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The secretarybird or secretary bird (''Sagittarius serpentarius'') is a very large, mostly terrestrial bird of prey. Endemic to Africa, it is usually found in the open grasslands and savannah of the sub-Saharan region. Although a member of the order Accipitriformes, which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, buzzards, vultures, and harriers, it is given its own family, Sagittariidae. It appears on the coats of arms of Sudan and South Africa. ==Taxonomy== In 1779 English illustrator John Frederick Miller was the first European to describe the Secretarybird,〔〕 and it was soon after assigned to its own genus ''Sagittarius'' by French naturalist Johann Hermann in his ''Tabula Affinatum Animalium''. It was not until 1935 that the species was moved to its own family, distinct from all other birds of prey—a classification confirmed by molecular systematics.〔Wink, Michael; Seibold, I.; Lotfikhah, F. & Bednarek, W. (1998): “(Molecular systematics of holarctic raptors (Order Falconiformes) )” in Chancellor, R.D., Meyburg, B.-U. & Ferrero, J.J. (eds.): ''Holarctic Birds of Prey'': 29–48. Adenex & WWGBP. (PDF)〕 Recent cladistic analysis has shown Sagittariidae to be an older branch of the diurnal birds of prey than Accipitridae and Falconidae, but a younger divergence than Cathartidae.〔Mayr, G.; Clarke, J. (2003) "The deep divergences of neornithine birds: a phylogenetic analysis of morphological characters" ''Cladistics'' 19 527–553〕 Sometimes, the enigmatic bird Eremopezus is classified as an early relative of the secretarybird, though this is quite uncertain as the bird is only known from a few fragmentary body parts such as the legs. The earliest fossils associated with the family are two species from the genus ''Pelargopappus''. The two species, from the Oligocene and Miocene respectively, were not discovered in Africa but France. The feet in these fossils are more like those of the Accipitridae; it is suggested that these characteristics are primitive features within the family. In spite of their age, it is not thought that the two species are ancestral to the secretarybird. Its common name is popularly thought to derive from the crest of long quill-like feathers, lending the bird the appearance of a secretary with quill pens tucked behind their ear, as was once common practice. A more recent hypothesis is that "secretary" is borrowed from a French corruption of the Arabic ''saqr-et-tair'' or "hunter-bird."〔Kemp, AC (1994) Family Sagittariidae (Secretarybird) in del Hoyo, J.; Elliott A.; Sargatal J. (eds) ''Handbook of the Birds of the World'', Volume 2 Barcelona:Lynx Edicions 206–215〕 The generic name "''Sagittarius''" is Latin for "archer," perhaps likening the secretarybird's "quills" to a quiver of arrows, and the specific epithet "''serpentarius''" recalls the bird's skill as a hunter of reptiles. Alternatively, the name could refer to the last two constellations in the Zodiac, Sagittarius and Serpentarius (now known as Ophiuchus). 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「secretarybird」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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