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ECOLOGY OF EUROPEAN BEE-EATER AND SHIKRA IN KARAKALPAKSTAN Ametov Yа.I. (Republic Uzbekistan) Email: [email protected]
Ametov Yakub Idrisovich - Candidate of Biological Sciences, Associate Professor, DEPARTMENT OF ECOLOGY AND SOIL SCIENCE, KARAKALPAK STATE UNIVERSITY NAMED AFTER BERDAKH, NUKUS, REPUBLIC OF UZBEKISTAN
Abstract: this article contains information about the ecology of the European bee-eater and shikry in the Karakalpak region in Uzbekistan. In the lower parts of the Amu Darya, European bee-eaters are found mainly in the anthropogenic environment, as well as found in agricultural landscapes and in settlements. The work shows the nesting, migration and life forms of the bee-eater. Studied diets of chicks, comparing their ligatures on the neck. In the early days, the chicks feed on invertebrates, after which vertebrates are added to their diet. Given information about shikir - a real decoration tugai and gardens. This species is quite rare, is strongly protected throughout the area.
Keywords: bee-eater, digging, egg laying, incubation, wing fledging, Shikra, bird, tugai, landscape, tree, nest, courtship display, post-embryonic.
ЭКОЛОГИЯ ЕВРОПЕЙСКОГО ПЧЕЛОЕДА И ШИКРА В КАРАКАЛПАКСТАНЕ Аметов Я.И. (Республика Узбекистан)
Аметов Якуб Идрисович - кандидат биологических наук, доцент, кафедра экологии и почвоведения, Каракалпакский государственный университет им. Бердаха, г. Нукус, Республика Узбекистан
Аннотация: данная статья содержит информацию об экологии европейского пчелоеда и шикра в Каракалпакском регионе в Узбекистане. В нижних участках Амударьи европейские пчелоеды встречаются преимущественно в антропогенной среде, а также обнаружены в сельскохозяйственных ландшафтах и в населенных пунктах. В работе показано гнездование, миграция и жизненные формы пчелоеда. Изучена диета птенцов, сравнивая их лигатуры на шее. В первые дни птенцы питаются беспозвоночными животными, после в их рацион добавлены позвоночные. Дана информация про шикру - настоящее украшение тугай и садов. Данный вид встречается довольно редко, всячески охраняется по всему ареалу.
Ключевые слова: европейский пчелоед, копание, откладка яиц, инкубация, оперение крыльев, шикра, птица, тугай, пейзаж, дерево, гнездо, демонстрация ухаживания, постэмбриональная.
European bee-eater is a common migrating bird nesting throughout Karkalpakstan. However, no one has yet studied this bird's ecology in the territory of Karakalpakstan. We collected the material on the ecology of European bee-eater and Shikra in the Republic of Karakalpakstan in 2005-2007 and 2014-2016. The researches were carried out using standard methods, with the help of stationary and transect surveys [8, 14].
European bee-eaters tend to arrive in spring, when warm weather settles in the region. We discovered the first individuals who had just arrived in late April-early May. The autumn migration starts in Uzbekistan in late September and lasts until the end of the 1st decade of October [11].
In the lower stretches of the Amudarya European bee-eaters occur primarily in anthropogenic environment. We discovered them in agricultural landscapes and within settlements. According to our observations, after arrival bee-eaters form pairs. As it finds a proper place in a vertical clay slope, on the steep bank of a roadside canal or on the gently sloping side of a hill, the pair starts digging a burrow. Both birds in the pair take part in the digging. The entire digging process takes between 10 and 15 days.
According to our observations, bee-eaters nest in pairs, small groups and even colonies when environment permits. They lay eggs once a year. The birds begin to lay eggs in the middle of May, while the peak of the egg laying activity falls on the late May-early June. The birds lay one egg every two days. According to O.P. Bogdanov (1956), this process involves one egg daily.
According to A. K. Sagitov (1990), a full clutch contains 4-7 eggs, most often is about 5. So A.M. Sudilovskaya (1951) gives information that their number can be 10 eggs. According to our observations, there are 5-6 eggs in each clutch.
The eggs (n=90) in various regions of Uzbekistan have the following parameters: according to S.E. Fundukchiyev (2017), in Samarkand province they are 24.0 х 27.3 mm (25.9 on average); their width is 20.4-23.0 mm (21.6), weight 5.05-7.5 (6,39) g; in the Hissar Range (n=6) - 25.0-26.1 х 20.6-22.0 mm
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(Abdusalyamov, 1971); in Turkmenistan (n=25) 22.8-28.9 х 20.2-22.8 mm, weight 6.2-7.9 g (6.9) (25.7 х 21.6 on average) [5].
According to our research, the eggs found in the lower stretches of the Amudarya had the following parameters: length 24.2-28.6 mm, width - 20.5-22.7 mm (26.3 x 21.7 on average), the weight of newly laid eggs was 6.2-7.6 g (6.8). The eggs are white and almost spherical in form.
The incubation starts since the laying of the first egg and lasts 18 days in Turkmenistan (Belskaya, 1976; Rustamov, 2007), 20 days (Sagitov, 1990) or 23-25 days (Fundukchiyev, 2017) in Uzbekistan, while according to our data, the incubation in the lower stretches of the Amudarya lasts19-20 days.
Mostly the female incubates the eggs, while the male feeds the female and substitutes it, when the female needs to leave the nest for food (Rustamov, 2007). During the incubation each egg loses from 10% to 12% of its weight; according to our observations, in the lower stretches of the Amudarya the weight loss is equal to 12.8%.
According to our observation, the hatching lasts 4-8 days. When emerging from their eggs the chicks are naked and blind, but their acoustic meatuses are open. The weight of a one-day-old chick is 4.6-6.1 g (5.1). The body's colour is light pink. The chicks grow slowly. On the third day their eyes begin opening. On the 4 th-5th day they are already fully open, and at that very time the shafts of the first flight feathers appear. The shafts of the tail feathers develop on the 6th-7th day.
At the age of 8-9 days the pin feathers cover the entire body of the chick. On the 14th day the feathers unfurl, and on the 21st-22nd day they cover evenly the entire body. Starting from day 8 the weight growth rate drops. The weight of the chicks is at its peak on day 19. After that the chicks begin to lose weight.
On day 27 the chicks leave their nest. Shortly before that they weigh 55-57 g. This means that while staying in the nest the chicks grow 10 times as heavy, that is, their weight increases from 5.5 g to 5.55 g. Fledglings leave their nests on 15-20 July.
European bee-eater's diet has been studied quite properly. In the nesting period the bird feeds on wasps, beetles, locusts, hornets, flies, wild bees, dragonflies, bugs, cicadas and various Hymenoptera. It feeds its chicks the same insects.
In the nesting period in spring European bee-eater does much good to humans, as it destroys large numbers of insect pests, most of which are locusts. After the nesting period, during migrations and in autumn, the bird feeds on bees from apiaries and thus does much harm to human activity.
Shikra is a rare bird breeding. As well as with other birds of prey, the ecology of this species is little-studied in Karakalpakstan. Material on the ecology of shikra was collected in 2004, 2005 and 2015 in Kegeyli District and in Nukus and its neighbourhood. The research was carried out by using of standard methods: such as stationary and transect survey [8, 14].
According to our research, shikra arrives in Karakalpakstan starting from the second half of April. Shikra leaves Uzbekistan starting from September (Karakalpakstan from late August (Rashkevich, 1965) to the end of the first third of September (Abdreymov, 1981). The departure lasts for a short period. The latest individuals in the lower stretches of the Anudarya are on September 25, 2004, September 23, 2005, September 16, 2015 and September 19, 2016.
In 8-10 days after arrival in their breeding areas shikra begins constructing nests. Thus, the birds that arrived on April 26, 2004 began building nests on May 4, while those that came on April 16, 2016 began the construction on April 26.
Generally, shikra itself builds nests, but, according to literary sources, it sometimes uses old ones constructed by other birds, such as rook, carrion crow, jackdaw and black kite (Abdusalyamov, 1971; Abdreymov, 1981). In our observations shikras built 6 nests themselves.
Usually, shikra constructs its nest on a tall tree. In the tugai of Karakalpakstan shikra usually builds nests on an elm, willow or poplar. The nests we observed were constructed at a height of 8-16 meters (12 m on average).
It takes the bird from 7 to 11 days to build a nest (9 days on average). While building a nest shikra demonstrates a specific behavior. Male flies in circles above the nest, lowering close to it and returning back into the sky. It accompanies its courtship display with permanent cry.
The material shikra uses in the construction is the dry twigs of various plants, such as Asiatic poplar, willow, elm and poplar. The observed nests (5) had the following dimensions: height 24-31 cm (average 27.5), outer diameter 30-38 cm (34), inner diameter 15-21 cm (18), depth 3-11 cm (7).
After they finish the construction of the nests, they immediately begin laying eggs. According to literary data, shikra arrives in Uzbekistan in early April and begins laying eggs in the end of this month. Most of the eggs are laid in May. According to our research, in 2016 in Karakalpakstan the first eggs were laid on 4 May.
Shikra lays 1 egg in two days, and the laying lasts 5-8 days. In Uzbekistan a clutch comprises 2-5 eggs (Mitropolsky et al., 1987), in Turkmenistan 3-6 eggs (Annayev, 1970), in Karakalpakstan 3-4 eggs (usually 4). Of the six nests we studied 4 contained four eggs, and 2 three eggs.
Usually shikra lays eggs once a year. In case the nest is damaged, it can produce another clutch. However, the second clutch usually contains fewer eggs.
Shikra's egg is oval in form and bluish in colour. The egg (n=16) have the following dimensions: length 39.0-42.5 mm (average 40.7), width 31.0-32.5 mm (31.7), the weight of a newly hatched egg is 20.4-25.3 g (average 22.8).
Female alone hatches the eggs, while male guards the nest and feeds female. The hatching begins after the laying of the first egg and lasts 29-32 days (average 30.5) According to Mitropolsky et al. (1987), the hatching lasts 30-34 days (average 32.4), while according to M. Ametov (1981), 28-31 days. During the incubation period the eggs' weight decreases by 5.2% on average.
The chicks emerge within 3-5 days. In the first hours after hatching the chicks are very weak, and have closed eyes and open acoustic meatus. The body is covered with white neoptile feathers; the bird's weight is 14.4-17.9 g (average 16.1).
In 2005 we studied post-embryonic growth and development in 3 nestlings from one nest. The nestlings' eyes begin to open on the second day and become fully open by the end of the first week. The wings begin to grow on the seventh day. The nestlings fledge in 31-33 days.
In the course of the research we studied the nestlings' diets by comparing their neck ligatures. During the first 8-9 days the nestlings were fed by invertebrate animals. After that vertebrates were added to their diet.
The invertebrates are dominated by beetles (12%), mole crickets (9.9%), locusts (8.8%) and dung beetles (6.6%). Among the vertebrates the commonest were rapid fingertoed lizzard (8.85%), Indian house sparrow (7.7%), tree sparrow and house mouse (6.6% each), steppe agama and southern booted warbler (5.5% each) and others.
Shikra is a useful bird. It is a true adornment of tugai and orchards. Since this species is quite rare, it should be protected in every way throughout its range.
References / Список литературы
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