Urocolius
Blue-naped mousebird
Urocolius macrourus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Coliiformes
Family: Coliidae
Genus: Urocolius
Bonaparte, 1854
Type species
Lanius macrourus[1]
Linnaeus, 1766
Species

Urocolius indicus
Urocolius macrourus

Urocolius is a small genus of mousebirds.

Species

It consists of two species which inhabit Eastern and Southern Africa:

ImageCommon nameScientific nameDistribution
Blue-naped mousebirdUrocolius macrourusEast Africa
Red-faced mousebirdUrocolius indicussouthern Africa from Zaire, Zambia and Tanzania south to the Cape.
Red-faced mousebird Urocolius indicus in flight

Description

They are typically about 32 cm (13 in) long omnivorous birds, eating insects, small millipedes and plant material. Urocolius indicus in particular eats a great deal of fruit, leaves, buds, flowers, nectar and similar material.[2]

"Urocolius" archiaci, "U." consobrinus and "U." paludicola are 3 taxa described from fragmentary Early Miocene remains found at Saint-Gérand-le-Puy in France. Their taxonomic history is convoluted, being initially described as woodpeckers and variously merged and split. Today it is believed that at least 2 belong to the prehistoric genus Limnatornis. They sometimes are all united under the first of the 3 names although it is not clear with what justification. The same rationales presumably apply for undescribed but similar remains found in Late Miocene strata at Kohfidisch (Austria).[3]

References

  1. ↑ "Trogonidae". aviansystematics.org. The Trust for Avian Systematics. Retrieved 2023-07-26.
  2. ↑ Maclean, Gordon Lindsay. Roberts' Birds of Southern Africa Publisher: New Holland 1993. ISBN 978-0620175838
  3. ↑ Mlíkovský, Jirí (2002): Cenozoic Birds of the World, Part 1: Europe. Ninox Press, Prague. ISBN 80-901105-3-8 PDF fulltext Archived 2011-05-20 at the Wayback Machine
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.