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Dubrovnik is a small, pretty bird, of medium size, in appearance resembling a sparrow. This species of birds is found preferably in the European part of Russia. Today, Dubrovnik is officially considered an endangered species and even listed in the Red Book of rare animals.
The appearance of Dubrovnik
This bird has a rather interesting and pretty appearance. The standard body sizes of Dubrovnik are about the same as those of sparrows, and they are very similar in composition. According to the classification, Dubrovnik belongs to the oatmeal family, which includes a large group of varieties, including common oatmeal. The body of Dubrovnik is rather dense and knit, and the shape is rounded.
In relation to such a plump and rounded body, the length of which is preferably 14-18 cm, the head looks relatively small and slightly flattened on the sides.An adult Dubrovnik can weigh in the range of 18 to 30 grams. This body structure perfectly complements the very short neck, which at first glance is hard to see. On the face there is a neat little round-shaped beak, closer to the face it is swollen and densely covered with small plumage, and closer to the edge it will flatten a little on the sides. Directly the tip itself is straight and pointed. The upper and lower parts of the beak fit snugly together, thus the interclute gap is almost invisible.
The wingspan of a small radius is from 20 to 25 cm, since their size itself is small. Due to the excellent aerodynamic properties, such as light dense plumage and thin pointed tips of the wings, combined with a small weight of the Dubrovnik allow it to quickly and deftly move in flight. Due to the direct wedge-shaped tail, which in relation to the body of the bird has an average length, it manages very well during the flight in any weather.
Dubrovnik has medium and thin, but at the same time very strong nails, and therefore can tolerate various objects on the fly that exceed its own weight several times.Four-fingered paws with long fingers have a wide grip, and therefore individuals can carry not only heavy, but also dimensional objects that can exceed the volume of their own body.
The color of the plumage of a male dubrovnik is quite bright and noticeable, consists of several shades, and the females are painted more inconspicuously. In the area of the chest, throat and abdomen, both females and males are dominated by an exceptionally bright yellow saturated color, but their head colors are somewhat different. In females it is gray, but in the opposite sex, depending on the season, the color of feathering on the head can change its shades. From dark gray - in winter, to very light, almost white - in summer.
What dubrovnik eats
The diet of Dubrovnik is about the same as that of the other members of the oatmeal group. Basically it includes various small insects and the faces of insects, beetles, spiders and butterflies. Since this species of birds is migratory, in winter, during migration, they can also feed on seeds of various crops. Dubrovnik can not be called a hunter, this bird is rather a search engine, and therefore finds its prey preferably on the surface of the earth. Since the Dubrovnik itself has a small size and weight, it has a small ventricle. Due to this, the bird can eat every few days and it is quite normal to feel.
Mating season and breeding
Dubrovnik are considered monogamous birds, and therefore, having found their life partner, they try to keep the pair forever. They equip their nests preferably in small pits and grooves on the ground. On the hills and trees nest quite rarely. The construction and improvement of the nest is the direct responsibility of the female, all responsibility for the offspring solely on her.The male during this entire period is engaged exclusively in singing songs and competing with other males. For the construction of nests, the Dubrovnik preferably use straws, grass and moss. It is relatively small in size, around 15 cm in diameter, which is quite enough for laying 4-5 eggs. A characteristic feature in the creation of nests of this breed is that horsehair is used exclusively for bird lining. Dubrovnik eggs themselves are rather large for birds of this size, have a gray-green color. The process of incubation of offspring lasts two weeks, the female acts, of course, as the hen.
All the time of incubation, the male takes care of its half and regularly brings various insects or larvae to it so that it can feed. The offspring hatch quite weak and helpless, the skin of babies is covered with barely noticeable fluff of white color, but they quickly grow stronger and develop, and after 10 days they begin to appear full-fledged plumage. Throughout this period, both parents are close to the offspring, take care and feed their child. Then the chicks quickly learn to fly and leave their parents.The life expectancy of Dubrovnik is approximately 11-13 years. Since these are migratory birds, they leave the harsh winter climate and fly away for a visit to the countries of Southeast Asia or to the south of China. At home, the population of Dubrovnik usually begins to return from mid-May to early June.
Dubrovnik habitat
Since Dubrovniki are not particularly aggressive, but rather very calm and peace-loving birds, most often they create grouped settlements with about 5-7 pairs per hectare of preferred habitats. However, over the past few decades there is a very sad statistic, which indicates a gradual decline in the number of Dubrovnik in Russia. Every year there are more and more areas in which the population of these birds simply disappears.Presumably, this is due to the reduction of places where Dubrovnik could nest and reproduce offspring. Also influenced by such factors as dysfunctional migration due to bad weather conditions. Based on all these factors and a significant decline in the population, Dubrovnik is officially listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation.
Video: Dubrovnik Bunting (Emberiza aureola)
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