Alpine Accentor
Encyclopedia
The Alpine Accentor, Prunella collaris, is a small passerine
bird
found throughout the mountains of southern temperate Europe
and Asia
at heights above 2000 m. It is mainly resident, wintering more widely at lower latitudes, but some bird
s wander
as rare vagrants as far as Great Britain
.
It is a bird of bare mountain areas with some low vegetation. It builds a neat nest low in a bush or rock crevice, laying 3-5 unspotted sky-blue eggs.
This is a Robin-sized
bird at 15-17.5 cm in length, slightly larger than its relative, the Dunnock
. It has a streaked brown back, somewhat resembling a House Sparrow
, but adults have a grey head and red-brown spotting on the underparts. It has an insectivore's fine pointed bill.
Sexes are similar, although the male may be contrasted in appearance. Young birds have browner heads and underparts.
The mating system is of particular interest. Home ranges are occupied by breeding groups of 3 or 4 males with 3 or 4 females. These are unrelated birds which have a socially polygynandrous
mating system. Males have a dominance hierarchy, with the alpha males being generally older than subordinates. Females seek matings with all the males, although the alpha male may defend her against matings from lower ranking males. In turn, males seek matings with all the females. DNA fingerprinting has been used to show that, within broods, there is often mixed paternity, although the female is always the true mother of the nestlings raised within her nest. Males will provide food to chicks at several nests within the group, depending on whether they have mated with the female or not - males only provide care when they are likely to be the true fathers of the chicks.
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
found throughout the mountains of southern temperate Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
at heights above 2000 m. It is mainly resident, wintering more widely at lower latitudes, but some bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s wander
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
as rare vagrants as far as Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
.
It is a bird of bare mountain areas with some low vegetation. It builds a neat nest low in a bush or rock crevice, laying 3-5 unspotted sky-blue eggs.
This is a Robin-sized
European Robin
The European Robin , most commonly known in Anglophone Europe simply as the Robin, is a small insectivorous passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family , but is now considered to be an Old World flycatcher...
bird at 15-17.5 cm in length, slightly larger than its relative, the Dunnock
Dunnock
The Dunnock, Prunella modularis, is a small passerine bird found throughout temperate Europe and into Asia. It is by far the most widespread member of the accentor family, which otherwise consists of mountain species...
. It has a streaked brown back, somewhat resembling a House Sparrow
House Sparrow
The House Sparrow is a bird of the sparrow family Passeridae, found in most parts of the world. One of about 25 species in the genus Passer, the House Sparrow occurs naturally in most of Europe, the Mediterranean region, and much of Asia...
, but adults have a grey head and red-brown spotting on the underparts. It has an insectivore's fine pointed bill.
Sexes are similar, although the male may be contrasted in appearance. Young birds have browner heads and underparts.
The mating system is of particular interest. Home ranges are occupied by breeding groups of 3 or 4 males with 3 or 4 females. These are unrelated birds which have a socially polygynandrous
Polygynandry
Polygynandry occurs when two or more males have an exclusive relationship with two or more females. The numbers of males and females need not be equal, and in vertebrate species studied so far, the number of males is usually lower.-In Bonobos:...
mating system. Males have a dominance hierarchy, with the alpha males being generally older than subordinates. Females seek matings with all the males, although the alpha male may defend her against matings from lower ranking males. In turn, males seek matings with all the females. DNA fingerprinting has been used to show that, within broods, there is often mixed paternity, although the female is always the true mother of the nestlings raised within her nest. Males will provide food to chicks at several nests within the group, depending on whether they have mated with the female or not - males only provide care when they are likely to be the true fathers of the chicks.
External links
- Alpine Accentor videos, photos & sounds on the Internet Bird Collection
- Alpine Accentor Information and photos at mybirdlists.com