Scientific rambling
The Vermilion Bird is one of the four elephants in ancient mythology, representing the south, summer, fire, red, etc. It resembles but is not the same as a phoenix, with bright red feathers all over its body, a crown on its head, and usually a feather covered with flames, and sometimes dragon features such as horns, scales, claws, etc.
In reality, there is no real Vermilion Bird, but this winter, someone photographed a "mini version of the Vermilion Bird" in Baihualing, Yunnan, do you think they look similar to the Vermilion Bird?
A touch of red in Baihualing.
On the yellow berry tree, a large group of blood-red figures were hidden in the green leaves, and only the sound of chirping could be heard. Occasionally, the branches of the tree shook, revealing a little red light, and only then did I see red elves jumping.
Occasionally, a bold leap flies up to the branches, enjoying the nectar and clear water. Some of them arrange their feathers with each other, and some of them flock together, staying on the branches, like strings of red lanterns, full of joyful and peaceful artistic conception.
However, although these birds are beautiful, they seem to be far from the sacred bird Suzaku, is it a forcible climbing relationship?
In our country, vermilion means red, so literally, vermilion bird represents red birds, and this group of small red birds in Baihualing is naturally a kind of red bird.
At the same time, there is indeed this category in the class of birds, this little red bird is the most representative of all its subspecies, and is called "blood finch", also known as the red finch.
Every winter, the blood finches will migrate from high-altitude areas where food is scarce to low-altitude areas such as Baihualing, which are about 1,500 meters above sea level, to forage in groups and survive the winter, so as to better reserve energy and prepare for the next year's reproduction.
And this winter, more than 30 blood finches appeared in Baihualing at one time, and it is rare for such a flock of blood finches to occur.
Bird watching enthusiast Zhang Weimin and his companions rushed to Baihualing early in the morning and climbed about a kilometer of the mountain to reach the place where the blood finches gathered.
They forage for food and they love to bathe underwater, which is a beautiful scene. ”
Zhang Weimin said excitedly while flipping through the camera.
It is understood that this group of little ones will appear regularly in Baihualing from January to March every year, and this time is also the best time for bird watching, bird lovers may wish to seize the opportunity to come to Yunnan to see their style.
Blood Sparrow. Although the blood finch is called the sacred bird Suzaku, its body size is only about the same size as the sparrow, swallow, and shrike, weighing 36-49 grams and measuring 15-19 centimeters.
The male of the blood finch is very eye-catching, with bright red feathers all over the body, like a flame, and is also known abroad as Scarlet Finch, which means "bright red finch".
The reason for the formation of these bright red feathers is mainly because their feathers contain a pigment called red carotenoids, which are converted from carotenoids in their food and are important antioxidants that protect cells from free radical damage.
Compared with males, the female is more modest, with a grayish-brown plumage, pale red spots on the chest, and white stripes on the abdomen. Interestingly, when a female and a male are standing together, they are often considered two kinds of birds, one looking very bright and the other being very ordinary.
Of course, in nature, it is actually very common for this obvious dioecious bird to appear, and the reason why the male bird's feather color will be more vivid is mainly to attract the attention of the female bird, as a way to show his health and charm, and thus increase his breeding chances.
The more modest the plumage of the female, the better, because the female needs to remain hidden when nesting and incubating eggs to avoid being detected by the ** eater. And this is the result of nature's neutral selection.
Another reason is ecological adaptation, that is, the plumage color of male and female birds is to adapt to different living environments and improve their ability to survive. In this case, the feather color of the male and female birds may match the background color of their habitat or the color of their food, thereby reducing the risk of detection or increasing the efficiency of foraging.
The contrast between the male and female birds of the blood finch also confirms what we often say: husband and wife complement each other, and get twice the result with half the effort.
The bloodfinch mainly lives in South Asia, including China, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Vietnam, Laos and other countries. In China, they are mainly distributed in Yunnan, Sichuan, Guizhou, Guangxi and other provinces and regions in the southwest, and generally inhabit coniferous forests or mountainous forest areas at an altitude of 2000-4000 meters.
They usually live together in small groups of 5-6 individuals, and there are also solitary lone rangers who choose to move alone. The Blood Sparrow is very timid and lives a very secluded life, preferring to move in the canopy of trees, and rarely descending to the ground.
Most of the time it is spent flying frequently between the canopies, and its flight is fast and powerful, often accompanied by a loud and melodious call, similar to "chirp", or a whistle-like "beep" sound.
The genus carpodacus in the scientific name of the blood finch is a Greek word meaning "fruit biter", which also indicates that they are a group of loyal lovers of fruits, such as cones, berries, and especially pine seeds. Occasionally, they will eat insects or nectar.
Every spring and summer is the breeding season for blood finches. At this time, the male will show off his singing and dancing skills without reservation to attract the attention of the female. Once the pair is successful, they will make a cage-like nest on the pine branches on the outer edge of the pine tree, using twigs, grass stems, moss, feathers and other materials, and prepare plenty of food for the arrival of the baby.
Breeding requires a certain amount of patience, and after a successful mating, the female will generally lay her first eggs within 5-7 days, then every other day, until 4-5 eggs are collected, and then 13-14 days of incubation begins. During this period, females are mainly responsible for incubating eggs, while males are responsible for foraging and conservation. The chicks are not able to leave the nest until 15-17 days after hatching and are fed by both males and females.
At present, the blood finch is considered one of the most potential ornamental birds, although there are not many of them in our country, but they can be seen everywhere in Eurasia.
Their survival status is not dangerous, and they have not reached the critical point of endangerment of the species (i.e., the distribution area or range of change is less than 20,000 square kilometers, or the habitat is deteriorating, or the population is decreasing, or the distribution area is broken), and the overall population remains stable, so it is evaluated as a species without survival crisis.
Suzaku genus. In addition to the blood finch, there are more than 50 species of birds of the genus Suzaku, among which the large Suzaku is the largest one, with a body length of about 30 cm, the beak presents a slightly downward curved shape, and the feathers are red and golden yellow, which is very gorgeous, especially the male Great Suzaku, and the feathers on the chest and abdomen are even more dazzling.
Great Suzaku. They mostly live in the ** zone and tropical zone, mountains, forests and forest edges, eat some insects, fruits and seeds for a living, and in the mating breeding season, they will also prey on some small insects and mollusks for supplemental nutrition.
The northern Suzaku is about 16 cm long, has a lovely pink body, black-brown wings, and silver-white scaly spots on its forehead and neck.
The northern redfinch mainly lives in the northern part of Asia, and they do not breed in the country, but they will take their small birds to the north of our country to spend the winter. They often work in the woods at low altitudes as a family unit, and their voices are very good, and they are not very afraid of people.
These little red finch birds like to eat plant seeds, small fruits and shoots, because they are not afraid of people, so they will also steal some grain seeds, but according to actual observations, their food is more weed seeds, so on the whole it still protects crops.
Although there is no survival crisis for this species, because the number in our country is not stable, it is also listed as a national second-class protected animal, so as to prevent them from being targeted by people who are interested in poaching as ornamental bird trading.
There is also one of the most common small birds in the genus Vermilion, whose name is the common Vermilion, which can be seen throughout the Eurasian continent and is also quite numerous in China.
The common redfinch is a red-to-white gradient from the top of its head to its belly, with tan tints on its wings and tail. The male bird's short crown feathers on the top of his head can stand up, and at first glance it looks like a small red bird among Angry Birds, with a small body and bright colors.
Although there are not many species in number, there is no obvious existential crisis, but because of their gorgeous appearance, if they are not protected in advance, they are likely to be hunted in large numbers and touted as ornamental birds, which will make them follow the path of other endangered birds.
Therefore, this common red finch in China is now also a protected animal, and it is still a provincial key protected animal in Shandong, and it is illegal to illegally poach or trade them.
Epilogue. Unexpectedly, there are so many varieties of mythical red birds in life, and these diverse birds have brought us infinite surprises and made us feel the magic of nature. When the bird-watching season is approaching, bring your family and go on a trip to interact with the sacred birds.