Maguari stork
| Maguari stork | |
|---|---|
.jpg) |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Ciconiiformes |
| Family: | Ciconiidae |
| Genus: | Ciconia |
| Species: | C. maguari |
| Binomial name | |
|
Ciconia maguari (Gmelin, 1789) |
|
The maguari stork (Ciconia maguari) is a large species of stork that inhabits seasonal wetlands over much of South America, and is very similar in appearance to the white stork; albeit slightly larger. It is the only species of its genus to occur in the New World and is one of the only three New World stork species, together with the wood stork and the jabiru.
This stork was formerly placed in its own genus Euxenura, but was later reclassified as belonging to Ciconia because of its large morphological and ethological similarity to other storks of this genus. However, the maguari stork most closely resembles both the white stork and the Oriental white stork in morphology and behaviour; and is especially similar to the white stork in its manner of performing the up-down greeting display. Plumage pattern and soft part colourations are also highly similar between these three stork species. Further, phylogenetic analyses based on a portion of the cytochrome b oxidase gene have suggested that the maguari stork is evolutionarily paired with the white stork-Oriental white stork sister group; although the morphological similarity between the maguari stork and oriental white stork has been considered to be greater than between the white stork and the Oriental white stork. Incidentally, the maguari stork also shares the prominent forkedness of its tail with the woolly-necked stork.
Fossils of the extinct stork Ciconia maltha discovered in North America appear morphologically intermediate between the maguari stork and white stork and may therefore represent a common ancestral link between these two species that inhabit different continents.Ciconia maltha was probably highly dispersive and could have extended its range to Venezuela from North America during the Pliocene, part of the range of the extant maguari stork.
This relatively large stork stands at 97–120 cm tall and is similar in size to the congeneric white stork. It is intermediate in size between the smaller wood stork and the larger jabiru, the two other stork species with which the maguari stork exists in sympatry in some parts of its range. Much of the adult plumage is white, with black flight feathers and a forked blacked tail. This forked tail is shorter than the stiff white undertail coverts, so that these protrude from underneath the tail and may function aerodynamically in flight. The forked tail clearly distinguishes the maguari stork from the white stork, and is easily seen in flight through the white undertail coverts by an observer from the ground. During flight, this stork offers an impressive sight. It soars at least a hundred metres above the ground with an outstretched neck and extended legs, intermittently beating its broad wings to gain momentum for long glides. It flaps its wings at a rate of 181 beats per minute and the wingspan measures 150–180 cm. This stork needs to give three long jumps before it can take off from the ground.
...
Wikipedia