008:

• BeBIF Provider: Royal Museum of Central Africa - Albertian Rift Birds (ENBI wp13)
• University of Michigan Museum of Zoology (UMMZ): Bird specimens

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 8188
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: ITS-176752
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 13756572
• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 176752
• IUCN ID: 196432
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 142639

Footnotes

1. Mean = 564.540 meters (1,852.165 feet), Standard Deviation = 866.100 based on 39,193 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
2. BirdLife International 2009. Burhinus vermiculatus. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 31 January 2012. ... [back]

©2004-2012 David Stang. All rights reserved.