Senegal Thick-knee
Senegaltriel ( Burhinus senegalensis )
The Senegaltriel ( Burhinus senegalensis ) is a mainly crepuscular and nocturnal species from the family of stone curlews. It comes in two subspecies exclusively in Africa.
Description
The Senegaltriel reaches a body length of 32-38 inches. It resembles the stone curlew occurring in Eurasia, but is somewhat brighter than this and has a slightly longer bill. The white around the eye region is more pronounced when Senegaltriel, making the entire face appear lighter than the stone curlew.
The back and shoulders are uniformly gray. The wings have on the bottom on a wide light gray tie. There is a small white patch on the primaries basis. In all plumages the Senegaltriel has a black beak, which has a yellow spot only on the upper mandible base. This also distinguishes it from the stone curlew, which has a predominantly yellow bill with a black tip.
Dissemination
The nominate Burhinus senegalensis senegalensis comes from Senegal and Gambia before to Sudan. The subspecies Burhinus senegalensis inornatus comes from the Nile Delta in Egypt and southwards from Ethiopia to Kenya and Uganda.
The Senegaltriel is a sedentary bird in many parts of its range. In other regions, the species differs during the rainy season or during floods in drier areas of. So pull Senegaltriele in the rainy season from November, for example, in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of Congo and stay there until April or May. In Nigeria, the kind attracts only locally, depending on the water levels. The number of Senegaltriele goes back during the rainy season in northern Nigeria.
Habitat and behavior
The Senegaltriel prefers a habitat open and dry terrain, arid steppes, and thorn bush savannah. The other hand, he avoids the actual desert and shows a preference for nesting sites, near which there are waters. It is especially common in sandy river and lake shores.
The species is not very shy of humans and has also been human settlement space opened up. He broods for example in Egypt on flat roofs and even occurs in the metropolitan areas of Cairo. In the West African Sahel, it is often observed within villages.
The diet consists mainly of insects, crustaceans, mollusks and worms. The Senegaltriel but also eats frogs and small rodents. While searching for food, he is frequently observed in smaller troops. Very little is known about the reproductive behavior. Both parents birds lead the boys.