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Migratory Birds Across Europe
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1
Migratory Birds of the Maltese Islands
Juvenile Greater Flamingo at Ghadira Nature Reserve
A female sparrow in Ghadira Nature Reserve
Name:Chantelle Farrugia
Class:5 Diamond
Subject:Biology
Teacher:Mrs.Ebejer Grech
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Introduction
In this project I will be writing about variations and selection with
reference to a small selection of migratory birds of the Maltese Islands. I
chose to write about this topic as part of my studies of the form 5 topic
“The Blueprint of Life” in which I studied about variations in species. I
chose to study birds as part of my eTwinning project with Spain, Greece, Italy and Poland “Across Europe With Migratory Birds”.
In Form 3 we learnt about “The Voyage of The Beagle” that Charles
Darwin did from the 27th December 1831 till the 2nd of October of 1831.
During this voyage Charles Darwin studied different forms of living things
and was one of the pioneers of the theory of evolution and also
classification. During this voyage that started from Plymouth Sound
England, he visited the Galapagos Islands where he studied, amongst
other things, finches.
Charles Darwin, during his voyage of the Beagle arrived at the Galápagos
Islands. On Chatham Island the first field note that he recorded was of a
mockingbird similar to those he had seen on the continent. On Charles
Island, he found a mockingbird and "fortunately happened to observe"
that it differed from the Chatham Island specimen, so from then on he
carefully noted where mockingbirds had been caught. On Albermarle
Island, Darwin saw swarms of small birds and there he made his only
note of the finches he was not bothering to label by island. He caught a
third species of Mockingbird. Darwin wrote up his notes, and to his
astonishment found that all the mockingbirds caught on Charles,
Albemarle, James and Chatham Islands differed from island to island. He
wrote "This birds which is so closely allied to the Thenca of Chili
(Callandra of B. Ayres) is singular from existing as varieties or distinct
species in the different Isds.— I have four specimens from as many
Isds.— These will be found to be 2 or 3 varieties.— Each variety is
constant in its own Island...."...
The various Galápagos Mockingbirds Darwin caught resembled Charles Darwin
the Chilean Mockingbird Mimus thenka, but differed from island
to island.
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Some Information about Charles Darwin’s Finches:
Darwin's finches (also known as the Galápagos finches) are a group of
about 15 species of passerine birds. They often are classified as the
subfamily Geospizinae or tribe Geospizini. They were first collected by
Charles Darwin on the Galápagos Islands during the second voyage of the Beagle. All are found only on the Galápagos Islands, except the Cocos
Island Finch from Cocos Island.
The term Darwin's Finches was first applied by Percy Lowe in 1936, and
popularised in 1947 by David Lack in his book Darwin's Finches. The birds
vary in size from 10 to 20 cm and weigh between 8 and 38 grams. The
smallest are the warbler-finches and the largest is the Vegetarian Finch.
The most important differences between species are in the size and shape
of their beaks, and the beaks are highly adapted to different food sources.
The birds are all dull-coloured.
Charles Darwin’s Finches
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In my project, I shall do a similar work like Darwin did when he analysed
the variations of the finches. But I shall be concentrating on a small
number of different migratory birds of the Maltese islands where I shall be
studying:
the size of bird
the colour of bird
the size of leg
the structure of the beak the type of feathers
Variations in Maltese Migratory Birds
The birds fauna of the Maltese Islands includes a total of 384 species, of which 167 are rare or accidental. Malta has a limited range of breeding
birds with only 21 regular breeders and about 17 occasional breeders.
However, it lies on a major migration route and many more species pass
through during spring and autumn.
From all these birds I shall concentrate only on the following:
Biological Name of Bird English name Maltese names
Ciconia ciconia White Stork Ċikonja Bajda
Phoenicopterus roseus Greater Flamingo Fjamingu
Cygnus olor Mute Swan Ċinju
Grus grus Common Crane Grawwa
Caprimulgus europaeus European Nightjar Buqrajq
Asio otus Long Eared Owl Qattus
Streptopelia decaocto Collared Dove Gamiema tal-Kullar
Monticola solitarius Blue Rock Thrush Merill
Passer hiapaniolensis Spanish Sparrow Għasfur tal-Bejt
Montrifringilla nivalis White-winged Snowfinch Sponsun tas-Silġ
1. Ċikonja Bajda
The White Stork (Ciconia ciconia) is a large bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. Its plumage is mainly white, with black on its wings. Adults
have long red legs and long pointed red beaks, and measure on average
100–115 cm from beak tip to end of tail, with a 155–215 cm wingspan.
The two subspecies, which differ slightly in size, breed in Europe (north to Finland), north western Africa, south western Asia (east to southern
Kazakhstan) and southern Africa. The White Stork is a long-distance
migrant, wintering in Africa from tropical Sub-Saharan Africa to as far
south as South Africa, or on the Indian subcontinent. When migrating
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between Europe and Africa, it avoids crossing the Mediterranean Sea and
detours via the Levant in the east or the Strait of Gibraltar in the west,
because the air thermals on which it depends do not form over water.
A carnivore, the White Stork eats a wide range of animal prey, including
insects, fish, amphibians, reptiles, small mammals and small birds. It
takes most of its food from the ground, among low vegetation, and from
shallow water. It is a monogamous breeder, but does not pair for life. Both members of the pair build a large stick nest, which may be used for
several years. Each year the female can lay one clutch of usually four
eggs, which hatch asynchronously 33–34 days after being laid. Both
parents take turns incubating the eggs and both feed the young. The
young leave the nest 58–64 days after hatching, and continue to be fed
by the parents for a further 7–20 days.
Distribution: The nominate race of the White Stork has a wide although
disjunct summer range across Europe, clustered in the Iberian Peninsula
and North Africa in the west, and much of eastern and central Europe,
with 25 percent of the world's population concentrated in Poland, as well as parts of western Asia. The asiatica population of about 1450 birds is
restricted to a region in central Asia between the Aral Sea and Xinjiang in
western China.. The Xinjiang population is believed to have become
extinct around 1980. Migration routes extend the range of this species
into many parts of Africa and India. Some populations adhere to the eastern migration route, which passes across Israel into eastern and
central Africa.
Breeding and lifespan: The White Stork breeds in open farmland areas
with access to marshy wetlands, building a large stick nest in trees, on
buildings, or on purpose-built man-made platforms. Each nest is 1–2 m in depth, 0.8–1.5 m in diameter, and 60–250 kg in weight. Nests are built in
loose colonies. Not persecuted as it is viewed as a good omen, it often
nests close to human habitation; in southern Europe, nests can be seen
on churches and other buildings. The nest is typically used year after year
especially by older males. The males arrive earlier in the season and choose the nests. Larger nests are associated with greater numbers of
young successfully fledged, and appear to be sought after. Nest change is
often related to a change in the pairing and failure to raise young the
previous year, and younger birds are more likely to change nesting sites. A succession of pairs have been observed occupying a nest for a few days
before moving on, the reason for which is unclear.
Status: Rare migrant, both in spring and autumn. Usually 2 to 3 sightings
per year, mostly of singles but sometimes recorded in small flocks. On
14th September 2010 a flock of 28 White Stork, accompanied by 1 Black
Stork, was seen from Buskett. This was the largest flock ever recorded in Malta. Unfortunately most of the White Storks that visit the Maltese
Islands end up getting shot by poachers.
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When to See: March till May in Spring, August till September in Autumn.
It is more common in Autumn than in Spring.
Where to See: Can be seen from anywhere flying over. Buskett and
Dwejra are good spots.
2. Fjamingu
The Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus) is the most widespread
species of the flamingo family. It is found in parts of Africa, southern Asia
(coastal regions of Pakistan and India), and southern Europe (including Spain, Albania, Turkey, Greece, Cyprus, Portugal, Italy and the Camargue
region of France). Some populations are short distance migrants, and
sightings north of the breeding range are relatively frequent; however,
given the species' popularity in captivity, whether or not these are truly
wild individuals is a matter of some debate. A single bird was seen on North Keeling Island (Cocos (Keeling) Islands) in 1988. The Greater
Flamingo is the state bird of Gujarat, India.
The Greater Flamingo is a large bird and well-known to many people. It is
tall, pink and white plumage with a down curved bill. It has pink legs and
reveals black wings with crimson red in flight. In flight its pink neck is a key feature in identification especially if seen very far away. Feeds on
invertebrates and algae by funneling its beak through shallow water. It
breeds in several colonies around the Mediterranean with c 35,000 pairs
mainly in Spain, Sardinia, France and Turkey. Juvenile birds are darker
and more grey. Often seen in flocks.
Status: The Greater Flamingo is scarce and irregular, mostly seen in singles or small flocks offshore. Some singles or couples rest at Ghadira
Nature Reserve for some time. A single 1st year flamingo stayed at
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Ghadira from September 2008 till May 2009. On 6th November 2008 a
1st year Flamingo, carrying a ring from Sardegna was present at Salina.
When to See: It is recorded in a number of different months, but mostly
in September migrating along the coast.
Where to See: Occasionally some individuals 1-2 spend some hours or days at Ghadira Nature Reserve where they feed. Other sites; Qawra,
Salina and around the coast.
3. Ċinju
The Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) is a species of swan, and thus a member of
the duck, goose and swan family Anatidae. It is native to much of Europe
and Asia, and (as a rare winter visitor) the far north of Africa. It is also an
introduced species in North America, Australasia and southern Africa. The
name 'mute' derives from it being less vocal than other swan species. Measuring 125 to 170 centimetres in length, this large swan is wholly
white in plumage with an orange bill bordered with black. It is
recognisable by its pronounced knob atop the bill.
Description: Adults of this large swan typically range from 140 to 160 cm
long, although can range in extreme cases from 125 to 170 cm, with a 200 to 240 cm wingspan. Males are larger than females and have a larger
knob on their bill. On average, this is the second largest waterfowl species
after the Trumpeter Swan, although male Mute Swans can easily match or
even exceed a male Trumpeter in mass. Among standard measurements
of the Mute Swan, the wing chord measures 53–62.3 cm, the tarsus is 10–11.8 cm and the bill is 6.9–9 cm. The Mute Swan is one of the
heaviest flying birds, with males (known as cobs) averaging about 11–12
kg and the slightly smaller females (known as pens) weighing about 8.5–
9 kg. While the top normal weight for a big cob is 15 kg, one unusually big Polish cob weighed almost 23 kg, and this counts as the largest
verified weight for a flying bird, although it has been questioned whether
this heavyweight could still take flight. Its size, orange-reddish bill and
white plumage make this swan almost unmistakable at close quarters.
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Compared with the other Northern white swans, the Mute Swan can easily
be distinguished by its curved neck and orange, black-knobbed bill, which is larger in males. Unlike most other Northern swan species (who usually
inhabit only pristine wetlands without regular human interference), the
Mute Swan has, in some parts of the world, become habituated and
fearless towards humans. Such swans are often seen at close range in
urban areas with bodies of water.
Young birds, called cygnets, are not the bright white of mature adults,
and their bill is dull greyish-black, not orange, for the first year. The down
may range from pure white to grey to buff, with grey/buff the most
common. The white cygnets have a leucistic gene. All Mute Swans are
white at maturity, though the feathers (particularly on the head and neck)
are often stained orange-brown by iron and tannins in the water.
The morph immutabilis ("Polish Swan") has pinkish (not dark grey) legs
and dull white cygnets; as with white domestic geese, it is only found in
populations with a history of domestication.
Distribution and Habitat: The Mute Swan is found naturally mainly in
temperate areas of Europe across western Asia, as far east as the Russian
Maritimes, near Sidemi. Gmelin (1789) and John Latham (1824) reported
Mute Swans present in Kamchatka in the 18th century.
It is partially migratory throughout northern latitudes in Europe and Asia,
as far south as north Africa and the Mediterranean. It is known and
recorded to have nested in Iceland and is a vagrant to that area, as well
as to Bermuda, according to the U.N. Environmental Programme chart of
international status chart of bird species, which places it in 70 countries, breeding in 49 countries, and vagrant in 16 countries. While most of the
current population in Japan is introduced, Mute Swans are depicted on
scrolls more than a thousand years old, and wild birds from the mainland
Asian population still occur rarely in winter. Natural migrants to Japan
usually occur along with Whooper and sometimes Bewick's Swans.
The Mute Swan is protected in most of its range, but this has not
prevented illegal hunting and poaching. It is often kept in captivity
outside its natural range, as a decoration for parks and ponds, and
escapes have happened. The descendants of such birds have become
naturalised in the eastern United States and Great Lakes, much as the
Canada Goose has done in Europe.
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4. Grawwa
The Common Crane (Grus grus), also known as the Eurasian Crane, is a
bird of the family Gruidae, the cranes. A medium-sized species, it is the
only crane commonly found in Europe besides the Demoiselle Crane. It is also one of only four crane species (with the Sandhill and Demoiselle
Cranes and the Brolga) not currently classified as threatened with
extinction or conservation dependent at the species level.
The Common Crane is one of the most popular birds across Europe, often
recognised as a symbol of migration and also due to its grus grus call!
The Common Crane is a big bird with a wingspan ranging from 1.8-2.2 meters across. It is sometimes confused with the Grey Heron but the two
species are very different both in habits and identification. This bird has a
grey body and a thick pale neck. Also has a black face and throat with a
red patch on crown. It also has long dark legs. It feeds by digging up the soil in search of worms, insects and larvae. The Common Crane breeds in
Northern Europe on remote bogs and undisturbed forests. In autumn
migrates to Spain and Northern African countries. They are known to live
up to 20 years and its overall population is vulnerable.
Status: Scarce and irregular migrant, numbers vary from year to year. On
the 20th and 21st December 2009 an exceptional influx occurred where
more than a 1000 birds were recorded migrating over Malta.
When to See: Mostly recorded in autumn between October and December. Some are also seen in January. In Spring; from late February till mid-
April, Crane is also seen but in much smaller numbers than in
Autumn/Winter.
Where to See: Can be seen flying over from anywhere in small to
medium- sized flocks. Rarely attempts to land as Malta does not offer suitable habitat. Anyhow if any birds try to do so, they will eventually get
shot illegally. Luqa International Airport is a preferred site by local birders
in winter to look for this species flying over.
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5. Buqrajq
The European Nightjar, Eurasian Nightjar or just Nightjar (Caprimulgus
europaeus) is the only representative of the nightjar family of birds in
most of Europe and temperate Asia.
A mysterious bird which is active at dusk and dawn. It has a spotted brown grey body with a small head and tiny bill. Its tail is quite long. The
Male has white spots on the wingtips while the females do not have. The
Male is also bigger. The Nightjar feeds at night mainly insects and moths
during flight. It spends the day hiding with its camouflaged plumage on the ground or still in a tree. The nightjar has a very distinctive and
mechanical call gooik with a prolonged churrrr. Its call is very unique and
a pleasure to hear. It has extremely agile light maneuvering with twists
and turns. Nightjars migrate to Africa for the winter and come back to Europe to breed during Spring-Summer. It lays 2 eggs on bare ground
and they hatch after 18 days. It can leave up to 10 years. Unfortunately
the Nightjar is declining throughout Europe.
Status: Regular migrant seen in Autumn and Spring. Mainly seen hunting
in singles.
When to See: Mid-September till end of October and April-May.
Where to See: 2 of the best sites to see this bird are Buskett and Comino.
Other places include areas that are undisturbed with open area and some
woodland. Occasionally flushed while walking.
6. Qattus
The Long-eared Owl - Asio otus (previously: Strix otus) is a species of owl
which breeds in Europe, Asia, and North America. This species is a part of
the larger grouping of owls known as typical owls, family Strigidae, which contains most species of owl. The other grouping of owls are the barn
owls, family Tytonidae.
Description: The Long-eared Owl is a medium sized owl, 31–40 cm in
length with an 86–100 cm wingspan and a body mass of 178–435g. It
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has erect blackish ear-tufts, which are positioned in the center of the
head. The ear-tufts are used to make the owl appear larger to other owls while perched. The female is larger in size and darker in coloration than
the male. The Long-eared Owl’s brownish feathers are vertically streaked.
Tarsus and toes are entirely feathered. Eye disks are also characteristic in
this species. However, the eye disks of A. otus are darker in colour or rusty-orange. This nocturnal species is perhaps most easily seen perched
in a tree in its daytime roost, sometimes in small groups during the winter
months.
Behaviour: The Long-eared Owl's breeding season is from February to
July. This bird is partially migratory, moving south in winter from the
northern parts of its temperate range. Its habitat is forest close to open
country.
It nests in trees, often coniferous, using the old stick nests of other birds
such as crows, ravens and magpies and various hawks. The average
clutch size is 4-6 eggs, and the incubation time averages from 25–30
days. It will readily use artificial nesting baskets. An unusual characteristic of this species is its communal roosting in thickets during
the winter months. The young have a characteristic call, likened to a rusty
hinge.
The Long-eared Owl hunts over open country by night. It is very long
winged, like the similar Short-eared Owl, and glides slowly on stiff wings
when hunting. Its food is mainly rodents, small mammals, and birds. In Europe it faces competition from the tawny owl and is most numerous
where the tawny is absent.
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7. Gamiema tal-Kullar
The Eurasian Collared Dove (Streptopelia decaocto) most often simply
called the Collared Dove, also sometimes hyphenated as Eurasian Collared-dove is a species of dove native to Asia and Europe, and also
recently introduced in North America.
The Collared Dove is a medium sized dove, slightly larger than the related
Turtle Dove. It is grey-buff to pinkish-grey overall, a little darker above
than below, with a blue-grey underwing patch. The tail feathers are grey-
buff above, and dark grey tipped white below; the outer tail feathers also tipped whitish above. It has a black half-collar edged with white on its
nape from which it gets its name. The short legs are red and the bill is
black. The iris is red, but from a distance the eyes appear to be black. The
eye is surrounded by a small area of bare skin, which is either white or
yellow.
The Collared Dove is not migratory, but is strongly dispersive. Over the
last century, it has been one of the great colonisers of the bird world. Its
original range at the end of the 19th century was warm temperate and
subtropical Asia from Turkey east to southern China and south through India to Sri Lanka. However, in the 20th century it expanded across
Europe, with it now being a common breeding bird in most european and
north african countries.
Collared Doves typically breed close to human habitation wherever food
resources are abundant and there are trees for nesting; almost all nests are within a kilometre of inhabited buildings. It lays two white eggs in a
stick nest, which are incubated by the female during the night and by the
male during the day. The males mating display is a ritual flight, which as
many other pigeons, consists of a rapid, nearly vertical climb to height, followed by a long glide downward in a circle, with the wings held below
the body in an inverted 'v'. It is not wary and often feeds very close to
human habitation, including visiting bird tables. The song is a coo-COO-
coo, repeated many times. It is phonetically similar to the Greek,
decaocto ('eighteen'), to which the bird owes its name.
Status: Common Breeder. Used to be a vagrant bird in the past, with only 8 records up to 1994. Then, following the overall population increase in
Europe, Collared Dove sightings started to increase. From 1999 onwards
it was recorded annually. The first breeding record of Collared Doves in
Malta was in 2003, when a nest with 2 chicks was observed on the 17th of August at Santa Maria Estate (Ghajn Zejtuna). From then on, the
population at Santa Maria Estate increased rapidly and the Collared Doves
now populate various parts of the Maltese Islands.
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When to See: All year round.
Where to See: Best place to see is by far Santa Maria Estate, Mellieha,
where the largest colony of Collared Doves in Malta is present. Other places with suitable habitats such as public gardens and cemeteries are
good placed to see this species.
8. Merill (not migratory)
The Blue Rock Thrush (Monticola solitarius) is a species of chat. This
thrush-like Old World flycatcher was formerly placed in the family
Turdidae.
This species breeds in southern Europe and northwest Africa, and from
central Asia to northern China and Malaysia.
The European, north African and southeast Asian birds are mainly
resident, apart from altitudinal movements. Other Asian populations are
more migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa, India and southeast
Asia. This bird is a very uncommon visitor to northern and western
Europe.
Blue Rock Thrush breeds in open mountainous areas, usually higher than the breeding zone of the related Common Rock Thrush. It nests in rock
cavities and walls, and usually lays 3-5 eggs. An omnivore, the Blue Rock
Thrush eats a wide variety of insects and small reptiles in addition to
berries and seeds.
This is a starling-sized bird, 21–23 cm in length with a long slim bill. The summer male is unmistakable, with all blue-grey plumage apart from its
darker wings. Females and immatures are much less striking, with dark
brown upperparts, and paler brown scaly underparts. Both sexes lack the
reddish outer tail feathers of Rock Thrush.
The male Blue Rock Thrush sings a clear, melodious call that is similar to,
but louder than the call of the Rock Thrush.
The Blue Rock Thrush is Malta's national bird and used to be shown on
the Lm 1 coins that was part of the previous currency of the country.
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Status and Distribution: The Blue Rock Thrush population in Malta is quite
a strong one, with it being present along all the cliffs of western and northern coasts of mainland Malta. It is not usually recorded on the
eastern coast of mainland Malta due to the lack of cliffs. It is also found
breeding along the coasts of Gozo and Comino.
When to See: All year round
Where to See: Mainly near sea cliffs but may be also present in steep
inland valleys or near buildings in ruins. A very good place to see the Blue
Rock Thrush is the Majjistral Natural Park.
9. Għasfur tal-Bejt (not migratory)
The Spanish Sparrow or Willow Sparrow (Passer hispaniolensis) is a
passerine bird of the sparrow family Passeridae. It is found in the
Mediterranean region and southwest and central Asia. It is very similar to
the closely related House Sparrow, and the two species show their close relation in a "biological mix-up" of hybridisation in the Mediterranean
region, which complicates the taxonomy of this species.
Chunky familiar passerine, seen throughout Malta. Breeds in ventilators,
telegraph poles, trees etc. In breeding season, males have reddish brown
cap, white cheeks, black throat and black streaked chest, flanks and back.
Females and juveniles are duller, with brown and grey being their dominant colours. It is highly adaptable when it comes to its food, feeding
on anything edible it encounters. Big flocks gather at sunset to roost in
large trees such as Ficus, often in town squares. Even though it is a
resident species, some migrating flocks are noticed in October and November. Its call is a typical, clumsy "sparrowish" one. Its alarm call is a
very good indicator that a larger bird is present, as they tend to get
alarmed even if a Turtle Dove or a Cuckoo fly over, probably thinking they
are raptors.
Status and Distribution: Very Common, as it is not bothered at all by
human presence, it is present throughout Malta, Gozo and Comino.
When to See: All year round
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Where to See: Everywhere
10. Sponsun tas-Silġ
The White-winged Snowfinch (Montifringilla nivalis), or just Snowfinch, is a small passerine bird. Despite its name, it is a sparrow rather than a true
finch.
Distribution and Habitat: It is a resident breeding species on bare
mountains, typically above 1,500 metres, across southern Europe and
through central Asia to western China. It nests in crevices or rodent
burrows, laying 3–4 eggs.
Description: White-winged Snowfinch is a large stocky sparrow at 16.5–19 centimetres in length. It has brown upperparts, white underparts and a
grey head. There is a long narrow white wing panel. In summer, the bill is
black, and there is a black bib. The bib is lost in winter and the bill
becomes yellow. Sexes are similar. In flight, it shows black wings with huge white wing panels, and a white edged black tail. This bird has a
chattering song with many trills, and variety of rolling or creaky calls.
Behaviour: The White-winged Snowfinch's food is mainly seeds with some
insects. It is fearless, and will forage around ski resorts. It is hardy, and
rarely descends below 1,000 metres even in hard winter weather.
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Variations
1. Size of Birds
Biological Name of Bird English name Maltese names Approximate
Size of Bird
Ciconia ciconia White Storck Ċikonja Bajda 100cm
Phoenicopterus roseus Greater Flamingo Fjamingu 130cm
Cygnus olor Mute Swan Ċinju 150cm
Grus grus Common Crane Grawwa 115cm
Caprimulgus europaeus European Nightjar Buqrajq 30cm
Asio otus Long Eared Owl Qattus 40cm
Streptopelia decaocto Collared Dove Gamiema tal-Kullar
20cm
Monticola solitarius (not migratory)
Blue Rock Thrush Merill 23cm
Passer hiapaniolensis (not migratory)
Spanish Sparrow Għasfur tal-Bejt 16cm
Montrifringilla nivalis White-winged Snowfinch
Sponsun tas-Silġ 19cm
As you can see from this data, there are many different sizes of birds. They range from 16cm to 130cm. The smaller birds can fly with ease,
build small nests, and look for small sized foods in different places like
soil, bark of trees, holes, between rubble walls etc. The larger birds seek
food in larger places. They also need larger or more abundant food. They are heavier to fly although they fly with ease and migrate to distant
countries. The sizes of birds range from small to large. There is also
continuous variation of the sizes of birds.
2. Colour of Birds
Maltese name Colour of Bird Picture
Ċikonja Bajda
Its plumage is mainly white, with
black on its wings.
Its conspicuous colour doesn’t permit
much hiding by camouflage.
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Fjamingu Most of the plumage is pinkish-white,
but the wing coverts are red and the primary and secondary flight feathers
are black.
This bird has a conspicuous colour
that doesn’t permit much hiding by
camouflage in fields or countryside.
Ċinju This large swan is wholly white in
plumage with an orange bill bordered
with black.
Again this bird has a conspicuous
colour that doesn’t permit much
hiding by camouflage in fields or
countryside.
Grawwa This species is slate-grey overall. The
forehead and lores are blackish with
a bare red crown and a white streak extending from behind the eyes to
the upper back. The overall colour is
darkest on the back and rump and
palest on the breast and wings. The primaries, the tips of secondaries,
the alula, the tip of the tail, and the
edges of upper tail coverts are all
black and the greater coverts droop
into explosive plumes.
This bird has a conspicuous colour that doesn’t permit much hiding by
camouflage in fields or countryside.
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Buqrajq The plumage of the adult Nightjar is
lichen-grey, barred and streaked with buff, chestnut and black. The
under parts are barred. White spots
on primaries and white tips to the
outer tail feathers are characters of the male; in the young male these
are buff. The bill is black, the legs reddish brown.
These colours permit hiding by
camouflage in trees, fields,
countryside.
Qattus It has erect blackish ear-tufts, which
are positioned in the centre of the
head. The ear-tufts are used to make the owl appear larger to other owls
while perched. The female is larger in
size and darker in coloration than the
male. The Long-eared Owl’s brownish feathers are vertically streaked.
Tarsus and toes are entirely
feathered.
These colours permit hiding by
camouflage in trees, fields,
countryside.
Gamiema tal-Kullar
It is grey-buff to pinkish-grey overall, a little darker above than below, with
a blue-grey under wing patch. The
tail feathers are grey-buff above, and
dark grey tipped white below; the outer tail feathers also tipped whitish
above. It has a black half-collar
edged with white on its nape from
which it gets its name. The short legs are red and the bill is black. The iris
is red, but from a distance the eyes
appear to be black, as the pupil is
relatively large and only a narrow rim
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of reddish-brown iris can be seen
around the black pupil. The eye is surrounded by a small area of bare
skin, which is either white or yellow.
The two sexes are virtually
indistinguishable; juveniles differ in having a poorly developed collar, and
a brown iris.
This has a conspicuous colour that
doesn’t permit much hiding by
camouflage.
Merill (not
migratory) The summer male is unmistakable,
with all blue-grey plumage apart from its darker wings. Females and
immatures are much less striking,
with dark brown upperparts, and
paler brown scaly underparts. Both sexes lack the reddish outer tail
feathers of Rock Thrush.
The males have a conspicuous colour
that doesn’t permit much hiding by
camouflage in fields or countryside.
The females colour permit hiding by camouflage in trees, fields or
countryside.
Għasfur tal-Bejt
(not migratory)
The male is similar to the House
Sparrow in plumage, but differs in its underparts heavily streaked with
black, a chestnut rather than grey
crown, and white rather than grey
cheeks. The female is effectively inseparable from House Sparrow in
its plumage, which is grey-brown
overall but more boldly marked. The
female has light streaking on its
sides, a pale cream supercilium, and broad cream streaks on its
back.These colours permit hiding by
camouflage in trees,field,countryside.
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Sponsun tas-Silġ It has brown upperparts, white
underparts and a grey head. There is a long narrow white wing panel. In
summer, the bill is black, and there
is a black bib. The bib is lost in
winter and the bill becomes yellow. In flight, it shows black wings with
huge white wing panels, and a white
edged black tail.
The colours blend well with its type of habitat in cliffs and rocky parts.
As you can see from this data, there are very continuous variations of
colours.
3. Size of Leg
Maltese Name Size of Leg Variations
Ċikonja Bajda 20cm They have long red legs which
help them fly better.
Fjamingu 60cm A flamingo's long legs allow it to wade into deeper water in
search of food than other
birds.
Ċinju 10cm Its feet are large webbed
which help them especially when landing.
Grawwa 20cm Its long dark legs make it
easier when digging up the
soil in search of worms,
insects and larvae.
Buqrajq 5cm The short legs and feet are
brown to pinkish-brown. The
short legs make it easy when
standing.
Qattus 10cm The legs are feet are heavily feathered and enable long-
eared owls to move quickly.
Gamiema tal-Kullar 3cm Small feet used for perching
in trees and almost on all other terrain even wire.
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Merill (not migratory) 3cm It has small feet that enable
him to move quickly through branches and on ground.
Għasfur tal-Bejt (not
migratory) 2cm It has small feet that enable
him to move quickly through
branches and on ground, and
to fit well in its small nest.
Sponsun tas-Silġ 5cm Small feet that are good for
walking .
As you can see from this data, there is a continuous variation of the sizes
of the leg which range from short legged to large legged.
4. Structure of Beak
Maltese Name Structure of Beak
Ċikonja Bajda It has a long, straight pointed beak to catch the
prey.
Fjamingu A flamingo's beak has a filter like structure to
remove food from the water before the liquid is expelled.
Ċinju Their grey or tan beaks lack the characteristic
basal knob of the adults. Its long beak helps to
catch the prey.
Grawwa It has a long beak which helps it to catch the prey easily.
Buqrajq It has a short beak which helps when catching
moths and other large flying insects.
Qattus It has a short sharp beak to help catch the prey.
Gamiema tal-Kullar It a small and narrow beak which is a suitable for catching the prey.
Merill (not migratory) It has a long, slim bill which is suitable when
catching food.
Għasfur tal-Bejt (not
migratory) It has a stubby and powerful beak that comes in
handy when catching food.
Sponsun tas-Silġ It has a short beak that is suitable for feeding on seeds and for catching insects.
As you can see from this data, there is a continuous variation of beaks.
There are straight, curved, long, tiny, wide and narrow.
5 Type of Feathers
Maltese Name Structure of Feathers
Ċikonja Bajda It is completely white except for the black wing
flight feathers. The feathers cover its main body.
Fjamingu It has light pink, black and white fluffy feathers
which cover its main body.
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Ċinju It has long white fluffy feathers which cover its
whole body.
Grawwa It has long slate-grey feathers overall.
Buqrajq It has long light-brown feathers which cover its
whole body.
Qattus They have very feathery legs and toes which help
them to keep warm especially during the night. They also have long blackish tuffs resembling ears
which are covered with feathers.
Gamiema tal-Kullar Fine feathers on its main body. The feathers on the
upperside are bigger and more colourful than the
underside. The ones on the wings are taller for flight.
Merill (not
migratory) Tail feathers are black with slate-blue edges on
outer rectrices.
On the wings, the flight feathers are blackish with slate-blue edges, more or less extended. The adult
male in winter plumage shows duller plumage with
grey to sandy-buff edged feathers. Wings and tail
are darker, but with paler tips and edges. Since it
is a migratory bird it has many flight feathers which help it to keep warm.
Għasfur tal-Bejt (not
migratory) It has short and fluffy feathers all over its body.
Sponsun tas-Silġ It has white, long and fluffy feathers which covers
its body.
As you can see from this data, there is a continuous variation of feathers
such as broad, narrow, short and long.
Conclusion
In this project I tried to do some research about only ten migratory birds of Malta. I wanted to point out the different variations in only 5
characteristics, however, this small project shows that variations are
important for different lifestyles of the species. Different variations allow
for different exploitations of different habitats, acquisition of different foods, different forms of shelter and defence from predators, different
movements etc. . . The better adapted species will be better during
competition for food, shelter, mate, etc and therefore they will be able to
survive more. Natural selection is the gradual, non-random process by which biological
traits become either more or less common in a population as a function of
differential reproduction of their bearers. It is a key mechanism of
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evolution. The term "natural selection" was popularized by Charles
Darwin. Variation exists within all populations of organisms. This occurs partly
because random mutations cause changes in the genome of an individual
organism, and these mutations can be passed to offspring. Throughout
the individuals’ lives, their genomes interact with their environments to cause variations in traits. Individuals with certain variants of the trait may
survive and reproduce more than individuals with other variants.
Therefore the population evolves. Factors that affect reproductive success
are also important, an issue that Charles Darwin developed in his ideas on sexual selection, for example. Natural selection acts on the phenotype, or
the observable characteristics of an organism, but the genetic (heritable)
basis of any phenotype that gives a reproductive advantage will become
more common in a population. Over time, this process can result in
populations that specialize for particular ecological niches and may eventually result in the emergence of new species.
References
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darwin's_finches
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Darwin http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Voyage_of_the_Beagle
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_birds_of_Malta
http://www.birdinginmalta.com/
http://www.birdinginmalta.com/birdspecies.htm