Misplaced Pages

#420579

25-515: Podica personata Gray, 1849 The masked finfoot or Asian finfoot ( Heliopais personatus ) is a highly endangered aquatic bird that was formerly distributed throughout the fresh and brackish wetlands of the eastern Indian subcontinent , Indochina , Malaysia and Indonesia . Like the rest of the family, the African finfoot and the sungrebe , the relationship to other birds is poorly understood. Unusually, phylogenetic evidence indicates that

50-592: A complex process was needed to colonize the Americas as opposed to overwater dispersal from Africa. The genus Heliopais appears to have had a much wider distribution in the past, as an isolated humerus assigned to Heliopais aff. personata is known from the Late Miocene ( Messinian )-aged Adu Asa Formation of Chad . This suggests that during the Miocene, Heliopais ranged as far west as northern Africa. Since that time,

75-472: A white spot on the tip of the beak. The chicks are fed with fish and shrimps. The chicks leave the nest shortly after hatching. The masked finfoot was formerly considered endangered and declining with fragmented populations and fewer than 600-1,700 individuals in 2009, but a 2020 study in Forktail found the population to likely be between 100-300, far lower than the previous estimate. This likely indicates that

100-457: A year. A minimum of 80 percent of that revenue goes directly toward habitat conservation . Ducks Unlimited partners with a wide range of corporations, governments, other non-governmental organizations, landowners, and private citizens to restore and manage areas that have been degraded and to prevent further degradation of existing wetlands. DU is also active in working with others to recommend government policies that will influence wetlands and

125-679: Is a result of various sources in China. The rise of urbanization and industries has resulted in pollution and waste in the water. In addition, reclamation projects for construction further threaten ruining the habitats of these birds. For example, the largest of these reclamation projects is the Oufei Project, which spans 8854 Hectares. Experimental evidence of competition has been difficult to obtain in highly mobile animals that cannot be meaningfully confined to plots of limited size. Many such animals are believed to compete with less mobile, resident taxa, but

150-667: Is also used in the context of conservation to refer to any birds that inhabit or depend on bodies of water or wetland areas. Examples of this use include the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) and the Wallnau Waterbird Reserve . Some examples of water birds are: The evolution of waterbirds is often mainly centered around adaptations to improve feeding techniques. This includes legs that are adapted to diving or wading and webbing between

175-708: Is found by a relative apparent synapomorphy analysis (RASA) which highlighted certain branches of genes that classified the domestic duck and fowl, for example, as an outgroup. Comparing and understanding these gene patterns allows scientists to classify aquatic birds. Waterbird conservation efforts in the United States are advanced by numerous organizations, including the 700,000 member strong Ducks Unlimited . Employing such methods as conservation easements and outright purchase, it uses federal and state habitat reimbursements, sponsorships, member fees, major gifts, donations, royalties, and advertisement to raise over $ 200 million

200-489: Is not known if they spend most of their time in the water, where they are almost always seen, or on land. The breeding biology is poorly known. It is thought to coincide with the rainy season . In Bangladesh , the breeding season was observed to extend from June to September. They build a pad-shaped nest of small sticks low above water. The nests are occasionally seen to have few long leaves, grass and reeds. Three to seven eggs are laid. The chicks are dark grey in colour with

225-484: Is possible for the H5N1 virus to be spread by migratory water birds to the west and south, as genetically closely related H5N1 viruses have been isolated in several countries since 2005. H5N1 HPAIV infections have become endemic in several countries and cause accidental transmissions to humans. H5N1 viruses are thus now recognized as one of the most likely candidates for the next pandemic. Forktail (journal) Forktail

250-734: Is the annual peer-reviewed journal of the Oriental Bird Club . It is the principal ornithological journal dedicated to the Oriental region and publishes manuscripts in English, treating any aspect of its ornithology (e.g., distribution, biology, conservation , ecology , taxonomy and evolution ). Forktail's geographic scope is bounded by the Indus River to the west; the Russian Far East , Korean Peninsula , Japan , and Lydekker's Line (i.e.

275-716: The back, wings, and tail are a rich brown. The males have an all-black chin while the females have a white chin. The masked finfoot can be found in a range of habitats across the eastern Indian subcontinent through to Malaysia and Indonesia in a variety of fresh to brackish wetlands, although due to habitat destruction it has disappeared from most of this range. This range includes forest , wooded savannah , flooded forest, and even mangrove swamps. The finfoot feeds on aquatic invertebrates , including both adults and larval mayflies , dragonflies , crustaceans , also snails, fish and amphibians . They are thought to be highly opportunistic and take some of their prey directly off

SECTION 10

#1733084694421

300-586: The eastern boundary of Wallacea ) to the east, and the Chagos Archipelago , Lesser Sundas , Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Islands to the south. As of 2020, Frank E. Rheindt is its Managing Editor, assisted by Yong Ding Li. Each issue is A4 in size, with an emerald green cover. Important papers published in Forktail include descriptions of three new bird species : the Bukidnon woodcock in 2001,

325-831: The environment. Through March 2021, Ducks Unlimited had conserved at least 15 million acres of waterfowl habitat in North America. To promote the conservation of waterbirds in America, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service established the Waterbird Conservation for the Americas to facilitate this over such a large area. The purpose of this initiative is to promote international cooperation and partnership to preserve waterbird habitats, create long term sustainability plans, implement specific conservation plans for regions, and support legal action for waterbird conservation on

350-606: The masked finfoot is closely related to the Neotropical sungrebe , despite the African finfoot being geographically closer to both of them than either the sungrebe or masked finfoot are to each other. This suggests that the common ancestor of Heliopais and Heliornis diverged in the Old World during the mid- Tertiary , with the ancestral Heliornis colonizing the Americas via Beringia . Finfoots appear to have poor dispersal capabilities over marine habitats, which may explain why such

375-526: The mortality rate of this disease can reach up to 100%, especially in young birds. Avian influenza caused by infection with H5N1 , a highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV), has spread in poultry in more than 60 countries in Eurasia and Africa since 1996, when the first outbreak occurred at a goose farm in the Guangdong province in China. H5N1 in wild birds have spread to Asia, Europe, and Africa, and it

400-636: The most important concern in mass waterfowl production. Free-ranging water birds are the most likely infectious carriers. While the overall epidemiology of DEV is unknown in western Europe, studies conducted in Poland agree with the high levels of transmission between free-ranging water birds. DEV is an aetiological agent of DP, which represents one of the most acute and lethal diseases of waterbirds, and infection can spread easily between farmed and wild waterbirds. Over 48 species of birds, including those not considered waterbirds, are susceptible to infection by DEV, and

425-417: The nutrients they need. Outbreaks of diseases spread by waterbirds result from the transition of water-borne viruses to those wild birds. The spread can be caused by dead waterbirds in the vicinity of other organisms, or simply from waterbirds with the virus settling into more densely populated areas (whether by humans or other organisms). Duck plague (DP), also called duck enteritis virus (DEV), presents

450-454: The range of Heliopais has shrunk to southeast Asia, leaving Podica as the only finfoot genus in Africa. The masked finfoot is an underwater specialist with a long neck, a striking sharp beak , and lobed feet which are green. Both males and females have a black mask and eyebrow that contrasts with a white eyering and lateral cervical stripe. The rest of the neck is grey, the breast is pale and

475-684: The regional and national levels. The loss of wetlands has impacted waterbirds and is driving their extinction in regions where wetlands are polluted. Specifically, in China , 33% of wetlands were lost between 1978 and 2008, which is the primary breeding ground for China's waterbird species such as the Baer's Pochard, which is now at risk for extinction. The Baer's Pochard's population has decreased to between 150 and 700 birds in recent years due to negative environmental impacts on their habitat as well as human activities such as hunting and fishing. This loss of wetlands

500-552: The species are human disturbance and habitat loss in the low-lying forested wetlands that it inhabits. The bird is protected in Malaysia. Aquatic bird The term aquatic bird is sometimes also used in this context. A related term that has a narrower meaning is waterfowl . Some piscivore birds of prey , such as ospreys and sea eagles , hunt aquatic prey but do not stay in water for long and live predominantly over dry land, and are not considered water birds. The term waterbird

525-645: The species should be updated to critically endangered on the IUCN Red List , and major steps towards its protection have to be taken to avoid it becoming Asia's next avian extinction. Definitive breeding populations are only known from 4 sites in Bangladesh and Cambodia , with potential breeding populations at 6 possible sites in Myanmar , Laos , and Vietnam ; the species has likely been extirpated from Thailand , Malaysia , Indonesia , and Singapore . Major threats to

SECTION 20

#1733084694421

550-428: The supporting evidence has often remained circumstantial. One example is the interaction between water birds and benthic feeding fish, or fish that feed at the lowest level of a body of water. Many migratory water birds use similar food resources on their breeding, molting, or overwintering grounds as do resident fish species. Studies, such as that done by Eadie and Keast in 1982, found an inverse relationship between

575-411: The toes. Many of these adaptations are common between different types of waterbirds. For example, flamingos and ducks share a similar filter-feeding lifestyle, and the shoebill has a similar structure ( morphology ) to many wading birds. DNA sequence analysis, specifically the mitochondrial gene sequencing, has been used to classify and differentiate the various aquatic birds. This classification

600-598: The waterbird Goldeneye and benthic feeding fish across multiple lakes. Mobile water birds tend to avoid areas where their food density is high because this increases competition for resources. When there is abundant food in an area, there are more birds trying to eat it. This can lead to aggression and fighting, as well as a decrease in the overall fitness of the bird. By avoiding areas of high food density, mobile waterfowl can reduce competition and improve their chances of survival. They can spread out and forage in less crowded areas, which allows them to avoid conflict and obtain

625-405: The waters surface. They are adept out of water and will forage on the banks as well, unlike the grebes , which they resemble but are not related to. Finfoots are not gregarious in habits and are usually seen singly or in pairs. They are very secretive. Even experienced ornithologists see them very rarely, making them a prized sighting for birders and twitchers . Because they are so elusive, it

#420579