These “official” names are governed by international codes, and are unique and unvarying. This is why scientists like scientific (or binomial, or latin) names. It all depends who you ask, and that makes communicating about birds challenging. Sometimes a bird has several different common names, and sometimes one common name refers to several different birds. Different people call birds different things in different places. ![]() My point – and I do have one – is that common names can be confusing. They do so ignoring the fact that it has about 20 close relatives throughout the Old World with names also ending in sparrowhawk (such as Chinese Sparrowhawk, Japanese Sparrowhawk, Madagascar Sparrowhawk and so on). This would be alright except that British people invented birding and consider all of their birds to be the originals, so they drop the modifier and just call it Sparrowhawk. ![]() This tiny falcon does, however, have a taste for sparrow-flesh, and so it gets stuck with this awkward moniker too.Ĭomplicating matters even further is that in Europe and Asia there is a bird whose proper name is Eurasian Sparrowhawk. It is also used with regularity for the American Kestrel which is, notably, not a hawk at all. It is often used in reference to either of our two small, bird-hunting hawks: the Cooper’s Hawk and the Sharp-shinned Hawk. Here on my continent, the word “sparrowhawk” is a colloquial or traditional name for no fewer than three species. The problem? I have no idea what bird he’s talking about. Because I am a bird person, at least once per month a complete stranger tells me about a sparrowhawk that he saw, then waits for me to look suitably impressed. Many people in North America, where I happen to live, are familiar with sparrowhawks. Take, for example, the name “sparrowhawk”. Peter Harrison, Martin Perrow and Hans Larsson, " Seabirds", Lynx Edicions, June 2021.Common names for species – that is, the names we use in regular conversation – are a tricky business. Rob Hume, " RSPB Complete Birds of Britain and Europe (opens in new tab)", DK, August 2020. Josep Del Hoyo, " All the Birds of the World (opens in new tab)", Lynx Edicions, August 2020.ĭominic Couzens, " Extreme Birds: The World's Most Extraordinary and Bizarre Birds (opens in new tab)", Firefly Books, August 2011. Futuyma and " The Ascent of Birds: How Modern Science Is Revealing Their Story (opens in new tab)" by John Reilly. ![]() For more on bird evolution, check out " How Birds Evolve: What Science Reveals about Their Origin, Lives, and Diversity (opens in new tab)" by Douglas J. Additional resourcesįor more information about birds from around the world visit online databases such as the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) webpage (opens in new tab), Birds of the World (opens in new tab) by Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the IUCN Red List (opens in new tab). The Andean condor also has a long lifespan of around 50 years in the wild and up to 80 years while in captivity, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society Peru (opens in new tab). ![]() around 15 pounds (6.8 kilograms) of carrion (dead or decaying flesh) in a single meal, according to San Diego Wildlife Alliance. Andean condors are a species of vulture and like many vulture species, aren’t predominantly hunters and scavenge their food from dying or deceased animals. Due to their large wingspan, these birds can globe on air current with ease without expelling much energy. Along with their impressive wingspan, these birds can ascend to heights of up to 18,000 feet (5,500 meters) passing over the peaks of the Andes, according to Welsh Mountain Zoo (opens in new tab). The Andean condor is the largest species of raptor on the planet and the second-largest wingspan of any bird - which spans around 10.5 feet (3.2 meters), according to the San Diego Wildlife Alliance (opens in new tab). An Andean condor flying over Colca Canyon in southern Peru.
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