ANIMALS - BIRDS - SONGBIRDS - SCARLET-HEADED BLACKBIRD (AMBLYRAMPHUS HOLOSERICEUS)

Animals - Birds - Songbirds

Scarlet-headed blackbird (Amblyramphus holosericeus)

Scientific Classification:

Kingdom : Animalia
Phylum : Chordata
Class : Aves
Order : Passeriformes
Family :Icteridae
Genus : Amblyramphus
Species : A. Holosericeus

Description:

The Scarlet-headed blackbird (Amblyramphus holosericeus) is an icterid bird of southern South American wetlands.

This species is about 24 cm long. The bill is oddly shaped: long, slender, and very sharp, looking almost upturned. Adults of both sexes are described by their name. Juveniles have entirely black plumage; orange-red feathers first appear on their breast and throat, later spreading to the neck, head, and thighs. The song is given as "loud, clear, and melodic, a ringing 'cleer-cleer-clur, clulululu'." Calls are simpler but have a similar quality.

Scarlet-headed blackbirds occur in pairs in large reed beds in southern Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, and northeastern Argentina; Bolivia has an isolated population at altitudes up to about 600 m. They often perch conspicuously on top of stems. They are uncommon, particularly away from the coast.

They eat mainly fruit, supplementing it with seeds and invertebrates, especially insects. They use their bill as a hammer to open food items.

Scarlet-headed blackbirds are monogamous, and territories are grouped together. The nest is an open cup placed in the crotch of a shrub or woven into vegetation, in which they lay two eggs.

Binomial Name:

Name : Amblyramphus holosericeus
Taxonomist : Giovanni Antonio Scopoli (Cavalese - Italy)
Year : 1786
Subspecies : None or not data available
Synonyms : None or not data available

Conservation Status by IUCN:

Status :Least Concern

Has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as evaluated but not qualified for any other category. As such they do not qualify as threatened, near threatened, or (prior to 2001) conservation dependent.

Philatelic Issues

2015 - Uruguay - Stamp 1 of 10, from Wetland Animals Series

Issue information:

Country: Uruguay
Date: June 5th, 2015
Printed: 10.000 Copies
Type: Stamp from Series of 10 Stamps
Value: UYP 15

Stamp: Rectangular
Size: 39 mm. x 27 mm.
Perforation: Circular
Gum: Water Activated

ANIMALS - BIRDS - OWLS - BARN OWL (TYTO ALBA)

Animals - Birds - Owls

Barn owl (Tyto alba)

Scientific Classification:

Kingdom : Animalia
Phylum : Chordata
Class : Aves
Subclass : Neornithes
Infraclass : Neognathae
Superorder : Neoaves
Order : Strigiformes
Family :Strigdae
Subfamily : Tytoninae
Genus : Tyto
Species : T. Alba

Description:

The Barn owl(Tyto alba) is the most widely distributed species of owl, and one of the most widespread of all birds. It is also referred to as the Common barn owl, to distinguish it from other species in its family, Tytonidae, which forms one of the two main lineages of living owls, the other being the typical owls (Strigidae). The barn owl is found almost everywhere in the world except polar and desert regions, Asia north of the Himalayas, most of Indonesia and some Pacific islands.

Phylogenetic evidence shows that there are at least three major lineages of barn owl, one in Eurasia and Africa, one in Australasia and one in the New World, and some highly divergent taxa on islands. Some authorities further split the group, recognizing up to five species, and further research needs to be done to clarify the position. There is a considerable variation between the sizes and color of the approximately 28 subspecies but most are between 33 and 39 cm (13 and 15 in) in length with wingspans ranging from 80 to 95 cm (31 to 37 in). The plumage on head and back is a mottled shade of grey or brown, the underparts vary from white to brown and are sometimes speckled with dark markings. The face is characteristically heart-shaped and is white in most species. This owl does not hoot, but utters an eerie, drawn-out shriek.

The barn owl is nocturnal over most of its range but in Britain and some Pacific islands, it also hunts by day. Barn owls specialize in hunting animals on the ground and nearly all of their food consists of small mammals which they locate by sound, their hearing being very acute. They mate for life unless one of the pair gets killed, when a new pair bond may be formed. Breeding takes place at varying times of year according to locality, with a clutch, averaging about four eggs, being laid in a nest in a hollow tree, old building or fissure in a cliff. The female does all the incubation, and she and the young chicks are reliant on the male for food. When large numbers of small prey are readily available, barn owl populations can expand rapidly, and globally the bird is considered to be of least conservation concern. Some subspecies with restricted ranges are more threatened.

Binomial Name:

Name : Tyto alba
Taxonomist : Giovanni Antonio Scopoli (Cavalese - Italy)
Year : 1769
Subspecies : Around 28 (Alba, Pranticola, Tuidara, … )
Synonyms : Strix alba Scopoli, Strix pratincola, Tyto delicatula

Conservation Status by IUCN:

Status :Least Concern

Has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as evaluated but not qualified for any other category. As such they do not qualify as threatened, near threatened, or (prior to 2001) conservation dependent.

Philatelic Issues

2015 - Uruguay - Stamp 5 of 8, from Owls Series

Issue information:

Country: Uruguay
Date: September 30th, 2015
Printed: 10.000 copies
Type : Stamp from Series of 8 Stamps
Value : UYP 15

Stamp : Rectangular
Size: 39 mm. x 27 mm.
Perforation: Circular
Gum: Water Activated