י261) שחפית ים

Common Tern
Common Tern
Common Tern










Sterna hirundo
Sterna hirundo
Sterna hirundo



:שחפית ים
. שחפית קטנה, עדינה והשכיחה ביותר בארץ
, בקיץ כיפתה ועורפה שחורים, חלקי גופה העליונים אפורים בהירים
. קצה אברותיה כהים. בחורף המצח לבן. אין הבדל בין המינים
, נבדלת משחפית הקוטב הדומה לה, ברגליה הארוכות יותר
ובמקורה האדום כהה. בתקופת הקינון קצה מקורה מתכהה בניגוד
. למקור שחפית הקוטב שנשאר אדום כולו
: בית גידולה חופי ים ופנים היבשת כאחד, בשטחים מגוונים
, חופים חוליים, סלעיים עם צמחיה רבה או דלילה, שפכי נהרות
. אגמים וסלעי ים. חורפת בחופי ים ונמלים
, ongipennis ו hirundo בארץ ישנם שני תת מינים
. עוברי אורח שכיחים ודוגרי קיץ שכיחים למדי לאורך חופי ים התיכון
... ואת השחף ... ויקרא י"א, 16
Subspecies and Distribution.
S. h. hirundo N. America to N S. America, Atlantic islands, Europe, N Africa and W Africa, through Middle East and Black and Caspian Seas to Yenisey Valley. Winters S of Tropic of Cancer.
S. h. minussensis C Asia through Transbaikalia to N Mongolia and S Tibet. Winters N Indian Ocean.
S. h. tibetana W Mongolia S to Kashmir, Tibet and Sichuan, at high altitudes. Winters mainly E Indian Ocean.
S. h. longipennis NE Siberia S to NE China. Winters SE Asia to Australia. םםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםם םםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםםם
Descriptive notes.
Small typical tern, with forehead and crown black, slimmer wings and pale grey upperparts. 35 cm, 120-135 g, wingspan 70-102 cm.
Tail white, with grey outer web to outer rectrices. Underparts white with geyish wash, sometimes faintly suffused with pink early in breeding season.
Bill red with black tip. Legs red. Long, forked tail reaches wingtips at rest. In all plumages, but especially in summer and autumn, outer 5 primaries have conspicuous dark outer webs, compared with uniform grey upperwing surface of S. paradisaea
Montane race tibetana slightly darker above and below, with shorter bill, longipennishas black bill and red-brown to blackish brown legs, but racial identification difficult when mixed with black-billed wintering birds.
Habitat.
Breeds in both, coastal and inland areas, from sea-level to 3500 m.
Habitats including sandy barrier beaches, vegetated inter-dune areas. Sandy, rocky, shell or well vegetated islands in estuaries, lakes and rivers. Adapts to artificial nesting substrates.
Winters mainly on coastal estuaries and up large rivers. Frequents harbours, jetties, piers and beaches.
Food and Feeding.
Diet based on fish, occasionally crustaceans, insects and fish offal.
Prey availability varies greatly within between seasons, and this species more opportunistic than S. dougallii, when preferred prey Ammodytes fails, readily switches to other fish.
Feeds in dense folcks over ocean, but some maintain individual feeding territories along shorelines. Most forage 5-10 km from colony, but some feed at sea over 15 km from shore.
Feeds mainly by plunge-diving, also by contact-dipping and aerial-dipping, and occasionally aerial hawking. Kleptoparasitism common in some colonies or in conditions when food availability limited, often victimized by skuas.
Breeding. Apr-Jun. Colonial, often in thousands, but sometimes solitary. Favours edges of bare sand among moderate vegetation, rocks, or logs, but also uses open substrates with little or no vegetation. On beaches shows preference for nesting beside open area on margin of vegetation, and in marshes prefers edges of mats of dead vegetation. 3 eggs, incubation 22-28 days.
Chick buffy brown above with bold black spots, black chin, and white below. First breeding at 3-4 years.
Movements.
European birds pass quickly down NW African coast to winter in W and S Africa, but a few remain off Iberia.
Palearctic birds move S late Aug, returning in Mar-Apr. Abundant migrant in NE Africa, mainly from E Europe. Birds from Black Sea have been recovered in Somalia. Nominate race common in winter along W coast of S Africa, and a few also reach W Australia.
C Asian birds winter mostly on coasts of Indian Subcontinent, and SC Asian tibetana winters from E India to Malaysia, and NE Asian birds move through Japan, Philippines to New Guinea, Indonesia and Australia. North American birds migrate along Atlantic coast, through West Indies, reaching the Guianas in Oct, and wintering mostly from Brazil to Argentina.
Status and Conservation.
Not globally threatened. World population estimated at least 400.000 pairs.
Israel.
In Israel two subspecies . S. h. hirundo and S. h. longipennis . common passage migrant over Mediterranean shore and at Eilat, and quite common breeding summer visitor mainly along northern Mediterranean coast and islands.

S. h. hirundo
(in Israel)

S. h. hirundo

S. h. hirundo

S. h. longipennis
(in Israel)

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