From Opus

Lamprotornis mevesii

Photo by safariranger
Pafuri, Kruger National Park, South Africa.

[edit] Identification

Length 30-36 cm, mass 65-95 g. Males larger than females.

A glossy starling with a dark eye and long, graduated tail.

[edit] Distribution

South-central Africa: Southern Angola, northern Namibia, northern and eastern Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, western Mozambique and far-northern South Africa.

[edit] Taxonomy

Lamprotornis mevesii has three subspecies:¹

• L. m. mevesii

• Angola and northern Namibia to Botswana, southern Malawi and far-northern South Africa

• L. m. violacior

• Northern Namibia and south-western Angola

• L. m. benguelensis

• Mopane woodlands of the southern end of the escarpment of western Angola

[edit] Habitat

Mopane woodland and riverine forest.

[edit] Behaviour

Forages on the ground, often in groups of up to ten individuals; eats insects, flowers and fruit.

[edit] Breeding

Monogamous. The nest is built in a hole in a tree, usually 1-4 m above the ground. Three to five eggs are laid November to April and incubated for 18 days by the female. Parasitised by Great Spotted Cuckoo.

[edit] References

1. Clements, JF. 2008. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2008. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist.
2. Hockey, PAR, WRJ Dean, and PG Ryan, eds. 2005. Roberts' Birds of Southern Africa. 7th ed. Cape Town: John Voelcker Bird Book Fund. ISBN 978-0620340533
3. Sinclair, I and P Ryan. 2003. Birds of Africa South of the Sahara. Princeton: Princeton Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0691118154

• List of references

[edit] External Links