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Kleinglansspreeu
(Lamprotornis nitens)
The Cape starling, red-shouldered glossy-starling or Cape glossy starling (Lamprotornis nitens) is a species of starling in the family Sturnidae. It is found in southern Africa, where it lives in woodlands, bushveld and in suburbs.
In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the Cape starling in his Ornithologie based on a specimen collected in Angola. He used the French name Le merle verd d'Angola and the Latin Merula Viridis Angolensis. Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the twelfth edition, he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. One of these was the Cape starling. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name Turdus nitens and cited Brisson's work. The specific name nintens is Latin for "shining" or "glittering". This species is now placed in the genus Lamprotornis that was introduce by the Dutch zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck in 1820. There are no recognised subspecies.
The Cape starling has an adult length of about 25 cm (10 in) and weight of about 100 grams (3.5 oz). The plumage is a fairly uniform bright, glossy colour. The head is blue with darker ear coverts and the upper parts of the body are greenish-blue. It has a lengthy warbling song which may include an imitation of sounds it hears in its environment
The Cape starling is found in the southern part of Africa. Its range encompasses the extreme south of Gabon, the west and south of Angola, the extreme south of Zambia, the southern half of Zimbabwe, Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho and South Africa. It is a vagrant to the Republic of the Congo but does not breed there. In the other countries in its range it is a resident (non-migratory) species and its total extent of occurrence is about 3,000,000 square kilometres (1,200,000 sq mi). The Cape starling is found where trees in which it can roost and nest are found. It is not a bird of dense forest or of pasture and is not associated with any particular plant type. It does occur in open woodland, plantations, savannah, bushveld, rough grassland, parks and gardens and is quite numerous in the central Kalahari where isolated trees occur.
The Cape starling is a gregarious bird and forms large flocks in the non-breeding season. It usually feeds on the ground often foraging alongside other species of starlings such as the pied starling, the common starling, the greater blue-eared starling, the lesser blue-eared starling, the wattled starling and Burchell's starling. It is habituated to humans and its diet includes fruit, insects and nectar. It sometimes feeds on ectoparasites that it picks off the backs of animals and it sometimes visits bird tables for scraps.
Breeding mainly takes place between October and February but may continue into April in Namibia. It nests in crevices such as holes in trees and out-competes other birds seeking to use these holes. It is a host to the greater honeyguide, a brood parasite that lays its eggs in other birds' nests. In an observed nest in a thorn tree at the edge of the Kalahari, the chicks were fed predominantly on grasshoppers, locusts, ants and beetles, and were also given fruit, insect larvae and other small invertebrates.
Wikipedia
Not the greatest pics but the light was going and it was a long way off. It was more important I got to see a bird that's quite a rarity.
A seldom seen snake, the glossy crayfish watersnake. These nocturnal snakes specialize in eating freshly shed crayfish. They will eat other things as well such as fish and amphibians.
Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus) in a drainage canal beside the Tamiami Highway, Big Cypress National Preserve, in the Everglades, Dec. 22, 2012.
Photo © Don Hackett 2012
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Photographed at Zealandia.
Status: endemic, range restricted. Glossy black with a distinctive orange 'saddle' on its back and fleshy wattles at base of bill. Similar size to a blackbird. Are poor flyers, mostly bound along branches and the ground like a squirrel. Have loud, staccato-like calls from which they are named by Maori (tieke - pronounced te-eh-keh). Were extinct from mainland since 1910. Were first released into Karori Sanctuary in 2002.
25 cm., males 80 g., females 70., head and body glossy black with bright chestnut saddle across back, rump and tail coverts, pendulous orange-red wattles at base of black bill. Young of North Island birds similar to adults but South Island young are plain brown.
My first Glossy Ibis cropped and sharpened a bit. I thought he was worth a closer look. I can't tell you, how excited I was. He was much more beautiful than this shot shows. Thanks for viewing! =o) ***All rights to my images are reserved. Please contact me if you interested in purchasing my images or if you are and educator or non-profit interested in use.***
I always wondered why they were called Glossy Ibis since their color always looked like it was a dull, flat black. Then I encountered three of them at the Eagle Lakes Community Park in Naples, FL. Two had the typical flat black look but the third had some nice colors when the sun hit it just right.
Finally got a look at a Glossy Ibis that wasn't a quarter of a mile away.
Edwin Forsythe NWR, Oceanville NJ
This is a great little shrub with glossy dark green leaves and beautiful white-flushed pink flowers.
This picture was taken on Nov. 6th. I have know the flower show to last through Christmas however Wheeling had a very cold December in 2010.
If you live local it would be interesting to see if the flowers made it that long this season.
It is located in front of the "Northgate Fire Station" in North Wheeling at 8th & Main St's.
Abelia x grandiflora = Glossy Abelia.