Once there was an old gray pussy, and she went down into the meadow, where she saw a merry lark flying among the tall reeds; and pussy said, “Where are you going, little lark?” And the merry lark answered, “I am going to the king to sing him a song this fine May morning.” And […]
Category: Icteridae
The Yellow-billed Cacique marks the time
Until recently when many Mopan began using wristwatches, birds played a crucial role in marking time. Even today when watches are more commonly seen, many birds are still a valued resource for knowing the time of day. For example, the Yellow-billed Casique (Amblycercus holosericeus) (known as otz, otz otz, or ootz ootz) is said to […]
Bird stories, Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)
Big Man-eater had a wife but stole another woman and carried her to the place where his wife lived. Next day he started off. After he had traveled about hunting for a while he came back without having killed anything. Then he said to his wife, “Cut off a piece of your body and roast […]
Bird stories, Eastern Meadowlark (Sturnella magna)
All the Mewan tribes, and many belonging to widely different stocks-including even the Washoo of Lake Tahoe and adjacent valleys east of the Sierra, class the Meadowlark among the bad birds. They say he talks too much and is a gossip and they do not like him. The Washoo call him Se-soo-te-ai-le and, like several […]
Bird stories, Cactus Parakeet and Campo Troupial
The Sertanejos think that keeping a Campo Troupial as a pet can attract disagreeable events. Consuming a brew made from the meat of the Cactus Parakeet is believed bythe Sertanejos to facilitate the eruption of new teeth in children. Bird nr 3 in the plate. Bezerra, D. Birds and people in semiarid northeastern Brazil: symbolic […]
Bird stories, Boat-tailed Grackle and Brown Jay
The call of the Boat-tailed Grackle (Quiscalus major) is said to indicate it will rain soon. The Mopan claim that the often seen pa’ap, or Brown Jay (Cyanocorax morio) can be useful for hunters since it cries out when it sees a game animal; however, it if cries too loudly, it can scare the game […]
Natural and induced magnetization in the bobolink, dolichonyx oryzivorus (aves: icteridae)
Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) Science Article 1 abstract The magnetic characteristics of the heads from 28 bobolinks [Icteridae:Dolichonyx oryzivorus (L.)] were analysed using remanence magnetometers. Thenatural remanent magnetization of 12 freshly preserved heads averaged 3-20xl0~7electromagnetic units (e.m.u.) (le.m.u. = 103Am~’) and was oriented horizontallyfrom side to side. An electromagnet was used to induce magnetization with externalfield […]
Male and Female Reproductive Strategies in the Polygynous Bobolink
Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) Science Article 6 abstract Most species of birds are socially monogamous, however approximately 8% of bird species are polygynous. By mating polygynously,females lose paternal care, but might gain access to a superior territory or male. We examined five factors that affect polygyny inbobolinks: territory size, perching sites, predation rate, insect abundance, and […]
Multiple paternity in a territorial passerine: the bobolink
Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) Science Article 8 abstract Electrophoretic and behavioral evidence corroborate the conclusion that Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) females occasionally copulate with more than one male, whichresults in the insemination of a single clutch of eggs by those males. In 2 of 12 families from which blood samples were obtained from the mother, the putative […]
Factors affecting how male and female bobolinks apportion parental investments
Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) Science Article 7 abstract Male and female Bobolinks (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) adjust the amount of time spent brooding and provisioning nestlings at primary nests in light of prevailing weather conditions and food availability. Males brood nestlings less and feed them more (mg/h) when food is scarce, regardless of weather conditions. Primary (i.e., first-mated) […]