Topic
Cursorius rufus
About: Cursorius rufus is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 2 publications have been published within this topic receiving 31 citations.
Papers
TL;DR: In the southwestern part of the Kalahari region, the Double-banded Courser Rhinoptilus africanus is restricted to stony terrain with low vegetation and good visibility and has a number of behavioural heat-loss mechanisms which are described and discussed.
Abstract: Summary
In the southwestern part of the Kalahari region, the Double-banded Courser Rhinoptilus africanus is restricted to stony terrain with low vegetation and good visibility. Nests are always exposed, usually on flat ground, less often in hollows or slopes, and seldom on rises. Sixty per cent of nests were among mammal droppings.
Nest relief is rapid and occurs every two hours or so; side-throwing of small objects around the nest by the relieved bird is part of the ceremony. Incubation of the single egg takes about 26 days. The newly-hatched chick is weak and is fed exclusively by the parents for the first few days. It can fly at about six weeks of age. Breeding seems to be continuous, regardless of weather and season.
The calls, displays, comfort movements and ritualized intention movements are described and analysed as far as possible. Adult coursers are subjected to an intense heat load in summer, and have a number of behavioural heat-loss mechanisms which are described and discussed.
R. africanus and Cursorius rufus (both common coursers of the Kalahari) are briefly compared.
28 citations
Journal Article•
TL;DR: Analyses of the stomach contents of 76 double-banded coursers, 28 Burchell's coursers Cursorius rufus, and five Temminck's courser collected at the Bloemfontein airport showed the dietary composition of these closely related species to be remarkably similar.
Abstract: Analyses of the
stomach contents of 76 double-banded coursers (Smutsornis africanus), 28 Burchell's coursers Cursorius rufus) and five Temminck's coursers (C. temminckii) collected at the
Bloemfontein airport over a period of 13 years (1985-1997) showed the
dietary composition of these closely related species to be remarkably similar. In all cases the
coursers were found to be predominantly insectivorous. Isoptera, almost exclusively Hodotermes mossambicus workers, made up the
bulk of the
insect material. With regard to the
double-banded courser, harvester termites were utilized throughout the
year with little seasonal variation. Interspecific competition for food is probably limited by the
nomadic way of life of these birds.
4 citations
Performance Metrics
| Year | Papers |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 1 |
| 2002 | 1 |