Mousebird
Encyclopedia
The mousebirds are a small group of (possibly near passerine
) bird
s which have no known close affinities to other groups, though they and the parrots and cockatoos (Psittaciformes) may be closer to each other than to other birds. The mousebirds are therefore given order
status as Coliiformes. This group is confined to sub-Saharan Africa
, and is the only bird order confined entirely to that continent. They had a wider range in prehistoric times and apparently evolve
d in Europe
.
s, in search of berries, fruit and buds. This habit, and their legs, gives rise to the group's English
name. They are acrobatic, and can feed upside down. All species have strong claws and reversible outer toes. They also have crests and stubby bills.
Mousebirds are gregarious, again reinforcing the analogy with mice
, and are found in bands of about twenty in lightly wooded country.
These birds build cup-shaped twig nests in trees, which are lined with grasses. 2-4 eggs are typically laid, hatching to give quite precocious young which soon leave the nest and acquire flight.
s" as the 6 species extant today are merely the survivors of a lineage that was massively more diverse in the late Paleogene
and Miocene
. There are comparatively abundant fossils of Coliiformes, but it has not been easy to assemble a robust phylogeny. The family is documented to exist from the Early Eocene
onwards; by the Late Eocene
or earlier, two families are known to have existed, the extant Coliidae and the longer-billed prehistorically extinct Sandcoleidae.
The latter were previously a separate order, but eventually it was realized that they had come to group ancestral Coraciiformes
, parrot
s, the actual sandcoleids and forms like Neanis
together in a paraphyletic assemblage. Even though the sandcoleids are now assumed to be monophyletic following the removal of these taxa, many forms cannot be conclusively assigned to one family or the other. The genus Selmes, for example, is probably a coliid, but only distantly related to the modern genera.
Near passerine
Near passerine or higher land-bird assemblage are terms often given to arboreal birds or those most often believed to be related to the true passerines due to ecological similarities; the group corresponds to some extent with the Anomalogonatae of Garrod All near passerines are land birds...
) bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s which have no known close affinities to other groups, though they and the parrots and cockatoos (Psittaciformes) may be closer to each other than to other birds. The mousebirds are therefore given order
Order (biology)
In scientific classification used in biology, the order is# a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, family, genus, and species, with order fitting in between class and family...
status as Coliiformes. This group is confined to sub-Saharan Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, and is the only bird order confined entirely to that continent. They had a wider range in prehistoric times and apparently evolve
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
d in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Description
They are slender greyish or brown birds with soft, hairlike body feathers. They are typically about 10 centimetres in body length, with a long, thin, tail a further 20-24 centimetres in length, and weigh 45-55 grams. They are arboreal and scurry through the leaves like rodentRodent
Rodentia is an order of mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing....
s, in search of berries, fruit and buds. This habit, and their legs, gives rise to the group's English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
name. They are acrobatic, and can feed upside down. All species have strong claws and reversible outer toes. They also have crests and stubby bills.
Mousebirds are gregarious, again reinforcing the analogy with mice
Mouse
A mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
, and are found in bands of about twenty in lightly wooded country.
These birds build cup-shaped twig nests in trees, which are lined with grasses. 2-4 eggs are typically laid, hatching to give quite precocious young which soon leave the nest and acquire flight.
Systematics and evolution
The mousebirds could be considered "living fossilLiving fossil
Living fossil is an informal term for any living species which appears similar to a species otherwise only known from fossils and which has no close living relatives, or a group of organisms which have long fossil records...
s" as the 6 species extant today are merely the survivors of a lineage that was massively more diverse in the late Paleogene
Paleogene
The Paleogene is a geologic period and system that began 65.5 ± 0.3 and ended 23.03 ± 0.05 million years ago and comprises the first part of the Cenozoic Era...
and Miocene
Miocene
The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about . The Miocene was named by Sir Charles Lyell. Its name comes from the Greek words and and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern sea invertebrates than the Pliocene. The Miocene follows the Oligocene...
. There are comparatively abundant fossils of Coliiformes, but it has not been easy to assemble a robust phylogeny. The family is documented to exist from the Early Eocene
Eocene
The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
onwards; by the Late Eocene
Eocene
The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
or earlier, two families are known to have existed, the extant Coliidae and the longer-billed prehistorically extinct Sandcoleidae.
The latter were previously a separate order, but eventually it was realized that they had come to group ancestral Coraciiformes
Coraciiformes
The Coraciiformes are a group of usually colorful near passerine birds including the kingfishers, the Hoopoe, the bee-eaters, the rollers, and the hornbills...
, parrot
Parrot
Parrots, also known as psittacines , are birds of the roughly 372 species in 86 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three families: the Psittacidae , the Cacatuidae and the Strigopidae...
s, the actual sandcoleids and forms like Neanis
Neanis
Neanis is an extinct genus of bird probably related to woodpeckers and toucans. It contains at least one species, N. schucherti; N. kistneri resembles this, but it probably belongs to a distinct genus and may not be closely related. Both are known from the Late Wasatchian stratum of the Early...
together in a paraphyletic assemblage. Even though the sandcoleids are now assumed to be monophyletic following the removal of these taxa, many forms cannot be conclusively assigned to one family or the other. The genus Selmes, for example, is probably a coliid, but only distantly related to the modern genera.
Genera
Order COLIIFORMES- Basal and unassigned forms (all fossilFossilFossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
)- Genus Chascacocolius (Late Paleocene ?- Early Eocene) - basal? sandcoleid?
- Genus Eocolius (London Clay Early Eocene of Walton-on-the-Naze, England) - sandcoleid or coliid
- Genus Selmes (Middle Eocene ?-Late Oligocene of C Europe) - coliid? (synonym of Primocolius?)
- Genus Limnatornis (Early Miocene of Saint-Gérand-le-Puy, France) - coliid? (Urocolius?) Includes "Picus" consobrinus
- "Picus" archiaci (Early Miocene of Saint-Gérand-le-Puy, France) - Limnatornis? coliid? (Urocolius?)
- Coliiformes gen. et sp. indet. (Late Miocene of Kohfidisch, Austria)
- Genus Eobucco - sandcoleid?
- Genus Uintornis - sandcoleid?
- Family Coliidae
- Basal and unassigned forms (all fossilFossilFossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
)- Genus Primocolius (Late Eocene/Oligocene of Quercy, France)
- Genus Oligocolius (Early Oligocene of Frauenweiler, Germany)
- Genus Masillacolius (Middle Eocene of Messel, Germany)
- Subfamily Coliinae
- Genus ColiusColiusColius is a bird genus in the family Coliidae. It contains the following species:* Speckled Mousebird, Colius striatus* White-headed Mousebird, Colius leucocephalus* Red-backed Mousebird, Colius castanotus...
(4 species) - The only known species of Necrornis (Milne-Edwards, 1871) (Middle Miocene of Sansan, La Grive-Saint-Alban, France) was redescribed by Peter Ballmann as Colius palustris in 1969. This treatment was approved by OlsonStorrs L. OlsonStorrs Lovejoy Olson is an American biologist and ornithologist from the Smithsonian Institution. He is one of the world's foremost avian paleontologists....
in 1985.
- Genus Colius
- Subfamily Urocoliinae
- Genus UrocoliusUrocoliusUrocolius is a small genus of mousebirds. It consists of two species which inhabit Eastern and Southern Africa:* Blue-naped Mousebird, Urocolius macrourus* Red-faced Mousebird, Urocolius indicus...
(2 species)
- Genus Urocolius
- Basal and unassigned forms (all fossil
- Family Sandcoleidae (all fossilFossilFossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
)- Genus Sandcoleus (Paleocene)
- Genus Anneavis
- Genus Eoglaucidium
External links
- Mousebird videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- Picture of a mousebird atop a tree