An avivore is a specialized predator of birds, with birds making up a large proportion of its diet. Such bird-eating animals come from a range of groups.
An avivore is a specialized predator of birds, with birds making up a large proportion of its diet. Such bird-eating animals come from a range of groups.
The New World leaf-nosed bats (Phyllostomidae) are bats (order Chiroptera) found from southern North America to South America, specifically from the Southwest United States to northern Argentina. Both the scientific and common names derive from their often large, lance-shaped noses, though this is greatly reduced in some of the nectar- and pollen-feeders. Because these bats echolocate nasally, this "nose-leaf" is thought to serve some role in modifying and directing the echolocation call. Similar nose leaves are found in some other groups of bats, most notably the Old World leaf-nosed bats.
They are the most ecologically diverse bat family; members of this family have evolved to use food groups as varied as fruit, nectar, pollen, insects, frogs, other bats, and small vertebrates, and in the case of the vampire bats, blood. Most species are insectivorous, but the phyllostomid bats also include true predatory species and frugivores (subfamily Stenodermatinae and Carolliinae). For example, the spectral bat (Vampyrum spectrum), the largest bat in the Americas, eats vertebrate prey, including small, dove-sized birds.
The peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus), also known simply as the peregrine, is a cosmopolitan bird of prey (raptor) in the family Falconidae renowned for its speed. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-grey back, barred white underparts and a black head. As is typical for bird-eating (avivore) raptors, peregrine falcons are sexually dimorphic, with females being considerably larger than males. Historically, the bird has also been known as the "black-cheeked falcon" in Australia, and the "duck hawk" in North America.
The breeding range includes land regions from the Arctic tundra to the tropics. It can be found nearly everywhere on Earth, except extreme polar regions, very high mountains, and most tropical rainforests. The only major ice-free landmass from which it is entirely absent is New Zealand. That makes it the world's most widespread raptor and one of the most widely found wild bird species. In fact, the only land-based bird species found over a larger geographic area, domestic and feral pigeons, owe their success to human-led introduction. Both are domesticated forms of the rock dove, and are a major prey species for peregrine populations. Due to their greater abundance in cities than most other birds, feral pigeons support many peregrine populations as a staple food source, especially in urban settings.