To learn flora - fauna of the world through stamps. Stamp as reminder media for everyone to care them in their habitat. Keep the nature well so achieved the equilibrium of environment that can improve the human life.
The goshawk (Accipiter gentilis), also known as the Northern Goshawk is an average-sized predator with a wingspan of more than one metre.It is the largest member of the genus Accipiter. The range of the goshawk is Eurasia and North America.
Plumage colour varies form grey in males to brownish in young and female individuals.The Northern Goshawk, like all accipiters, exhibits sexual dimorphism, where females are significantly larger than males. Males are 49–57 cm long with a 93–105 cm wingspan. The female is much larger, 58–64 cm long with a 108–127 cm wingspan. Males of the smaller races can weigh as little as 630 grams ,whereas females of the larger races can weigh as much as 2 kg .
The juvenile is brown above and barred brown below.Juveniles and adults have a barred tail, with dark brown or black barring. Adults always have a white eye stripe. In Europe and Asia, juveniles also have pale-yellow eyes, however adults develop orange-coloured eyes.
This species hunts birds and mammals in a variety of woodland habitats, often utilizing a combination of speed and obstructing cover to ambush birds and mammals. Goshawks are often seen flying along adjoining habitat types, such as the edge of a forest and meadow; flying low and fast hoping to surprise unsuspecting prey. They are usually opportunistic predators, as are most birds of prey. The most important prey species are small mammals and birds found in forest habitats.
The Estonian name of the bird, kanakull, only bears in mind domestic hens as its prey, its menu ranges from black grouse to jays, partridges, squirrels and rabbits. Attacks at domestic fowls become more frequent in the autumn and winter, when food is short in the woods
The bird builds its nest in mature and old growth coniferous forests that have rapidly dwindled in territory due to logging. The goshawk is superbly suited to this environment, navigating at great speed through the forest understory and canopy in pursuit of songbirds and squirrels. There are 2 - 4 young in a hatch. Over the past decade its population in Estonia has contracted by nearly a half to just half a thousand couples.
The flight is a characteristic "flap flap, glide", but is sometimes seen soaring in migration, and is capable of considerable, sustained, horizontal speed in pursuit of prey.
The Lapwing, (Vanellus vanellus, of the genus Charadriidae) was elected bird of the year 2001 on the initiative of the Estonian Ornithological Society.The stamp has issued on year 2001 and have specific of bird logo.
The Lapwing breeds throughout the European temperate zone, nesting in marshlands, meadows and green fields. A frequent migrant in Estonia, it usually arrives in early April and leaves in September-October. The lapwing is noted for its slow irregular flapping flight and shrill wailing cry.
The Estonian Ornithological Society has chosen the house sparrow and the tree sparrow as birds of the year 2002.
The House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) is a species of passerine bird of the sparrow family Passeridae. It occurs naturally in most of Europe, the Mediterranean region, and much of Asia. It has also been intentionally or accidentally introduced to many parts of the world, making it the most widely distributed wild bird. It is strongly associated with human habitations, but it is not the only sparrow species found near houses. It is a small bird, with feathers mostly different shades of brown and grey.
The Tree Sparrow or Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Passer montanus, is a passerine bird in the sparrow family with a rich chestnut crown and nape, and a black patch on each pure white cheek.The Eurasian Tree Sparrow is 12.5–14 cm long with a wingspan of about 21 cm and a weight of 24 g making it roughly 10% smaller than the House Sparrow.
The Eurasian Tree Sparrow is widespread in the towns and cities of eastern Asia, but in Europe it is a bird of lightly wooded open countryside, with the House Sparrow breeding in the more urban areas.
The habitat of these two very common birds is mostly human-modified situations, such as farms, residential and urban areas. Their foods are mainly seeds, both of cereal grains and of weeds, although they also feed on insects and fruit.
The nest is normally in an artificial cavity, often inside or on a building or other structure, or in a natural cavity, such as a tree hole. There are usually four to ten (mostly 5-7) eggs, which the female parent incubates for ten to thirteen days. The young, which both parents care for, fledge after ten to seventeen days, with one to two brooks per summer.
Both birds are streaked brown or black on top and whitish grey below. The tree sparrow has a rufous crown on a grey head, and a dark spot in the centre of the breast. The house sparrow is an agile, lively bird, often brazen and quarrelsome.
The Estonian Ornithological Society picked has two species of shrikes, the Red-back Shrike (Lanius collurio) and the Great Grey Shrike (Lanius excubitor), as birds of the year 2010.
The birds have a long tail and a strong hooked beak. The male shrike has a typical black eye mask. The red-back shrike is slightly larger than the sparrow while the great grey shrike is about the size of a small thrush.
Shrikes are passerine birds of the family Laniidae. Shrikes are medium-sized birds, up to 50 centimetres in length, with grey, brown, or black and white plumage. Their beaks are hooked, like that of a bird of prey, reflecting their predatory nature, and their calls are strident.Shrikes are known for their habit of catching insects and small vertebrates and impaling their bodies on thorns.
Shrikes can be seen in open and semi-open landscapes. Shrikes are carnivorous birds whose catch consists of larger insects, lizards, frogs, small birds and rodents. They hunt from prominent perches and impale corpses on thorns or barbed wire as a “larder”.
The Red-back shrike is a migratory bird that winters in southern Africa and arrives at our latitude only in the middle of May. In Estonia it is a very common breeding bird whose number in the country has been assessed at 40,000 to 60,000 pairs.
The Great grey shrike can be seen in Estonia all through the year but it is considerably less numerous than the red-back shrike. About 500-600 great grey shrikes spend the winter here, and only 300-500 pairs of them breed in the country.
The great grey shrike and the red-back shrike are to be included in the protected birds.
The yellow wagtail (Motacilla flava) is a small passerine in the wagtail family Motacillidae, whose nearest relatives are the white wagtail, the citrine wagtail and the grey wagtail.
It is a slender 15–16 cm long bird, with the characteristic long, constantly wagging tail of its genus. It is the shortest tailed of the European wagtails. The breeding adult male is basically olive above and yellow below. In other plumages, the yellow may be diluted by white. The heads of breeding males come in a variety of colours and patterns depending on subspecies.The call is a characteristic high-pitched jeet The yellow wagtail is insectivorous bird that nests in tussocks, laying 4-8 speckled eggs.
The species is distributed in large parts of Eurasia, North Africa and Western Alaska. Sixteen races can be identified through its range, differing from each other by the pattern and colour of the head. Two of the races are found in Estonia. The yellow wagtail breeds in wet grasslands such as water meadows and open countryside near the sea. Feeding mostly on invertebrates, it is a good assistant to the farmer. The yellow wagtail is a protected species, being relatively common in Estonia at present, but destruction of its habitats by grasslands overgrowing with brush and reduction of animal breeding could cut down its population to critical.
The White Stork (Ciconia ciconia ) has been breeding in Estonia for more than a hundred years.It is found throughout mainland Estonia and is particularly frequent in the southeast and south parts of the country.The white stork breeds also in Central and Eastern Europe, the Near East and North Africa, but in Western Europe.
White storks breed in open farmland areas with access to marshy wetlands, building a stick nest in trees, on buildings, or special platforms.
Because it is viewed as bird of good luck, it is not persecuted, and often nests close to human habitation.It walks slowly and steadily on the ground. It often forms small colonies. It feeds on fish, frogs and insects but also eats small reptiles, rodents and smaller birds.
Its population has declined from year to year. Being a big and strong bird, it has few enemies, and it is only seldom that an eagle may attack its nest. The stork usually has 2 to 3 young it the family.
For the winter Estonian storks travel to South Africa, avoiding the open sea on their migration and return to their breeding places in April. The white stork is a protected species.The White Stork is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.
The Estonian Ornithological Society has chosen Pica pica as bird of the year 2003. This stamp has issued on February 2003.
Pica pica or known as The European Magpie, is a resident breeding bird throughout Europe, much of Asia and northwest Africa.It is one of the commonest birds in Europe.
The characteristics of birds are :
Its head, neck and breast are glossy black with a metallic green and violet sheen.The belly and scapulars (shoulder feathers) are pure white. The wings are black glossed with green or purple, and the primaries have white inner webs, conspicuous when the wing is open. The graduated tail is black, shot with bronze-green and other iridescent colours. The legs and bill are black.The adult bird is 45-48 cm long. On the ground, the magpie skips on two legs, and its flight is of quick fluttering wing beats interspersed with short glides. It makes a loud chattering noise, and it lowers its long tail as it keenly observes the surroundings.
Pica pica or the European Magpie is omnivorous, eating both animal and plant material. It feeds on berries, seeds and fruit as well as insects, snails, slugs, small rodents.
The European Magpies are territorial and stay in their territory all year. The pairs are monogamous, and remain together for the duration of their lives. Should one of the two die, the widow or widower will find a new partner from the stock of yearlings.
Estonia Post issued the souvenir sheet has comprised of four stamps featured the popular spring flowers that grown in Estonian gardens, such as : the Tulip, the Purple hellebore, the Poet’s Narcissus, Crocuses on March 2003.
The tulip (Tulipa) is a genus of about one hundred species of bulbous spring flowers from the Lily family. The tulip is renewed every spring and it grows many daughter bulbs. The tulip, particularly its bulbs, contains a potent allergen.In Estonia the tulip has been known since the end of the 18th century.
The purple hellebore (Helloborus purpurascens) is one species of the hellebore (Helleborus), which blossoms in our gardens in March and April. The hellebore have twenty species, two species .The hellebores contain toxic glycosides and cardiac stimulants are made from the roots of some hellebores.
The poet’s narcissus (Narcissus poëticus), which is very common in Estonian gardens. Narcissuses contain poisonous alkaloids, and several species also contain ethereal oils. The flowers are grown in Estonia since the early 18th century and about 500 varieties are known today.
Crocuses, of which there are about 80 species, mostly grow to about 10-15 centimetres in height. Stigmas of a purple-flowered crocus, Crocus sativus, are collected and dried as saffron. Mainly varieties and hybrids of the spring crocus (Crocus vernus) are grown in Estonia.
