Spotted Nothura
Encyclopedia
The Spotted Nothura, Nothura maculosa, is a species
of tinamou
. This bird is native to grassy habitats in eastern and southern Brazil
, Paraguay
, Uruguay
, and eastern and northern Argentina
.
, N. chacoensis, are the only nothura
s with barring to both webs of the primaries. The legs are dull yellowish-grey or brown.
they seem to eat more of the animal matter then they do in other locations.
-like shell. This is colored a rich maroon
or chocolate brown
in this species. The clutch
contains 4-6 eggs.
s. Unlike other Ratites, Tinamous can fly, although in general, they are not strong fliers. All ratites evolved from prehistoric flying birds, and Tinamous are the closest living relative of these birds.
Coenraad Jacob Temminck
first identified the Spotted Nothura from a specimen from Paraguay
, in 1815.
. They are not well-distinguished and almost form a cline that varies north to south according to Gloger's
and Bergmann's Rule
s.
(excluding the Mata Atlântica
and planalto uplands along the coast), Paraguay
, Uruguay
, and Argentina
.
habitat
up to 2300 m (7,545.9 ft), and temperate grassland
, as well as pasture land.
, even though it is avidly hunted, due to its fast reproduction rate. It has an occurrence range of 3900000 km² (1,505,798.4 sq mi).
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of tinamou
Tinamou
The tinamous are a family comprising 47 species of birds found in Central and South America. One of the most ancient living groups of bird, they are related to the ratites. Generally ground dwelling, they are found in a range of habitats....
. This bird is native to grassy habitats in eastern and southern Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Paraguay
Paraguay
Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
, Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
, and eastern and northern Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
.
Description
The Spotted Nothura is approximately 24 to 25.5 cm (9.4 to 10 in) in length. The upper parts are brown with streaked buff. The under parts are buff streaked with black and brown on the breast, with barring to the flanks. Its crown is black streaked with buff and the throat is white. The overall hue in colour varies greatly over its range; in part caused by the differences in soil at the specific localities. It and the closely related Chaco NothuraChaco Nothura
The Chaco Nothura, Nothura chacoensis, is a type of Tinamou commonly found in brushland in Argentina and Paraguay.-Description:The Chaco Nothura is approximately in length. The species is similar to Spotted Nothura but paler and buffier overall....
, N. chacoensis, are the only nothura
Nothura
Nothura is a genus of birds in the tinamou family. This genus comprises five members of this South American family.Tinamous are paleognaths related to the flightless ratites...
s with barring to both webs of the primaries. The legs are dull yellowish-grey or brown.
Feeding
The Spotted Nothura eats plants, typically seeds, and animal matter. In ArgentinaArgentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
they seem to eat more of the animal matter then they do in other locations.
Reproduction
This species can reproduce rapidly, as the female is mature within 2 months and can have five to six broods per year. The male does not mature as fast. The male will incubate the eggs and raise the chicks. Like most tinamous, its eggs have a spectacular glossy porcelainPorcelain
Porcelain is a ceramic material made by heating raw materials, generally including clay in the form of kaolin, in a kiln to temperatures between and...
-like shell. This is colored a rich maroon
Maroon (color)
Maroon is a dark red color.-Etymology:Maroon is derived from French marron .The first recorded use of maroon as a color name in English was in 1789.-Maroon :...
or chocolate brown
Brown
Brown is a color term, denoting a range of composite colors produced by a mixture of orange, red, rose, or yellow with black or gray. The term is from Old English brún, in origin for any dusky or dark shade of color....
in this species. The clutch
Clutch (eggs)
A clutch of eggs refers to all the eggs produced by birds or reptiles, often at a single time, particularly those laid in a nest.In birds, destruction of a clutch by predators, , results in double-clutching...
contains 4-6 eggs.
Taxonomy
All Tinamou are from the family Tinamidae, and in the larger scheme are also RatiteRatite
A ratite is any of a diverse group of large, flightless birds of Gondwanan origin, most of them now extinct. Unlike other flightless birds, the ratites have no keel on their sternum—hence the name from the Latin ratis...
s. Unlike other Ratites, Tinamous can fly, although in general, they are not strong fliers. All ratites evolved from prehistoric flying birds, and Tinamous are the closest living relative of these birds.
Coenraad Jacob Temminck
Coenraad Jacob Temminck
Coenraad Jacob Temminck was a Dutch aristocrat and zoologist.Temminck was the first director of the National Natural History Museum at Leiden from 1820 until his death. His Manuel d'ornithologie, ou Tableau systematique des oiseaux qui se trouvent en Europe was the standard work on European birds...
first identified the Spotted Nothura from a specimen from Paraguay
Paraguay
Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
, in 1815.
Subspecies
The Spotted Nothura has eight currently recognized subspeciesSubspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
. They are not well-distinguished and almost form a cline that varies north to south according to Gloger's
Gloger's rule
Gloger's Rule is a zoological rule which states that within a species of endotherms, more heavily pigmented forms tend to be found in more humid environments, e.g. near the equator. It was named after the zoologist Constantin Wilhelm Lambert Gloger, who first remarked upon this phenomenon in 1833...
and Bergmann's Rule
Bergmann's Rule
Bergmann's rule is an ecogeographic principle that states that within a broadly distributed genus, species of larger size are found in colder environments, and species of smaller size are found in warmer regions. Although originally formulated in terms of species within a genus, it has often been...
s.
- N. m. maculosa occurs in southeastern BrazilBrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, northeastern ArgentinaArgentinaArgentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, eastern ParaguayParaguayParaguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
, and UruguayUruguayUruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
. - N. m. major occurs in interior east central Brazil; Minas GeraisMinas GeraisMinas Gerais is one of the 26 states of Brazil, of which it is the second most populous, the third richest, and the fourth largest in area. Minas Gerais is the Brazilian state with the largest number of Presidents of Brazil, the current one, Dilma Rousseff, being one of them. The capital is the...
, GoiásGoiásGoiás is a state of Brazil, located in the central part of the country. The name Goiás comes from the name of an indigenous community...
, and BahiaBahiaBahia is one of the 26 states of Brazil, and is located in the northeastern part of the country on the Atlantic coast. It is the fourth most populous Brazilian state after São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, and the fifth-largest in size...
States. - N. m. nigroguttata occurs on the plains of south central Argentina; Rio NegroRío Negro ProvinceRío Negro is a province of Argentina, located at the northern edge of Patagonia. Neighboring provinces are from the south clockwise Chubut, Neuquén, Mendoza, La Pampa and Buenos Aires. To the east lies the Atlantic Ocean.Its capital is Viedma...
and southeastern NeuquénNeuquén ProvinceNeuquén is a province of Argentina, located in the west of the country, at the northern end of Patagonia. It borders Mendoza Province to the north, Rio Negro Province to the southeast, and Chile to the west...
Provinces. - N. m. cearensis occurs in northeastern Brazil; southern CearáCearáCeará is one of the 27 states of Brazil, located in the northeastern part of the country, on the Atlantic coast. It is currently the 8th largest Brazilian State by population and the 17th by area. It is also one of the main touristic destinations in Brazil. The state capital is the city of...
State. - N. m. paludivaga occurs in central Paraguay and north central Argentina.
- N. m. annectens occurs on the moist grasslands of eastern Argentina.
- N. m. submontana occurs in the Andean foothills of southwestern Argentina, Neuquén, Rio Negro, and ChubutChubut ProvinceChubut a province in the southern part of Argentina situated between the 42nd parallel south and the 46th parallel south , the Andes range separating Argentina from Chile, and the Atlantic ocean...
Provinces. - N. m. pallida occurs in the moist chacoGran ChacoThe Gran Chaco is a sparsely populated, hot and semi-arid lowland region of the Río de la Plata basin, divided among eastern Bolivia, Paraguay, northern Argentina and a portion of the Brazilian states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul, where it is connected with the Pantanal region...
grasslands of northwestern Argentina.
Range
It occurs in eastern and southern BrazilBrazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
(excluding the Mata Atlântica
Mata Atlântica
The Atlantic Forest is a region of tropical and subtropical moist forest, tropical dry forest, tropical savanna, semi deciduous forest and mangrove forests which extends along the Atlantic coast of Brazil from Rio Grande do Norte state in the north to Rio Grande do Sul state in the south, and...
and planalto uplands along the coast), Paraguay
Paraguay
Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
, Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
, and Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
.
Habitat
It lives in dry savannaSavanna
A savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4 grasses.Some...
habitat
Habitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
up to 2300 m (7,545.9 ft), and temperate grassland
Grassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
, as well as pasture land.
Conservation
The IUCN list this Tinamou as Least ConcernLeast Concern
Least Concern is an IUCN category assigned to extant taxon or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category. As such they do not qualify as threatened, Near Threatened, or Conservation Dependent...
, even though it is avidly hunted, due to its fast reproduction rate. It has an occurrence range of 3900000 km² (1,505,798.4 sq mi).
External links
- Spotted Nothura videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- Spotted Nothura photo gallery VIREO Photo-High Res