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Sulidae
Fossil range: Early Oligocene - Recent
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Pelecaniformes
Family: Sulidae
Reichenbach, 1849
Genera

For prehistoric genera, see text
Synonyms

Pseudosulidae

The bird family Sulidae comprises the gannets and boobies. The Rupelian (also known as Stampian, Tongrian, Latdorfian, Vicksburgian, or Early Oligocene) is the first of two stages Chordates ( Phylum Chordata) are a group of Animals that includes the Vertebrates together with several closely related Invertebrates Birds ( class Aves) are bipedal endothermic ( Warm-blooded) Vertebrate animals that lay eggs. The Pelecaniformes are an order of medium-sized and large waterbirds found worldwide Heinrich Gottlieb Ludwig Reichenbach ( January 8, 1793 - March 17, 1879) was a German Botanist and Ornithologist Year 1849 ( MDCCCXLIX) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Gannets are Seabirds in the family Sulidae, closely related to the boobies. The Abbott’s Booby ( Papasula abbotti) is a large endangered Seabird of the Gannet family Sulidae. In Scientific nomenclature, synonyms are different Scientific names used for a single Taxon. Birds ( class Aves) are bipedal endothermic ( Warm-blooded) Vertebrate animals that lay eggs. Gannets are Seabirds in the family Sulidae, closely related to the boobies. Both groups are medium-large coastal seabirds that plunge-dive for fish. Seabirds are Birds that have adapted to life within the marine environment The species in this family are often considered congeneric, placing all in the genus Sula. However, bones of Sula (boobies) and Morus (gannets) at least can in most cases be readily distinguished, and Abbot's Booby has traits of morphology and behavior not found in any other species and appears to be an ancient lineage maybe closer to the gannets than to the true boobies (Friesen et al. The term morphology in Biology refers to the outward appearance ( Shape, Structure, Colour, Pattern) of an Organism 2000).

Contents

Description

Sulids vary in length from 60 to 85 cm (23. 5 to 33. 5 inches) and in wingspan from 1. 41 to 1. 74 m (4. 6 to 5. 7 feet). They have long, narrow, angled wings and a rather long, graduated tail (the outer feathers are shorter than the central ones). Their flight muscles are rather small and their wing loading is high. In Aerodynamics, wing loading is the loaded weight of the aircraft divided by the area of the wing Thus they must be streamlined, so their bodies are "torpedo-shaped", as well as somewhat flat (Nelson 2003).

Sulids have stout legs and webbed feet, with the web connecting all four toes. In some species the webs are brightly colored and used in displays. The bill is brightly colored, long, deep at the base, and pointed, with saw-like edges. The upper mandible curves down slightly at the tip and can be moved upward to accept large prey. To keep water out during plunges, the nostrils are closed. The eyes are placed forward to provide binocular vision (Nelson 2003). Binocular vision is vision in which both Eyes are used together

The plumage includes white underparts (light brown in some races of the Red-footed Booby and at least some dark brown or black above. The Red-footed Booby, Sula sula, is a large Seabird of the Gannet family Sulidae. Sulids have a preen gland whose waxy secretions they spread on their feathers for waterproofing and pest control. The uropygial gland, or more informally the preen gland is a Gland found in the large majority of birds that secretes an oil ( preen oil) that birds use They molt during periods of relatively stress. In Biology, moulting (or molting, also known as shedding or for some species Ecdysis) signifies the manner in which an animal routinely They molt their tail feathers irregularly and the flight feathers of their wings in stages, so that starting at the first molt, they always have some old feathers, some new ones, and some partly grown ones (Nelson 2003). Flight feathers are the long stiff asymmetrically shaped but symmetrically paired Feathers on the Wings or Tail of a Bird; those on the

Feeding

All species feed entirely at sea, mostly on fish and squid; some species follow fishing boats to scavenge on waste. Many species feed communally. The typical behavior is a dive from mid-air taking the bird a meter or two under water, after which it may swim with the legs and wings after its prey (Nelson 2003).

Reproduction

All sulids breed in colonies. A rookery is a colony of breeding animals The term is most commonly applied to the nesting place of Birds such as the Crow and rook, a bird similar Males examine the colony area in flight and then pick a nest site, which they defend by fighting and by territorial displays that derive from displaced aggression. Males then advertise to females by a special display and call. Females search the colony in flight and on foot for a mate. Once they select males, pairs maintain their bonds by preening each other and by frequent copulation (Nelson 2003).

The eggs are whitish, pale blue, green, or pink, unmarked till they become stained, and have a coating that resembles lime. Lime is a general term for various naturally occurring Minerals and materials derived from them in which Carbonates Oxides and Hydroxides of Their weight ranges from 3. 3 percent to 8 percent of the female's. Both sexes incubate; they do not have brood patches, but their feet become vascularized and hot, and the birds place the eggs under the webs. Eggs lost during the first half of incubation are replaced. Incubation lasts 42 to 55 days, depending on the species (Nelson 2003).

At hatching, parents move the eggs and then the hatchlings to the tops of their webs. they soon develop white down. They beg by touching the parent's bill and take food straight from its gape. After two weeks, both parents leave the nest unguarded at times while they obtain food. The times for the chicks to fledge and to become independent of their parents depend greatly on the species' food supply. Parents cannot bring more than one chick to maturity except in the Peruvian Booby (which has the biggest clutches, two to four eggs) and occasionally in the Blue-footed Booby (Nelson 2003). The Peruvian Booby, Sula variegata, is an endemic bird of the Peruvian current whose distribution is restricted to the west coast of South America from The Blue-footed Booby ( Sula nebouxii) is a Bird in the Sulidae family which comprises ten Species of long-winged Seabirds

Systematics and evolution

The fossil record of sulids is quite extensive due to the many Miocene/Pliocene forms that have been recovered. FOSSIL is a standard protocol for allowing serial communication for Telecommunications programs under the DOS Operating system. The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene period and extends from about 23 The Pliocene epoch (spelled Pleiocene in some older texts is the period in the Geologic timescale that extends The initial radiation formed a number of genera which are now completely extinct, such as the freshwater Masillastega or the bizarre Rhamphastosula which had a bill shaped like an Aracari's; at least the modern genus Sula is (like most genera of extant birds) documented from the Miocene onwards, with the doubtfully distinct Microsula being somewhat intermediate between boobies and gannets (Olson 1985). The aracaris (sometimes araçaris) are medium-sized Toucans in the genus Pteroglossus. Family Sulidae

Prehistoric sulids only known from fossils are:

Placement of "Sula" ronzoni (Early Oligocene of Ronzon, France) in the Sulidae is somewhat uncertain; it was initially described as a Mergus sea-duck, but this is incorrect. Mergus is the Genus of the typical mergansers, fish-eating Ducks in the Seaduck subfamily (Merginae Later, it was proposed to be related to cormorants and the genus Prophalacrocorax was erected for it; this seems incorrect also (Olson 1985). The Bird family Phalacrocoracidae is represented by some 40 Species of cormorants and shags. For prehistoric species of the extant genera, see the genus articles.

Notes

References

External links

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