Loess and Bee-Eaters II: The ‘loess’ of North Africa and the nesting behaviour of the Northern Carmine Bee-Eater (Merops nubicus Gmelin 1788)

Abstract

The Northern Carmine Bee-eater lives and breeds in a well demarcated region stretching across Africa close to the 15N line of latitude. The Bee-eater zone appears to be associated with a band of loess, defined by Scheidig on his 1934 map as second-prder loess. Beeeaters are known to favour loess for nesting tunnels and it appears that the 15N material is sufficiently loess-like. Obvious sources of particulate material for the 15N band are the Fonta Djalon highlands which supply sedimentary material to the River Niger; the Bodele depression, the deepest part of old Lake Megachad, source of the dust for the World; the Ethiopian highlands at the eastern end of 15N which supply silt to the Nile system and particulates to the 15N region. In soil moisture terms the region is ustic, which is possibly a necessary condition for bee-eater nests. The clastic material requires an ustic environment. The River Niger can be seen as a loess river, in some senses a mirror image of a major loess river like the Danube, but where a restricted range of particle inputs leads to a restricted range of loess deposit outputs. Nevertheless loess river considerations can be applied. The Niger delivers second-order loess and important loessic admixtures to the landscape. Enough loess for selective nesters like the Carmine Beeeaters to build their nest tunnels in it. It seems likely that climate change will cause a change in bee-eater distribution; it seems unlikely that they will abandon their nesting regions, the living and breeding zones may shift. Quaternary InternationalWe the undersigned declare that this manuscript is original, has not been published before and is not currently being considered for publication elsewhere.We confirm that the manuscript has been read and approved by all named authors and that there are no other persons who satisfied the criteria for authorship but are not listed. We further confirm that the order of authors listed in the manuscript has been approved by all of us.We understand that the Corresponding Author is the sole contact for the Editorial process. He/she is responsible for communicating with the other authors about progress, submissions of revisions and final approval of proofs.Signed by all authors as follows: C.H.Fry AbstractThe Northern Carmine Bee-Eater (Merops nubicus) lives and breeds in a well demarcated region stretching across Africa close to the 15°N line of latitude. The Bee-Eater zone appears to be associated with a band of loess, defined by Scheidig on his 1934 map as second-order loess. Bee-eaters are known to favour loess for nesting tunnels and it appears that the 15°N material is sufficiently loess-like. Obvious sources for particulate materials for the 15°N band are the Fonta-Djalon highlands which supply sedimentary material to the River Niger; the Bodele Depression, the deepest part of Lake Megachad, source of dust for the World; the Ethiopian highlands at the eastern end of 15°N which supply silt to the Nile system and particulates to the 15°N region. In soil moisture ...

Loess and bee-eaters III: Birds and ground in the Punjab and the Indus region

“…As in Smalley et al (2012b) and McLaren et al (2014) the comparisons of bird and ground distribution will be made with reference to the Scheidig world map of loess distribution (Scheidig 1934) (fig.5). And, as for the African studies (McLaren et al 2014 ) the loess involved is the "wahrscheinlich oder moglich" variety, i.e.…”

“…The possible loess is a bit more elusive when it comes to asking questions about material origins. McLaren et al (2014) looking at the African loess in the 15N zone cited three possible sources, each supplying a relatively modest amount of loess material. The Indus loess can be likened to the loess in the South Island of New Zealand.…”

“…The connection of loess and bee-eater birds has been explored in two previous papers (Smalley et al 2012b, McLaren et al 2014 and discussed in detail by Heneberg (2012); in this paper we focus on the loess deposits in N.W.India and neighbouring regions and on the BlueCheeked and Green bee-eaters. In some ways this is a continuation of the study of the 15N region in Africa and the Northern Carmine bee-eater.…”

Loess and Bee-eaters IV: Distribution of the rainbowbird (Merops ornatus Latham 1801) in Australia

“…If the ground is so ideal and so totally favoured by bee-eaters it may be that a concentration of bee-eater nests should suggest the existence of loess ground. On the basis of this rather tenuous assumption the bee-eater/loess relationship has been examined, with reference to Africa (McLaren et al 2014), and the Indian sub-continent (Smalley et al 2015).…”

Determinants of between‐year burrow re‐occupation in a colony of the European bee‐eater Merops apiaster

“…2013; McLaren et al. 2014) are suggested to keep the burrows in potentially good working condition over years which may facilitate reuse. Reusing old burrows often holds the advantage of an advanced laying date and energy saving.…”