The nutcrackers (Nucifraga) are a genus of four species of passerine bird, in the family Corvidae, related to the jays and crows.
| Nutcrackers | |
|---|---|
| |
| Northern nutcracker (Nucifraga caryocatactes) | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Corvidae |
| Genus: | Nucifraga Brisson, 1760 |
| Type species | |
| Corvus caryocatactes Linnaeus, 1758
| |
| Species | |
|
Nucifraga columbiana | |
The genus Nucifraga was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760 with the northern nutcracker (Nucifraga caryocatactes) as the type species.[1][2] The genus name is a Neo-Latin translation of an old German name Nussbrecher, "nut-breaker".[3]
Extant species
editFollowing reappraisal of species limits in the genus in Asia, the genus is now treated as containing four species:[4][5] This follows the split of Southern and Kashmir nutcrackers from a former broad view (e.g. Voous, 1977[6]) of all Eurasian nutcrackers as being a single species.
| Common name | Scientific name and subspecies | Range | Size and ecology | IUCN status and estimated population |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clark's nutcracker
|
Nucifraga columbiana (Wilson, 1811) |
Western North America
|
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
LC
|
| Northern nutcracker
|
Nucifraga caryocatactes (Linnaeus, 1758) Four subspecies
|
Central and northeastern Europe across northern Asia east to northeast Japan
|
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
LC
|
| Southern nutcracker
|
Nucifraga hemispila Vigors, 1831 |
Himalayas to north China and Taiwan
|
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
LC
|
| Kashmir nutcracker
|
Nucifraga multipunctata Gould, 1849 |
Western Himalayas
|
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
LC
|
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The most important food resources for these species are the seeds (pine nuts) of various pines (Pinus sp.), principally the cold-climate (far northern or high altitude) species of white pine (Pinus subgenus Strobus) with large seeds: P. albicaulis, P. armandii, P. cembra, P. flexilis, P. koraiensis, P. parviflora, P. peuce, P. pumila, P. sibirica and P. wallichiana, and also the pinyon and lacebark pines. In some regions, where none of these pines occur, the seeds of spruce (Picea sp.) and hazel (Corylus sp.) nuts form an important part of the diet too. Their bills are specialized tools for extracting seeds from pine cones.[7]
Surplus seed is always stored for later use, and it is this genus that is responsible for the re-establishment of their favoured pines over large areas either burnt in forest fires or cleared by man. A single nutcracker can store as many as 98,000 pine nuts in a single season, and remembering the location of 75% to over 90% of their stash, even when buried in snow more than a metre deep.[7] The memory is also retained for 7–8 months enabling them to feed their young on seed stored the previous autumn.[7][8] Nutcrackers will cache seeds as far as 32 kilometres (20 mi) away from parent plants, about eight times farther than related dispersers like jays and crows, and are thus important in re-establishing forests and responding to climate change.[7][9]
Various insects are also taken, including bee and wasp larvae, and also birds' eggs and nestlings, and carrion if it is found.
Nesting is always early in this genus, so as to make the best use of pine nuts stored the previous autumn. The nest is usually built high in a conifer. There are normally 2–4 eggs laid and incubated for 18 days. Both sexes feed the young which are usually fledged by about 23 days and stay with their parents for many months, following them to learn food storage techniques.
None of the species are migratory, but they will leave their usual ranges if a cone crop failure causes a food shortage.
References
edit- ^ Brisson, Mathurin Jacques (1760). Ornithologie, ou, Méthode Contenant la Division des Oiseaux en Ordres, Sections, Genres, Especes & leurs Variétés (in French and Latin). Paris: Jean-Baptiste Bauche. Vol. 1, p. 30, Vol. 2, p. 58.
- ^ Mayr, Ernst; Greenway, James C. Jr, eds. (1962). Check-list of Birds of the World. Vol. 15. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 256.
- ^ Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 276. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
- ^ de Raad, J.; et al. (2022). "Speciation and population divergence in a mutualistic seed dispersing bird". Communications Biology. 5 (429): 1–10. doi:10.1038/s42003-022-03364-2. PMC 9085801. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
- ^ Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (August 2024). "Crows, mudnesters, birds-of-paradise". IOC World Bird List Version 14.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
- ^ Voous, Karel (1977). "List of Recent Holarctic Bird Species". Ibis. 119: 383.
- ^ a b c d Lanner, Ronald M. (1996). Made for each other: A symbiosis of birds and pines. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-508-903-0.
- ^ "Yellowstone" BBC2, episode 3"
- ^ Tomback, Diana F. (2016). "7". In Sekercioglu, Cagan; Wenny, Daniel G.; Whelan, Christopher J. (eds.). Why birds matter: avian ecological function and ecosystem services. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 201. ISBN 022638263X.
External links
edit- Nutcracker videos on the Internet Bird Collection