Pigeon hawk: the ugliest bird in Romania
Obviously, it is not a bird with an unsightly appearance. Quite the contrary! All "image" shows his strength and nobility, cruelty and majesty together harmoniously. It is one of the most typical species of birds of prey in the world, not just in our country. But, unfortunately, this is the feathered prey enemies, wild birds threatened and persecuted in Romania, where the accused subjectively that they attack pigeons, hens and other poultry. Optical negative at this prey is not characteristic Romanians pigeon hawks are often subjected to control and even extermination campaigns in many other countries. But beyond purely anthropocentric view of human, hawk remains a fascinating bird to be protected at all costs. In Romania and wherever he encounters.Family, gender, appearance, adaptations
It is the largest and most powerful representative of the genus Accipiter (comprising a total of 52 species), birds of prey typically with sizes between the sparrow and the crow, the flight characteristic silhouette with short broad wings , long tail and feet with long toes and strong claws specialized in capturing birds.
Hawk Species blackthorn, one of the most perfect predatory birds in the world, is widespread in Europe, Asia and North America. In this huge complex spread, the bird is present in no more than 11 subspecies differ in plumage color and size.
Like all representatives of the genus Accipiter , and our pigeon hawk is a bird of prey adapted to living and flying in the forest, deciduous or coniferous either. It's a great bird of prey specialized climatic conditions of temperate boreal zone, although some subspecies, such as Accipiter gentilis albidus , live in the arctic tundras of Siberia.
It is seldom that we see a pigeon hawk in nature. Unlike buzzard hawks, falcons Gai or other medium-sized raptor that can be confused by Unknown, pigeon hawk is an ambush predator, a consummate hunter who spends most of his time in the woods or on their edge and near human settlements.
Unlike the above mentioned types of birds of prey, who spend much of activity in flight is often pigeon on the branch of a tree, where like a lone samurai embodied in a bird of prey lurks arranging their plumage or resting it.
In those rare and lucky moments, we can see clearly imprinted in appearance and attire defining features of his nature. Eyed, yellow-orange, piercing, marginal arches are pronounced, which serve as protection from potential struggles of prey hawk when one tear. The look is absolutely stunning, unforgettable for everyone. Hawk Eyes pigeon for us humans, a rigid and stinging glare, which only transmit fierce wild combined with absolute nobility. Beak with yellow base and black tip is short, strongly curved, with sharp edges to tear its prey more easily from meat.
Wings short, strong shoulders, often kept slightly detached from the body, betrays a constant state of attention, of which a fraction of a second attack can be triggered instantaneously. Long legs, unexpectedly long for a bird of prey, are his true weapons that kill their prey. The feet are powered by muscles incredibly powerful and equipped with very long claws, sharp and curved daggers and some bone, black and curved, which pierce internal organs and even bones crush victims. They succumb from massive internal bleeding.
Long legs until the talus covered with feathers and keep them wide apart, like a martial posture, as if always ready to push them instantaneously before covering with both victim înjunghietor of claw clippers. What's the goal of the tarsus, with long fingers armed with deadly claws, scaly leg is yellow.
Often keeps his head bent forward, as if always ready to attack. That is a long time to wait on the branches of trees, hidden in the foliage.
Notice constitutes their attack plans and strategies, as the most favorable time to break and hit weather, or to approach unseen and unheard flight to discard the prey.
Adult male and female are almost identical plumage coloration. Crop, chest and abdomen have special features color being white, crossed with thick stripes, thin horizontal blackish brown. Back is slightly different plumage, the male is blue-gray and the female is gray-brown hue.
What differentiates them is pretty much the size, higher in female than it seemed to be part of other bird species. This difference common to all birds of prey that feed on prey alive and active, is given by the characteristic way of procuring food during the period of chickens.
But an even greater confusion arises when we encounter a hawk juvenile specimen that has not changed since the plumage of the adult chicken (development phase is completely finalized around the age of two years). Compared to adult clothing, juvenile specimens have a totally different color.All their plumage is brown-brown, streaked with patches on the chest and abdomen long, vertical features, color it black on beige brown background.
As demonstrated in British ornithologist Robert L. Kenward in his - The Goshawk, Poyser Monography. 2006 , young hawks specific color helps them to survive more easily in the first years of life, when the birds are not experienced. Brown color with black spots do birds often be much better camouflaged when sitting among the branches of trees, which help them to capture prey more easily and escape somehow unnoticed by the natural enemy species redoubtable big owl ( Bubo bubo ).
Pigeon hawks are birds of medium size, weighing between 500-800 grams 800-1600 grams TLS males and females. Body length is 50-56 cm for males and 60-69 cm for females. Wingspan is somewhat small, about 1-1.2 meters pigeon hawk is a raptor with short wings adapted for great speed slalom through the trees and shrubs. The color, size and weight varies depending on the subspecies to which it belongs.
For example, pigeon hawks in Spain, Italy, Greece and all of southern Europe are the small, dark plumage and strong contrast, while hawks in Scandinavia and northern Russia are higher, and their plumage has shades lighter. Based on its characteristic silhouette, pigeon hawk is easily recognized in flight.
It has relatively short wings, broad at the base, slightly rounded at the tip, the tail is long, streaked 3-4 horizontal wide stripes, black. As I said, it's not ugly or unseemly place a bird, people's hatred against him has other reasons ...
Troops perfect
Pigeon hawk are among the species of birds of prey that have a particularly high rate of success in hunting, as they discovered, fascinating generations of falconer and ornithologist. Among raptors the size, is unsurpassed in variety flights they run with great skill, safety and efficiency.
Now make circles moving horizontally in search of prey, now goes to the direct line height, alternating wing beats fast with short level glides, now turns sharply del quieter flight, rises, or falls short dive.Quick passes over the forest, almost touching the top of the tree branches. Flight soar to laughter lightning earth ooze feline near forest edge or hen coop to capture victims careless.
Develop strategies and tactics every time incredible at first sight for bird brains smaller than a walnut, so often has brilliant intelligence, not just pure instinct. Flight tracking prey in direct, sometimes fast on her top, sometimes coming under it and catch the last moment to flip back to grab it suddenly pushed up clutches.
The laws of nature if they wanted to make, depending on race and gender specific barriers raptors somehow to restrict hunting skills and give such opportunities and prey. Eagles, no matter how big and powerful they are, are powerless if the rabbit managed to save the forest or bushes. Gail and ?orecarii can not catch prey on the ground. Peregrine falcon, fierce and unsurpassed in flight speed can not hit dead bird than when it sits on the ground. Pigeon potârnichii and pheasant sitting on the ground, just simply has nothing to do. Pigeon hawk, but not the lawful nature of any obstruction.
Bottom of the earth, up in the air, the water, the density of the forest, he gets his victims with the same determination and efficiency. When appears, is general panic, fear freezes sometimes endangered bird. A pigeon or a chicken hawk escaped the attack often falls into a kind of trance, sitting motionless without able to move a good chunk of time.
His regime food consists mostly of warm-blooded prey, caught alive. Only in very severe winters, northern specimens are forced to May peck of animal corpses, and they have to be fresh. Ornitofag pigeon hawk is a predator, that much of its prey consisting of birds. He preferences quails, partridges, pigeons, poultry, ducks, crows, rock, jays, magpies, pheasants, grouse, black grouse, herons, karst woodcocks, but comsume and many other birds.
Its short wings and long tail and broad, excellent helm, are the main adjustments to the way his appeals. Hawk is capable of sharp turns, sudden acceleration and admirable perseverance, qualities that are key to success in the hunt. No bypassing any mammals, of which have a predilection for squirrels, hamsters and rabbits. Wild rabbits are prey particularly difficult field that only large hawk females dare to attack them.
It is a very powerful bird in proportion to its size. Radu Dimitrie Romanian Ornithological reports a case personally observed in which a female goshawk pick his spots a farm birds relatively easily over a high fence over 2 meters hen captured, whose weight exceeds that of the bird of prey.
However its prey regime is extremely varied. If a male pigeon is often able to catch songbirds, Pyotr Alexandrovich Russian naturalist Manteufel reports in the paper " The Diary of a naturalist (Didactic and Pedagogic Publishing House, 1962) , about a female goshawk not hesitate to attack a cock mountain ( Tetrao urogallus ) very strong and aggressive species in which males can reach a weight of 6 kg.
Ornithologists have found that pigeon hawks hunt in Northern Europe especially and grouse corvide, while in central Europe (Germany and France), the proportions are equally divided between doves corvide and waterfowl (mainly coots and ducks). The famous German ornithologist Oskar von Riesenthal found that pigeon hawks in menu 123 species of birds and 16 of mammals, and among the latter was surprised to discover that even hawks attacked marmots.
Crop contents of 32 specimens of hawks in Romania researched ornithologist Carl Ritter von Dombrowski was 2 domestic fowl, 5 pigeon house, one collared, one domestic duck, goose domestic one, two partridges, two crows crows, one magpie , one Brebenel, one jay, 4 quail, woodcock one striker, two night herons, 1 Little Egret, 1 rabbit, 1 hamster and a squirrel.
Overall, 99% of successful prey capture by pigeon hawks rely on surprise factor. A bird has long warned to hide or move away. Therefore, hawk attack is like a thunderbolt. To achieve this performance, resorting to tactics extensively trained hawks. Depending on the particular terrain, wind and available prey, hawk tactics and strategy are always different.
Parents committed
Hawks make their pigeon pair for life. Birds are very loyal partner, being replaced only if he was killed or captured . Normally mate and hatch at the age of 2-3 years. In mild winters, nuptial flights can be seen at the end of January, and in the next deals with restoring nesting pairs affected by autumn and winter hardships.
Nuptial flights are spectacular. The two birds watching over the forest, slowly screw the sky, with fast beating wings. The male suddenly gushing up like a bullet, then opens its wide wings fan out their tail hanging long and beautiful circle. The female is already conquered!
Both birds nest in charge of renovating is always placed in trees at heights of 8-20 meters. Inside the nest is garnished with fine dry vegetation, and from this moment until the chicks will leave the nest, the male stick around its green twigs, refreshed as soon as the old ones have faded. Their roles are diverse: camouflage nest eggs hatching maintain moisture necessary items serve as shade for the female and chicks in hot days.
2-5 Ponta female egg is lodged at the end of March or the first days of April. In Romania ponte full of 4 eggs were found in your March 26 April 1 April 7 by ornithologist Ladislaus Kalaber between years 1976-1979. The eggs are deposited at intervals of 2-4 days each other.
Brooding especially female is assured that the male feeds the nest. Eggs Incubation usually takes 36-38 days, sometimes 41-42 days when weather conditions are harsh. A total of 29 eggs collected in Romania pigeon hawks had the average size value of 56.8 x 44.8 mm, among the highest in Europe. During the first 8-10 days of life, the female covers chickens, and all the while dealing exclusively male capturing prey and feeding the female.
In the first period of rearing, when they need more food, the male supplies the family alone. Spoils are taken to the female, which in this period stands inseparable nest and feed their young. For tearing prey, the female usually uses the same place, usually a broken tree stump storms or dry.
To capture a large number of prey during the period when the female can not hunt, the male must be very quick and agile, quality affordable SMALL a bird. This is why, not only in the pigeon hawk, and the vast majority of birds of prey, males are smaller than females.
The evolutionary process by which the male pigeon has become smaller than the female is the result of its specific in raising chickens. Later, they grow and begin to cover feathered chickens have less need of protection coverage provided by the female, instead calls for more food. In these circumstances, female, no longer having protective role begins to hunt with male. The female is bigger and stronger, and the spoils will be higher, a new species benefit factor.
Growth on chicken feathers start at 18 days and at 38 days, the chicks were already full plumage.They are able to consume prey brought by the parents themselves only at 28 days. Leave the nest at 36-41 days becoming dinosaurs, but are close to it a few days, feeding on prey by the parents. Only beginning to hunt alone at the age of 50 days, becoming fully independent in 70-80 days. The old birds, moult began in May, earlier than in females than in males. It is a gradual process that ends in October. In November, the young birds are already beginning to change adult plumage.
Hawk and Romanians
Pigeon hawk is among the best known birds of prey in Romania since ancient times. Romanian peasant closely knew this opportunistic predator that I get the chickens in the yard or on the roof of pigeon house. The bird was known by many names, some true archaism of Dacian without any influence Latin, Slavic, Turkish and Hungarian.
For example, the Romans named by region - goshawk, hawk, goshawk, pigeon hawk, ulie?, kite, blaspheme, huliu, blackthorn, thief, bogie, bodigeu, bodiga?, Harau, Hereu, Heretic, arete , ierete, cob??, Coruia.
It was a very common bird in the past, especially in the plains and hills, which are observed today the largest concentrations of population. How is a species related to forests, their numbers decimated not only because extermination campaigns, but also aberrant deforestation since 1989.
At this stage it appears more frequently in the Transylvanian plateau, Subcarpathians Moldova, Muntenia and Oltenia, and who the lowlands forests. Hatches and along the Danube floodplain and the Delta, ornithologist Radu Demetrius found a few pairs that hatched pigeon hawks in the toilet, and Caraorman forests.
Cohabitation of Romanians story is a sad one, unjust and sprinkled with cruelty and barbarity of man against this species of predatory birds. Nevertheless, we must not forget that other countries were much pigeon hawks May persecuted than us. Gets the example of England and Ireland, countries where pigeon hawks were killed to extinction. Î nvinui?i falsely that would have produced significant damage flocks of partridges, pheasants and rabbits, hawks were completely exterminated, and the British and Irish subsequently realized that crows were greater damage among game species.
Therefore, recently, the British authorities decided to re-pigeon hawk in the local avifauna. Slow and difficult process, which proves once again that no predator species should not be exterminated because they have a positive role in the ecosystem in question. In addition, the reintroduction of birds of prey is more difficult, as these birds are very low annual natural increase.
How is a pigeon hawk efficient and opportunistic predator, always attacked poultry. For this reason, both in Romania and in all countries where it met a pigeon hawk deventi most abhorrent, spiteful, ugly bird of prey.
No means of extirpation has been made against it, so that currently in Romania pigeon hawk populations are particularly affected.
He was shot caught with traps, forests were rummaging looking nests have been destroyed and chicks killed on the spot, so its survival in Romania can be considered a miracle, especially since the persecution was pointless and illegal in the current context continues today, unabated.
However, sea hawks blow our pigeon population was not given to individual cases where some people killed, but the national campaign against wolves and birds of prey taken by the Romanian communist authorities in the People's Republic between 1950 - 1960s. Then, each worker forestry and hunting in the country were encouraged to kill every bird of prey found, regardless of the year. Moreover, for each leg of hawk, falcon, eagle or owl taught hunting associations, environmental perpetrator of these crimes was praised and awarded cartridges.
Obviously, the species was hunted and persecuted all poor goshawk .... ABER position against greed was based only man who thought so many pheasants can hunt, rabbits, ducks, partridges, quails, etc.. Obviously, the number of game species have increased, they are much more affected by negative factors such as cold winters and poaching than by natural pressure exerted by birds of prey.Instead, all species of birds of prey in Romania were severely damaged, their populations are not neref?cându-date.
As I said, of all raptors in Europe, pigeon hawk was the most persecuted and beaten. Its population survived only perform optimally for species in areas with minimal human population, such as large forests of northern Europe. At the same time, populations in areas where they intersected with people were affected.
By 1960 all over Western Europe have been numerous acute mass extermination campaigns hawks.They were organized into special guards hunting, pigeon breeders and hunting birds and rabbits.Between 1940-1950, hawks have been left alone. People were involved in the Second World War and the restoration after military conflagration. however, the species has been on the brink of extinction in Europe between the years 1950-1960, the population is close to collapse due to widespread use wide tem DDT in agriculture. For example, the entire population of 180-220 pairs of pigeon hawks in the Netherlands was almost abolished in the year 1955.
Since 1970, DDT was banned entirely in Europe, and populations were recovered at an optimal level in many countries .. There just happens to us, where pigeon hawk is still hunted, trapped, held captive illegally in unsuitable conditions, although the species is protected by the Law no. 13/1993 for Romania's accession to the Convention on the conservation of wild birds and mammals and natural habitats in Europe , as well as hunting and protection Law No. hunting. 407/2006 . Of course, it is protected on paper.
The fact is all the more regrettable as Romania is the only country in Europe where there are three subspecies of goshawk.
Winter hawks halt to new large pale ( Accipiter gentilis buteoides ). In much of the country, nesting hawks in central-eastern European subspecies ( Accipiter gentilis gallinarum ) and in the south and along the Danube has been identified as bird nesting early last century Balkan-Caucasian subspecies ( Accipiter gentilis marginatus ). Adult birds in ssp marginatus is darker on top and brown than ssp gallinarum . The juvenile plumage is strongly red-colored in shades of rust and reach a size less than one thousand two forms mentioned above.
Between Falconer and traps fanciers
Pigeon hawk returned to the people's interest at the beginning of the XXI century revival of ?oim?ritului millenary art. highly predatory nature of pigeon hawk observation has not escaped the man who trained and hunting with birds of prey from ancient times. In fact, according to many hawker, pigeon hawk is the most complete and effective prey used in Falconer.
List prey can be hunted with a male and a female is really impressive and field efficiency of this species has made ??European mediaeval texts are called cooks hawk because it was devoted friend of the peasants and people of modest condition that they could provide food daily with trained hawk, unlike hawks, always associated with aristocracy and less effective in actual hunting.
Its very name in English, namely goshawk comes from ancient Anglo-Saxon name Goshafoc , meaning "goose hawk" with direct reference to geese hunted with hawks, although the species was particularly efficient in hunting other birds water, rabbits, pheasants, partridges, herons and even the cranes.
Bird continues today to be killed by some pigeon fanciers in Romania, who blame sometimes unfairly by losses among flocks of pigeons. They, as well as rural residents who keep chickens off, then curse the whole nation for the hen bird of prey taken by hawk disregard certain rules and their flying pigeons especially late autumn and winter, when the number of hawks is greater anyway specimens coming from the north.
Then spend the most atrocious and cruel massacres against hawks. Some (I hope as small) fanciers put traps (actually forbidden and condemned by the laws of Romania), and hawks are killed or tortured horribly caught by individuals uneducated and ill undoubtedly sadism.
Enough just to browse forums dedicated fanciers to find photos and stories disturbing traps of these individuals who boast that they have finally avenged the hawk. This means that innocent bird (which is only meant predator instinct and nature ) is killed on the spot in the mildest cases. Sometimes hawks caught out eyes are alive, they cut the legs or wings after they are let go. Birds terrible agony before he died. The late writer and hunter Ionel Pop recounted in one of his works, about the case of a guard who caught a hawk hunting and trapping him "punished" sticking your neck forcefully pepper and salt ...
Any comment is superfluous, especially with such facts as they currently spend and Romania.
Fortunately there are Romanian who take action and save raptors. Some of them were built inassociation Peregrinus raptor protection and enactment ?oim?ritului, the more so as this noble profession has been reported on the territory of today's Romania since the Middle Ages.
The association is headquartered in the city of Deva, is led by Dorin Carabet , and was noted by the rescue and release of numerous pigeon hawks, hawk, buzzard, cucuvele, Ciufi, sale and other birds of prey day and night.
Like a lone samurai, pigeon hawk spends in the forest, where no prey or severe winter makes hunting expeditions start up over the settlements. There kidnapper can not conflict with humans if they properly care for their poultry.
Under these conditions, the sky will be streaked Romania and the future of one of the most admirable and impressive hunters Nature.
Saving it up to us.
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