Lilac breasted roller птица

Lilac-breasted Roller

Lilac-breasted Roller, Coracias caudatus is a species of roller in the Coraciidae family. It forms a species group with the Abyssinian Roller and the European Roller, though probably more closely allied to former. [2]

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Other common names	Fork-tailed Roller, Lilac breasted Roller, Lilacbreasted Roller, Lilac-throated Roller, Mosilikatze’s Roller
French	Rollier à longs brins
German	Gabelracke, Gabel-Racke
Spanish	Carraca de Pecho Violeta, Carraca Lila

Description [ ]

The Lilac-breasted Roller is a lightweight roller, with a length of 28–30 cm (11–12 in) and a streamered tail, up to 8 cm (3.1 in) more, and a weight of 87–135 g (3.1–4.8 oz). [2]

Similar species [ ]

Behaviour [ ]

Diet [ ]

Feeds upon arthropods and small vertebrates, including: crickets, beetles, butterflies, moths, hairy caterpillars, ants, scorpions , centipedes, spiders, snails, frogs , lizards and small birds. [2]

Calls [ ]

Reproduction [ ]

Distribution/habitat [ ]

References [ ]

1. ^BirdLife International (2012). «Coracias caudatus«. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature . Retrieved 26 November 2013 .
2. ^ abc Fry, H. & Kirwan, G.M. (2012). Lilac-breasted Roller (Coracias caudatus). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.) (2012). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from http://www.hbw.com/node/55857 on 19 April 2015).

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Lilac Breasted Roller

The average size of the Lilac Breasted Roller is 14.5 inches. The washed green head is large, the neck is short, the greenish yellow legs are rather short and the feet are small. The beak is strong, arched and hooked-tipped. The tail is narrow and of medium length. The back and scapulars are brown. The shoulder of the wing, outer webs of the flight feathers and the rump are all violet.

The bases of the primaries and their coverts are pale greenish blue and the outer tail feathers are elongated and blackish. The chin is whitish, shading to rich lilac of the breast. The underparts are greenish blue. The bill is black and the eyes are brown. It has large wings and strong flight.

Diet

The Lilac Breasted Roller feeds on grasshoppers, beetles, occasionally lizards, crabs, and small amphibians. They take prey from the ground.

Breeding

Lilac Breasted Roller make unlined nests in natural tree holes or in termite hills. Sometimes they take over woodpecker’s or kingfisher’s nest holes. They lay 2-4 white eggs, which are incubated by both sexes for 22-24 days. At 19 days the chicks are fully feathered and grayish brown.

Behaviour

Rollers get their name from their impressive courtship flight, a fast, shallow dive from considerable elevation with a rolling or fast rocking motion, accompanied by loud raucous calls. All rollers appear to be monogamous and highly territorial.

The Lilac Breasted Roller will perch on a dead tree, surveying the area for prey. One typical aspect of its behavior is that it also preys on animals fleeing from bush fires. It is a swift flier, indulging in acrobatics during the breeding season. Lilac Breasted Rollers actually breed ‘on the wing’.

They live in pairs or small groups, but are often seen alone. Their call is a loud harsh squawk, ‘zaaak’. They are partly migratory, but in some areas they are sedentary. To feed they swoop down from an elevated perch next to their prey and eat it on the ground or return to a perch where they batter it before swallowing it whole.

They are territorial, also defending temporarily small feeding territories; hence individuals are regularly spaced along roads. They drive off many species from near their nest hole, even after breeding.

Habitat

Where Lilac Breasted Roller Are Found

The Lilac Breasted Roller species ranges more or less continuously throughout eastern and southern Africa from the Red Sea coasts of Ethiopia and northwest Somalia to the Angola coast and northern South Africa. Lilac Breasted Rollers inhabit acacia country with well spaced trees, rolling bushy game lands, riverside areas and cultivated land, but they do not associate with human habitation.

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Things to Know About the Lilac-breasted Roller

The Lilac-breasted Roller, also known as Coracias caudatus, is an African bird categorized under the family Coraciidae or Roller Bird family. Bird species from the Roller Bird family are known for their unique ability to perform aerial acrobatics during flight, consisting of side-to-side rolling motions and quick, shallow dives from high altitudes. This colorful bird is endemic to sub-Saharan Africa, and is vagrant to the southern Arabian Peninsula.

The Lilac-breasted Roller is a dear national treasure of Kenya, wherein it is considered a national symbol. This bird species is probably the only bird species that, when sighted, will provoke as much crooning as the sight of a cheetah or a lion, because of its striking, wonderful colors.

This bird species was first described by Carl Linnaeus, the father of modern taxonomy, in 1766. Two subspecies are acknowledged:

1. c. caudatus – Found in central Kenya, northern South Africa, and the Atlantic coasts of Angola and Namibia.
2. c. lorti – Also known as the Lilac-throated Roller or Blue-breasted Roller, this can be found in western Somalia, northeastern Kenya, and Eritrea.

Their population is at a stable rise and appears in an extensive range. Therefore, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) Red List categorized them as Least Concern.

Its eight levels of scientific classification are as follows:

Domain: Eukaryota

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Aves

Order: Coraciiformes

Family: Coraciidae

Genus: Coracias

Species: C. caudatus

The physical characteristics of a Lilac-breasted Roller

The Lilac-breasted Roller is a robust, large-headed bird with colorful plumage tones. The nominate subspecies, the C. c. caudatus has a darker lilac breast. In subspecies C. c. lorti, however, its crown and mantle are olive in color, while its breast is color azure. It has a lilac patch or rufous-brown streaks in the lower abdomen. Both subspecies have long, black outermost tail streamers.

Lilac-breasted Rollers are not sexually dimorphic, although males may be slightly larger than females. The average weight of an adult Lilac-breasted Roller is 104 grams, and it measures from 36 to 38 cm. It has a wingspan range of 50 to 48 cm.

The distribution and habitat of Lilac-breasted Rollers

Lilac-breasted Rollers are native to eastern and southern Africa, particularly in Eritrea, Kenya, Botswana, Namibia, Burundi, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and northeastern South Africa. Some populations are non-migratory, while others migrate from Kenya to Somalia to breed from April to September. They frequent in open savannahs with scattered shrubs and trees. Frequently, they occur in riverine vegetation, light forests, and sub-desert steppes. In protected areas, they frequent roads, but usually, they avoid human-influenced areas.

The behavior of a Lilac-breasted Roller

This bird species is famous for being a fearless creature, not fearing humans in the same way many birds do. It is its primary hunting technique. Once it detects prey, it will quickly swoop down on the prey, and if the prey is too large to be swallowed whole, it will discombobulate it using its wings.

Lilac-breasted Rollers are active during the daytime—they are usually solitary or with a pair. They perch conspicuously atop of poles, trees, and other high vantage points. They join other bird species such as Taita Fiscals, Pale Flycatchers, Kites, Storks, and Swallows to take opportunity of grassland fires.

They are monogamous birds that form bonds that last for life. Pairs nest solitarily and are very protective of their nests, which are often built in baobab, dead coconut, or Terminalia trees. Couples will usually fly in a rolling pattern as a territorial display or to ward off intruders away from their territory. During courtship, a bird will fly upwards, with its tip forward and wings closed, before flapping its wings to speed up towards the ground. During this moment, the bird will release a harsh call before flying upwards again. The breeding season occurs depending on the location. A female Lilac-breasted Roller will lay 2-4 eggs, which will be incubated by the pair for 22 to 24 days. Hatchlings are born featherless and helpless and turns fully feathered after 18-20 days.

The diet of a Lilac-breasted Roller

This bird species feeds on small invertebrates and arthropods like spiders, scorpions, millipedes, centipedes, and snails. They prefer wandering and perching around burned grasslands to search for insects that have been unearthed out of the undergrowth. They also feed on sluggish lizards, snakes, and chameleons.

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