The African Marabú AVE
Indulgence.
The African Marabú is a scavenger bird that belongs to the Ciconiidae family. He is the biggest member of his family and in the winged world, one of the largest flying birds.
Marabou stork lives in tropical Africa from Senegal to Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, including Namibia and South Africa. Under the scientific name is crumenifer leptophyls, this animal frequents aquatic and open semi -arid areas. The species is not threatened worldwide and it is suspected that the population is increasing, due to the large availability of waste and carrion as food resources.
With its almost three meters of size, the Marrabú stork is one of the largest flying birds on the planet. This flying giant has a weight that varies from 6 to 9 kg and a length that exceeds 150 cm. When he is erect on his long legs, he is high as a human being.
Like most storks, Marabú is gregarious. Of quite bad temperament, it also resembles other stork in which it is not very vocal. Only at courtship exhibitions Marabú deployed various noises. The throat sack is also used to make several noises at that time.
Developing.
These storks are opportunistic. Give. Its diet is varied and feed on birds, invertebrates, rats and lizards. They are also expert fishermen, who fish and immerse their partially open peak and snatching them.
It is undeniable that scavenger animals enjoy bad reputation. Supposedly, they eat smelly things and are too lazy or incompetent to track their prey on their own.
The reality is that capture is simply one of the ways in which animals earn a living. Many different species, including lions, will be used if they are given the opportunity. In addition, scavengers provide several unique and vital services for ecosystem maintenance.
In nature, the arrangement of animals that die is not a trivial issue. In fact, dead animals represent a danger to the health of living animals. The bodies can constitute a focus of various diseases. From there the preponderance of scavenger animals, which have dead biomass for the benefit of the ecosystem. Scangers include a wide variety of species, including crows, vultures and storks such as African Marabu.
A paradigm shift: the food network
Previously, ecologists considered food relationships within an ecological community as a linear process. Under this scheme the plants would extract nutrients from soil and sunlight, which would pass to herbivores and then to the carnivores. These chains imply a considerable loss of energy in each transfer.
Now, experts use a food network perspective. In this scheme the work of scavengers and decomposers (among others) within these food relationships are considered essential. The network encompasses all food chains of the same ecosystem: the food network accepts the fact that each organism live in an ecosystem participates in multiple food chains, which increases energy efficiency.
The premise is that each food chain is a possible path for energy and nutrients to flow through the ecosystem. In the food network of an ecosystem, all food chains are interconnected and overlapping. Organisms in food networks are grouped into categories called trophic levels.
In general terms, these levels are divided into producers (first trophic level), consumers (primary, secondary and tertiary) and decomposers. Scangers and decomposers complete the cycle of life. They make recycling, returning nutrients to the soil or oceans for use by autotrophic organisms. With your work a new series of food chains begins.
ADVANTAGES OF SCREENCY FOR THE SPECIES.
African Marabú, like most scavenger animals, is flexible with respect to what he eats. This represents an advantage because they find it easier to find food compared to creatures that have more restricted diets. This is true in the case of African Marabú, a species that has expanded its distribution area throughout the sub -Saharan territory.
Conclusions.
Although mostly sedentary, this stork has some nomadic populations. Populations have been sighted moving to Ecuador after reproduction. Also, vagrants have been reported in Morocco, Spain and Israel.
Often African Marabu can be associated with humans and can be seen near fishermen villages and around garbage dumps. Its ability to eat a wide variety of food is an important factor for its success, and ultimately for the success of other species that live in the areas in them inhabit.
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