tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21629553970976798962024-03-13T02:04:45.170-07:00Love Birdporhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.comBlogger74125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-11398903446234823232007-07-16T07:26:00.000-07:002007-07-16T07:28:09.774-07:00American Robin<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9wp6CERutXC8v3aSwNtVduw3SnufEfGNBe0ZhVVN3NyhwkSVr6aroqtP1qwRxrQgg-6fePBm6b_VWcwnvbvwfVtxsDOojCsWLGJrb633Dljnw6hPfbe58mb0i_Xx2TG5eU9UVQitNJoRz/s1600-h/200px-American_Robin_2006.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5087801414626490290" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9wp6CERutXC8v3aSwNtVduw3SnufEfGNBe0ZhVVN3NyhwkSVr6aroqtP1qwRxrQgg-6fePBm6b_VWcwnvbvwfVtxsDOojCsWLGJrb633Dljnw6hPfbe58mb0i_Xx2TG5eU9UVQitNJoRz/s320/200px-American_Robin_2006.jpg" border="0" /></a>The American Robin (Turdus migratorius) is a migratory songbird of the thrush family. The similarity between the orange-red coloring of its breast to that of the smaller and unrelated European Robin (Erithacus rubecula) led to its common name.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-62609106375550590192007-07-15T07:44:00.000-07:002007-07-15T07:46:30.815-07:00Baltimore Oriole<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnbU9r-foxsixavFa3y4L6hBbjYlUXrsOfBIhNHrAc5rC5XwTbDIMMFnw9WL6bh18l_eQ3mHl_KMHK3utHNZl6jPo0i887JZ-hPKX28FFjwN0q_6jQEl0wgipLJIQrdDpDRf-u9PlnUaPP/s1600-h/200px-BaltimoreOriole23.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5087435058211108770" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnbU9r-foxsixavFa3y4L6hBbjYlUXrsOfBIhNHrAc5rC5XwTbDIMMFnw9WL6bh18l_eQ3mHl_KMHK3utHNZl6jPo0i887JZ-hPKX28FFjwN0q_6jQEl0wgipLJIQrdDpDRf-u9PlnUaPP/s320/200px-BaltimoreOriole23.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Baltimore Oriole, Icterus galbula, is a small icterid blackbird which is 18 cm long and weighs 34 g.<br />Adults have a pointed bill and white bars on the wings. The adult male is orange on the underparts, shoulder patch and rump. All of the rest of the male is black. The adult female is yellow-brown on the upper parts with darker wings, and dull orange on the breast and belly.<br />The breeding habitats of these birds are the edges of deciduous and mixed woods across eastern North America. The range of this bird overlaps with that of the similar Bullock's Oriole in the midwest, and the two species are sometimes considered to be conspecific under the name Northern Oriole because they form fertile hybrids.<br />The Baltimore Oriole's nest is a tightly woven pouch located on the end of a branch, hanging down on the underside.<br />These birds migrate in flocks to southern Mexico, Central America and northern South America. Some birds may remain near feeders in winter.<br />The Baltimore Oriole is a rare vagrant to western Europe, and there are a couple of British records of birds wintering near garden feeders, including one in Oxford in December 2003. Perhaps the most remarkable record was the incident occurring on 7th and 8th of October, 2001. On this date, in Baltimore, Co. Cork, Ireland, the first record of this species in Ireland was made.<br />Baltimore Orioles forage in trees and shrubs, also making short flights to catch insects. They mainly eat insects, berries and nectar, and are often seen sipping at hummingbird feeders. Oriole feeders contain essentially the same food as hummingbird feeders, but are designed for orioles, and are orange instead of red and have larger perches. Baltimore Orioles are also fond of halved oranges.<br />This bird received its name from the fact that the male's colors resembled those on the coat of arms of Lord Baltimore. The Baltimore Orioles, an American League baseball team in Baltimore, Maryland, were named after this bird. It is also the state bird of Maryland.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-69590952869706301422007-07-13T18:33:00.000-07:002007-07-13T18:36:39.169-07:00Black-capped Chickadee<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsnlE4HJC_sfwE5zQn__fB_YaXOMNu8rkR57HsRMFNbdIiopwYtirRxud3CTqFrO1ISuhgLC7qEQ5RJgMxiAvoas_Iiey6b_F6tk_iqvi5nVOuowzBQNXp3VWdwympHsldhUWQMhNke2el/s1600-h/260px-Poecile-atricapilla-001.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5086860374407034770" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsnlE4HJC_sfwE5zQn__fB_YaXOMNu8rkR57HsRMFNbdIiopwYtirRxud3CTqFrO1ISuhgLC7qEQ5RJgMxiAvoas_Iiey6b_F6tk_iqvi5nVOuowzBQNXp3VWdwympHsldhUWQMhNke2el/s320/260px-Poecile-atricapilla-001.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Black-capped Chickadee, (Parus atricapillus), is a small songbird, a passerine bird in the tit family Paridae. Often, it is still placed in the genus Parus with most other tits, but mtDNA cytochrome b sequence data and morphology suggest that separating Poecile more adequately expresses these birds' relationships (Gill et al., 2005). The American Ornithologists' Union has been treating Poecile as distinct genus for some time already.<br />Adults have a black cap and bib with white sides to the face. Their under parts are white with rusty brown on the flanks; their back is gray. They have a short dark bill, short wings and a long tail.<br />Their breeding habitat is mixed or deciduous woods in Canada, Alaska and the northern United States. They nest in a hole in a tree; the pair excavates the nest, using a natural cavity or sometimes an old woodpecker nest. They may interbreed with Carolina Chickadees or Mountain Chickadees where their ranges overlap. The Black-capped and Carolina chicadees are virtually impossible to tell apart visually, but they are readily distinguished by call. Their point of overlap is near New Brunswick, New Jersey.They are permanent residents, but sometimes move south within their range in winter. On cold winter nights, these birds reduce their body temperature by up to 10-12 °C to conserve energy.<br />These birds hop along tree branches searching for food, sometimes hanging upside down or hovering; they may make short flights to catch insects in the air. Insects form a large part of their diet, especially in summer; seeds and berries become important in winter. They sometimes hammer seeds on a tree or shrub to open them; they also will store seeds for later use. Black-capped Chickadees are known to remember the position of hundreds or more of their food caches for up to a month[citation needed].<br />During the fall migration and winter, chickadees often flock together. Many other species of birds, including titmice, nuthatches, and warblers can often be found foraging in these flocks. Mixed flocks stay together because the chickadees call out whenever they find a good source of food. This calling out forms cohesion for the group, allowing the other birds to find food more efficiently. When flocking, Black-capped Chickadees soon establish a rigid social hierarchy.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-74098218274163895712007-07-12T06:55:00.000-07:002007-07-12T06:57:19.780-07:00Brown Pelican<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLxjmo1v7y_STIzfzPz1QpK3dvfwTiaOz6ROGkOs-tdrLNDPjQJ3IdsPfnKhDfKZ7SkvUNS6CVQbS9RyDRXhRB-wf9dBWoPFMK2tc2LI3h4gwkvgf0j4ikl7DELc40OzXIEMg0kVtEMtit/s1600-h/250px-Brown_pelican_-_natures_pics.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5086309102469691266" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLxjmo1v7y_STIzfzPz1QpK3dvfwTiaOz6ROGkOs-tdrLNDPjQJ3IdsPfnKhDfKZ7SkvUNS6CVQbS9RyDRXhRB-wf9dBWoPFMK2tc2LI3h4gwkvgf0j4ikl7DELc40OzXIEMg0kVtEMtit/s320/250px-Brown_pelican_-_natures_pics.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) is the smallest of the eight species of pelican, although it is a large bird in nearly every other regard. It is 106-137 cm (42-54 in) in length, weighs from 2.75 to 5.5 kg (6-12 lbs) and has a wingspan from 1.83 to 2.5 m (6 to 8.2 ft).<br />It lives strictly on coasts from Washington and Virginia south to northern Chile and the mouth of the Amazon River. Some immature birds may stray to inland freshwater lakes. After nesting, North American birds move in flocks further north along the coasts, returning to warmer waters for winter.<br />This bird is distinguished from the American White Pelican by its brown body and its habit of diving for fish from the air, as opposed to co-operative fishing from the surface. It eats mainly herring-like fish. Groups of Brown Pelicans often travel in single file, flying low over the water's surface.<br />The nest location varies from a simple scrape on the ground on an island to a bulky stick nest in a low tree. These birds nest in colonies, usually on islands.<br />Pesticides like DDT and dieldrin threatened its future in the southeast United States and California in the early 1970s. Pesticides also threatened the pelican population in Florida in this period. A research group from the University of Tampa headed by Dr. Ralph Schreiber conducted research in the Tampa Bay/St Petersburg area and found that DDT caused the pelican eggshells to be overly-thin and incapable of supporting the embryo to maturity. As a result of this research, DDT usage was eliminated in Florida and the rest of the country.<br />Along with the American White Pelican, the Brown Pelican is protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918.<br />There are four subspecies:<br />P. o. californicus (California Brown Pelican)<br />P. o. carolinensis (Eastern Brown Pelican)<br />P. o. occidentalis (Caribbean Brown Pelican)<br />P. o. thagus (Galapagos Brown Pelican)<br />The Peruvian Pelican, Pelecanus thagus, used to be considered a subspecies of the Brown Pelican (P. o. thagus). However, due to its well-defined allopatry and because it is much larger and heavier than its relatives, it was reclassified as a separate species.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-40209457380920326152007-07-11T06:54:00.000-07:002007-07-11T06:57:46.079-07:00Western Meadowlark<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwNfTbBxxEc8qBVbA0TV3ScfR1Atn20gXz3uD5NeDOITSd6dcPbLkdf_MtGtq4JYtlN0_e8khnyOppiMRqBH8C6-MOqEcChrDg9STekQIeGpy0_rSQHjKhwcBN8Eme3XZKDINJ9tRpjQPr/s1600-h/200px-WesternMeadowlark23.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5085938108291583218" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwNfTbBxxEc8qBVbA0TV3ScfR1Atn20gXz3uD5NeDOITSd6dcPbLkdf_MtGtq4JYtlN0_e8khnyOppiMRqBH8C6-MOqEcChrDg9STekQIeGpy0_rSQHjKhwcBN8Eme3XZKDINJ9tRpjQPr/s320/200px-WesternMeadowlark23.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Western Meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta) is a medium-sized blackbird, very similar in appearance to the Eastern Meadowlark.<br />Adults have yellow underparts with a black "V" on the breast and white flanks with black streaks. The upperparts are mainly brown with black streaks. They have a long pointed bill; the head is striped with light brown and black.<br />Their breeding habitat is grasslands and prairie, also pastures and abandoned fields, across western and central North America to northern Mexico. Where their range overlaps with the eastern species, these birds prefer thinner, drier vegetation; the two birds generally do not interbreed but do defend territory against each other. The nest is on the ground, covered with a roof woven from grasses. There may be more than one nesting female in a male's territory. The nest is sometimes destroyed by mowing operations with eggs and young in them.<br />Western Meadowlark will interbreed with the Eastern Meadowlark where their ranges overlap, though their offspring are infertile.[citation needed]<br />These birds are permanent residents throughout much of their range. Northern birds migrate to the southern parts of the range; some birds also move east in the southern United States.<br />These birds forage on the ground or in low to semi-low vegetation, sometimes probing with its bill. They mainly eat insects as well as seeds and berries. In winter, they often feed in flocks.<br />This bird has a flute-like warbled song, unlike the simple whistled call of the Eastern Meadowlark. They were considered to be the same species for some time; the western species, having been overlooked for some time, was given the species name neglecta.<br />This is the state bird of Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon and Wyoming.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-74242238229887057502007-07-10T08:09:00.000-07:002007-07-10T08:10:44.847-07:00American Goldfinch<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWsF-_B4U1GAAiRPKgsb65kg7EUFtSIeiIC5jcM_eNaMpLd4MSS3cSrXDA3J6shV7lxyhDPxbItWK1XhCpayA3DwVaNbvRRngkxkJDUDbwoBZ7h3P1tIO9oAvPiu8My-6Ol5CCE4ycz1aR/s1600-h/250px-Carduelis-tristis-002.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5085585869433703650" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWsF-_B4U1GAAiRPKgsb65kg7EUFtSIeiIC5jcM_eNaMpLd4MSS3cSrXDA3J6shV7lxyhDPxbItWK1XhCpayA3DwVaNbvRRngkxkJDUDbwoBZ7h3P1tIO9oAvPiu8My-6Ol5CCE4ycz1aR/s320/250px-Carduelis-tristis-002.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Eastern or American Goldfinch (Carduelis tristis), also known as the Wild Canary, is a North American bird in the finch family. It is migratory, ranging from southern Canada to North Carolina during the breeding season, and from just south of the Canadian border to Mexico during the winter.<br />The only finch in its subfamily which undergoes a complete molt, the American Goldfinch displays sexual dimorphism in its coloration; the male is a vibrant yellow in the summer and an olive color during the winter months, while the female is a dull yellow-brown shade which brightens only slightly during the summer. The male displays brightly colored plumage during the breeding season to attract a mate.<br />The American Goldfinch is granivorous and adapted for the consumption of seedheads, with a conical beak to remove the seeds and agile feet to grip the stems of seedheads while feeding. It is a social bird, and will gather in large flocks while feeding and migrating. It may behave territorially during nest construction, but this aggression is short-lived. Its breeding season is tied to the peak of food supply, beginning in late July, which is relatively late in the year for a finch. This species is generally monogamous, and produces one brood each year.<br />Human activity has generally benefited the American Goldfinch. It is often found in residential areas, attracted to bird feeders installed by humans, which increases its survival rate in these areas. Deforestation by humans also creates open meadow areas which are the preferred habitat of the American Goldfinch.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-10460213503097842342007-07-09T02:21:00.000-07:002007-07-09T02:24:52.969-07:00Cardinal (bird)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3YZ63YVY2adQcwZMVniQLjUFevADjnfRu9bCz5xYnPm1ed4FklWrNzJRrAV_b_Ko6jkDpX1H73QWH-7jYfBQEKX6NsCdwEW78rYn2OVO_w_1PKWbshFLh1BfPfA-hNG7cueOqFpd15yhg/s1600-h/200px-Red_cardinal_bird.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5085125594968460498" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3YZ63YVY2adQcwZMVniQLjUFevADjnfRu9bCz5xYnPm1ed4FklWrNzJRrAV_b_Ko6jkDpX1H73QWH-7jYfBQEKX6NsCdwEW78rYn2OVO_w_1PKWbshFLh1BfPfA-hNG7cueOqFpd15yhg/s320/200px-Red_cardinal_bird.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Cardinals or Cardinalidae are a family of passerine birds found in North and South America.<br />These are robust, seed-eating birds, with strong bills. They are typically associated with open woodland. The sexes usually have distinctive appearances; the family is named for the red plumage (like that of a Catholic cardinal's vestments) of males of the type species, the Northern Cardinal.<br />The “buntings” in this family are sometimes generically known as “tropical buntings” (though not all live in the tropics) or “North American buntings” (though there are other buntings in North America) to distinguish them from the true buntings. Likewise the grosbeaks in this family are sometimes called “cardinal-grosbeaks” to distinguish them from other grosbeaks. The name “cardinal-grosbeak” can also apply to this family as a whole.<br />Cardinals mate in early spring. Their nests are loosely woven in tall bushes such as honeysuckle and rose. Their diet includes seeds and small berries.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-50716560697472780252007-07-07T07:29:00.000-07:002007-07-07T07:31:40.810-07:00Northern Cardinal<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjRTwjJKj47ueDQJCP7JTuWC4yrvQuhrt5XNqTtDLBsXLTRM5gE0Yqa6WAR457fF2V-GdpQVJxfhuZ__E4i_zgP9XDuqe_JTBo0WwF3yvHo3sY1BDpjxNVEva8N-fzHEc3ZI4aT1hk7qXu/s1600-h/200px-Northern_Cardinal_-_Houston_Zoo.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5084462512147500226" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjRTwjJKj47ueDQJCP7JTuWC4yrvQuhrt5XNqTtDLBsXLTRM5gE0Yqa6WAR457fF2V-GdpQVJxfhuZ__E4i_zgP9XDuqe_JTBo0WwF3yvHo3sY1BDpjxNVEva8N-fzHEc3ZI4aT1hk7qXu/s320/200px-Northern_Cardinal_-_Houston_Zoo.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) is a member of the cardinal family of birds in North America. The bird's name comes from the red-robed Roman Catholic Cardinals. Its crested head is also said to resemble a bishop's mitre. Cardinals have been also referred to as "Redbirds" and "Virginia nightingales". Cardinals were once popular cage birds for their bright color and rich, varied songs.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-54282794862685006332007-07-06T06:56:00.000-07:002007-07-06T06:57:59.132-07:00Mountain Bluebird<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5084082789793893554" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUz8J4uuNEJ84mF2rI9QlPVnn40MBbdv7V2wOqnpAVbxq0u6P-pZ2EzHEe4_Gd39XSCHR6Wcpw-tqz8KoCGCyn_urMg38sS3iartpCyNtDgdJRZPPWsiZ4B4V_zBD5iiQ9SmmtHD1jg9UW/s320/250px-Mountain_Bluebird.jpg" border="0" />The Mountain Bluebird (Sialia currucoides) is a medium-sized thrush.<br />Adults have thin bills. Adult males are bright blue, somewhat lighter underneath. Adult females have duller blue wings and tail and a grey breast, grey crown, throat and back.<br />Their breeding habitat is open country across western North America, including mountain areas, as far north as Alaska. They nest in cavities or in nest boxes. In remote areas, these birds are less affected by competition for natural nesting locations than the other bluebirds.<br />Northern birds migrate to the southern parts of the range; southern birds are often permanent residents. Some birds may move to lower elevations in winter.<br />These birds hover over the ground and fly down to catch insects, also flies from perch to catching them. They mainly eat insects and berries. They may forage in flocks in winter.<br />This is the state bird of Idaho and Nevada.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-68562817642029479282007-07-03T01:30:00.000-07:002007-07-03T01:32:07.640-07:00Hawaiian Goose<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwpck5m0zr4cVl_EK61bZOyY_PzqHs9qT4FXTCkGuW7SDnMUhfcmE2mAgkko9XfL_2Vnvzgg945YBruLbyir-uiYOCOZ1I1iDVYf6167RpaawzGKqs_PSGX5szRO7el6uqYjAROhn4fXGJ/s1600-h/200px-Nene_hawaiaan_750pix.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082885559070198946" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwpck5m0zr4cVl_EK61bZOyY_PzqHs9qT4FXTCkGuW7SDnMUhfcmE2mAgkko9XfL_2Vnvzgg945YBruLbyir-uiYOCOZ1I1iDVYf6167RpaawzGKqs_PSGX5szRO7el6uqYjAROhn4fXGJ/s320/200px-Nene_hawaiaan_750pix.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Hawaiian Goose or Nēnē, Branta sandvicensis, is a species of goose endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. It shares a recent common ancestor with Branta canadensis, the Canada Goose. The official bird of the State of Hawaiiʻi, the Nēnē is exclusively found in the wild of the islands of Maui, Kauaʻi and Hawaiʻi. A larger, extinct and possibly flightless species, the Nēnē-nui (Branta hylobadistes) was present in prehistoric times on Maui; related, but hitherto undescribed forms also occurred on Kauaʻi and Oʻahu, and there was a gigantic, flightless relative on the island of Hawaiʻi.<br />The Nēnē gets its Hawaiian name from its soft call.<br />The species has a black head, buff cheeks and heavily furrowed neck. Bill, legs and feet are black. The young birds are as the male but duller brown and with less demarcation between the colors of the head and neck, and striping and barring effects are much reduced. Bill, legs and feet as for the adult.<br />The female Hawaiian Goose is similar to the male in coloring but slightly smaller.<br />Its strong toes have much reduced webbing, an adaptation to the lava flows on which it breeds. It mates on land unlike most other wildfowl.<br />This is the world's rarest goose. Once common, hunting and introduced predators such as mongooses, pigs, and cats reduced the population to 30 birds by 1952. However, this species breeds well in captivity, and has been successfully re-introduced so in 2004 it was estimated that there were 500 birds in the wild (and good numbers in wildfowl collections). However, there is some concern of inbreeding due to the small population of birds. The nature reserve WWT Slimbridge in England was instumental in the successful breeding of Nene geese in captivity, under the direction of the leading conservationist Sir Peter Scott, during the 1950s, for later re-introduction into the wild in Hawaii. There are still Nene geese at Slimbridge today.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-85473911301620859462007-07-02T01:52:00.000-07:002007-07-02T01:53:40.605-07:00Brown Thrasher<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs4mgSG45FOi4_FyL77K7HShgeEPCHztlHC_dIHSD3GqcWnu3-DXWWSlRMwECGdcLEhmSImrDSsnIM9nHKdLuxd7I5LGJVaELRVdGf3Bp0nvw4WQ2e9fkwxHV2xDR6mzsBDk0zoUczdfOA/s1600-h/200px-Brown_Thrasher-27527.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082520031583505554" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs4mgSG45FOi4_FyL77K7HShgeEPCHztlHC_dIHSD3GqcWnu3-DXWWSlRMwECGdcLEhmSImrDSsnIM9nHKdLuxd7I5LGJVaELRVdGf3Bp0nvw4WQ2e9fkwxHV2xDR6mzsBDk0zoUczdfOA/s320/200px-Brown_Thrasher-27527.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Brown Thrasher (Toxostoma rufum) is a species of thrasher, part of a family of New World birds (Mimidae) that includes New World catbirds and mockingbirds.<br />The Brown Thrasher is, as the name suggests, mostly brown or reddish-brown above, with a white breast and throat streaked with brown, and two white bars on each wing. It has a long tail, and its beak is also relatively large and somewhat curved. Adults average about 29 cm (11.5 inches) in length.<br />It is difficult to see all this however, as the bird is a retiring type that prefers thickets and heavy brush, often searching for food in dry leaves on the ground. In fact, it is more likely to be heard than seen, not only because of the rattling of leaves, but also because of its call, a sharp lip-smacking type sound. This bird is omnivorous, eating insects, berries, nuts and seeds, as well as earthworms, snails and sometimes lizards.<br />Its breeding range includes the United States and Canada east of the Rocky Mountains. It is a partial migrant, with northern birds wintering in the southern USA, where it occurs throughout the year. There is a single British record of this unlikely transatlantic vagrant.<br />The female lays 3 to 5 eggs in a twiggy nest lined with grass. The nest is built in a dense shrub or low in a tree. Both parents incubate and feed the young. These birds raise two or three broods in a year. They are able to call in up to 3000 distinct songs. The male sings a series of short repeated melodious phrases from an open perch to defend his territory and is also very aggressive in defending the nest.<br />Although this bird is widespread and still common, it has declined in numbers in some areas due to loss of suitable habitat.<br />The Brown Thrasher is the official state bird of Georgia, and the inspiration for the name of Atlanta's National Hockey League team, the Atlanta Thrashers.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-10308656189765209932007-06-30T18:47:00.000-07:002007-06-30T18:48:53.557-07:00Mockingbird<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgefY_cBSLDHkwXZoc08H_AsPpXpa-9Z8U9QL-ziXF3dB4CNATW8qYY2vRXMexvl9jp173G5DrhKarm4KZPBPOkKJOQyb4a3egwjMQXp_PvUcQipP_q7mpfgp7TVSWo6b83oOF_YcIVyCPG/s1600-h/250px-Mimus_polyglottos1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5082039441922952322" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgefY_cBSLDHkwXZoc08H_AsPpXpa-9Z8U9QL-ziXF3dB4CNATW8qYY2vRXMexvl9jp173G5DrhKarm4KZPBPOkKJOQyb4a3egwjMQXp_PvUcQipP_q7mpfgp7TVSWo6b83oOF_YcIVyCPG/s320/250px-Mimus_polyglottos1.jpg" border="0" /></a>Mockingbirds are a group of New World passerine birds from the Mimidae family. They are best known for the habit of some species mimicking the songs of other birds, often loudly and in rapid succession. Mockingbirds also have a reputation of being fierce defenders of their nests. Both male and female mockingbirds will attack or feign diving attacks on both domestic and wild felines, canines, crows and other birds, as well as humans who venture too close to their nest. Other defensive tactics involve aggressive vocalizations and adults acting wounded on the ground as a lure to draw predators away from the nest site.<br />Most species are tropical, but the Northern Mockingbird breeds throughout the United States and Canada. There are about 17 species in three genera. These do not appear to form a monophyletic lineage: Mimus and Nesomimus are quite closely related; their closest living relatives appear to be some thrashers, such as the Sage Thrasher. Melanotis is more distinct; it seems to represent a very ancient basal lineage of Mimidae.(Hunt et al. 2001, Barber et al. 2004)porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-12235946474951524152007-06-29T23:03:00.000-07:002007-06-29T23:04:46.024-07:00Wood Thrush<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5081734327446244466" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm11SThN6fJkhjcuhREmqlBkc6Lw90Q0b3QflQVUuvBGTwBTYMrmdwuimGlcDeg73y0B3S3sTEeYikjygBsibR1-xLzTivT2SOwUiorRCrxwgtjmsQ_VVjU0PCHCu_l88BG5Zj7Hesy7GI/s320/Woodthrush79.jpg" border="0" />The Wood Thrush, Hylocichla mustelina, is a North American passerine bird. It is closely related to other thrushes such as the American Robin and is widely distributed across North America, wintering in Mexico and Central America. The Wood Thrush is the official bird of the District of Columbia.[2]<br />The Wood Thrush is a medium-sized thrush, with brown upper parts with mottled brown and white underparts. The male and female are similar in appearance.<br />The Wood Thrush is an omnivore, and feeds preferentially on soil invertebrates and larvae, but will also eat fruits. In the summer, it feeds on insects continuously in order to meet daily metabolic needs. It is solitary, but sometimes form mixed-species flocks. The Wood Thrush defends a territory that ranges in size from 800 to 28000 square meters. The Wood Thrush is monogamous, and its breeding season begins in the spring; about 50 percent of all mated pairs are able to raise two broods, ranging in size from 2 to 4 chicks.[3]porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-90544354453595412007-06-28T07:28:00.000-07:002007-06-28T07:31:09.562-07:00Sand Martin<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPRlDuMCzRtD_TBBAwLvFLncwRZr7i0kO7qDFzTxk-WkwN1XcGdIbR7HVgLpf4e8plawGrFpAqEentFrb-Q6F1-kcduafVlESEdczeKRiC5R01m8yOOd33fTDZxE0Q_lUP4JKlg0Z5ceEX/s1600-h/240px-Riparia_Riparia-2006-Ejdzej-1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5081122633908980834" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPRlDuMCzRtD_TBBAwLvFLncwRZr7i0kO7qDFzTxk-WkwN1XcGdIbR7HVgLpf4e8plawGrFpAqEentFrb-Q6F1-kcduafVlESEdczeKRiC5R01m8yOOd33fTDZxE0Q_lUP4JKlg0Z5ceEX/s320/240px-Riparia_Riparia-2006-Ejdzej-1.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Sand Martin, (Riparia riparia) is a migratory passerine bird in the swallow family.<br />It has a wide range in summer, embracing practically the whole of Europe and the Mediterranean countries, part of northern Asia and also North America, where it is called Bank Swallow. It winters in eastern and southern Africa, South America and South Asia (where it is called the Collared Sand Martin).<br />The subspecies diluta of southern Asia, northern India and southeastern China is sometimes split as a separate species, the Pale Martin, Riparia diluta. It has paler grey-brown upperparts and a less distinct breast band. It winters in Pakistan and southern India.<br />The Sand Martin appears on its breeding grounds towards the end of March, just in advance of the Barn Swallow, as the first of its family, flitting over the larger sheets of water in search of early flies.<br />Its brown back, small size and quicker, jerkier flight separate it at once from Swallows and House Martins. Later parties accompany Swallows, but for a time, varying according to weather, the birds remain at these large waters and does not visit its nesting haunts.<br />The 12 cm long Sand Martin is brown above, white below with a narrow brown band on the breast; the bill is black, the legs brown. The young have rufous tips to the coverts and margins to the secondaries.<br />The twittering song is continuous when the birds are on the wing, and becomes a conversational undertone after they have settled in the roost. The harsh alarm is heard when a passing Kestrel, Carrion Crow or other suspected enemy requires combined action to drive it away.<br />The food consists of small insects, mostly gnats and other flies whose early stages are aquatic.<br />The Sand Martin is sociable in its nesting habits; from a dozen to many hundred pairs will nest close together, according to available space. The nests are at the end of tunnels of from a few inches to three or four feet in length, bored in sand or gravel.<br />The actual nest is a litter of straw and feathers in a chamber at the end of the burrow; it soon becomes a hotbed of parasites. Four or five white eggs are laid about the middle of May, and a second brood is usual.<br />The Sand Martin departs early, at any rate from its more northerly haunts. In August, the gatherings at the nightly roost increase enormously, though the advent and departure of passage birds causes great irregularity in numbers.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-43458210294575728202007-06-25T07:47:00.001-07:002007-06-25T07:48:40.223-07:00Anna's Hummingbird<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ww7ilqtBBpM7Bts_wGq4Rvu6duU2K-bmrKvvJfegDvXYrqlyq6hC6FlOTvGkC0DBpjlqTTrFNaPeyRDjXoRy7Bv9zmQSBhiQjxMEn5x0A0l7TS0doQeNzKQe4p8h3uKr8A65oiICblcA/s1600-h/256px-Calypte-anna-002.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5080013857096685826" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ww7ilqtBBpM7Bts_wGq4Rvu6duU2K-bmrKvvJfegDvXYrqlyq6hC6FlOTvGkC0DBpjlqTTrFNaPeyRDjXoRy7Bv9zmQSBhiQjxMEn5x0A0l7TS0doQeNzKQe4p8h3uKr8A65oiICblcA/s320/256px-Calypte-anna-002.jpg" border="0" /></a>These birds are glossy green on the back and grey below with green flanks. Their bill is long, straight and slender. The adult male has a glossy red crown and throat and a dark tail. Anna's is the only hummingbird species with a red crown. Females and juveniles have a green crown, a grey throat with some red marking and a dark tail with white tips.<br />Their breeding habitat is open wooded or shrubby areas and mountain meadows along the Pacific coast from British Columbia to Arizona. The female builds a large cup nest in a shrub or tree, sometimes in vines or on wires. The nest is round and about 1 1/2 to 2" in diameter. The nest is built of very small twigs, lichen and other mosses, and often lined with downy feathers or animal hair. the nest materials are bound together with spider silk or other sticky materials. They are known to nest early as mid-December and as late as June.<br />These birds are permanent residents in parts of their range. Some birds may wander north to southern Alaska, south to Mexico or move east from California after nesting season. Some individuals have been banded as far east as Alabama and Florida.<br />These birds feed on nectar from flowers using a long extendable tongue or catch insects on the wing. While collecting nectar, they also assist in plant pollination. They sometimes eat tree sap.<br />Unlike most hummingbirds, this bird sings during courtship. They are very territorial.<br />This bird was named after Anna Massena, Duchess of Rivoli. A hybrid between this species and Allen's Hummingbird has been described as Floresi's Hummingbird, "Selasphorus" floresii (Ridgway, 1909; Taylor, 1909); the hybrid with the Black-chinned Hummingbird was called "Trochilus" violajugulum.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-39698806529284692352007-06-24T06:16:00.001-07:002007-06-24T06:17:31.289-07:00Adelie Penguin<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Y6L28JonJxBXhWMfVENiU79m-rc0MIyRH7L_Ca2hpzxj7yV43XDAiYT37bmyAj2YVgWDZB1ce1FRpDTOG7OlEpEXKf_rvpFhzOySQqTAr3t2XO18IOlsDajNaAamGyoa0CZLNL5Yws06/s1600-h/250px-Adelie_Penguin.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5079619304221006066" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Y6L28JonJxBXhWMfVENiU79m-rc0MIyRH7L_Ca2hpzxj7yV43XDAiYT37bmyAj2YVgWDZB1ce1FRpDTOG7OlEpEXKf_rvpFhzOySQqTAr3t2XO18IOlsDajNaAamGyoa0CZLNL5Yws06/s320/250px-Adelie_Penguin.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Adélie Penguin, Pygoscelis adeliae is, together with the Emperor Penguin, one of the only two types of penguin living on the Antarctic mainland. This species is common along the entire Antarctic coast and nearby islands. Aside from the storm petrel, they are the most southerly distributed of all seabirds. In 1830, French explorer Dumont d'Urville named them for his wife, Adélie. Ross Island supports a colony of approximately half a million Adélie penguins.<br />These penguins are very fat and about 60 to 70 cm (24-28 in) long and are around 4.5 kg (10 lbs) in weight. Distinctive marks are the white ring surrounding the eye and the feathers at the base of the bill. These long feathers hide most of the red bill. The tail is a little bit longer than other penguins' tails.<br /><br />Young Adélie Penguinsin Antarctica<br />Adélie Penguins arrive at their breeding grounds in October. Their nests consist of stones piled together. Sometimes the competition for breeding sites gets so fierce that mothers will steal stones from neighbors' nests. The males summon the females with a low guttural noise followed by a loud cry. A female typically lays two eggs which are brown or green in color. In December, the warmest month in Antarctica (about -2°C), the parents alternate periods of incubating the egg; one goes to feed and the other stays to warm the egg. The parent who is incubating does not eat. In March, the adults and their young return to the sea. Ellie gall sucks This penguin feeds mainly on crustaceans, such as krill, and fish.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-49887402069595994862007-06-23T06:11:00.001-07:002007-06-23T06:12:41.930-07:00Acorn Woodpecker<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj476QdV4LAZirzSwky9ebxC7HFL1ogUiBXY0N9pJe_mLAQOJUNKpp8eJTEKkoSutHCM2QbyAc_5olJ85jkd2Ffgs37ndGEx9eRJJYBPiFKE4sRYm-ijOQZF3gT7r59pxTCk1EWB49R_KV3/s1600-h/AcornWoodpecker23.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5079246921966508258" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj476QdV4LAZirzSwky9ebxC7HFL1ogUiBXY0N9pJe_mLAQOJUNKpp8eJTEKkoSutHCM2QbyAc_5olJ85jkd2Ffgs37ndGEx9eRJJYBPiFKE4sRYm-ijOQZF3gT7r59pxTCk1EWB49R_KV3/s320/AcornWoodpecker23.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Acorn Woodpecker (Melanerpes formicivorus) is a medium-sized woodpecker, 21 cm long with an average weight of 85 g.<br />The adult has a black head, back, wings and tail, white forehead, throat, belly and rump. The eyes are white. The adult male has a red cap starting at the forehead, whereas females have a black area between the forehead and the cap.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-82841774654196933402007-06-22T06:51:00.000-07:002007-06-22T06:53:23.480-07:00Common Kestrel<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg704JmB7hGtgZb8cRAxvUv955IUcKK6rrSRkDiPCBB96eIB0T57FvTGekBmrOEQJRO1rgxF7ty8If4c-dc34xAd8ZVenTQ02WBlcaV-2l3aR8tLr7l2Pa3SQZBc2TLn8SRrZ4174dtZf8F/s1600-h/250px-Common_Kestrel_1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5078886415296583890" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg704JmB7hGtgZb8cRAxvUv955IUcKK6rrSRkDiPCBB96eIB0T57FvTGekBmrOEQJRO1rgxF7ty8If4c-dc34xAd8ZVenTQ02WBlcaV-2l3aR8tLr7l2Pa3SQZBc2TLn8SRrZ4174dtZf8F/s320/250px-Common_Kestrel_1.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Common Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) is a bird of prey species belonging to the kestrel group of the falcon family Falconidae. It is also known as the European Kestrel, Eurasian Kestrel[1], or Old World Kestrel[2]. In Britain, where no other brown falcon occurs, it is generally just called "the Kestrel".<br />This species occurs over a large range. It is widespread in Europe, Asia, and Africa, as well as occasionally reaching the east coast of North America. The Common Kestrel is small compared with other birds of prey, but larger than most songbirds. Kestrels have long wings as well as a distinctive long tail like the other Falco species. This bird's plumage is mainly brown with dark spots. Unlike most hawks they display sexual colour dimorphism with the male having a blue-grey head and tail. The tail is brown with black bars in females, and has a black tip with a narrow white rim in both sexes. All Common Kestrels sexes have a prominent black malar stripe like their closest relatives.<br /><br />Common Kestrel eggs<br />Common Kestrels measure 34–38 cm (~13–15 in) from head to tail, with a wingspan of 70–80 cm (~27–31 in). The average adult male weighs around 155 g (~5½ oz) with the adult female weighing around 190 g (~6½ oz).porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-39252774120066668842007-06-21T07:14:00.000-07:002007-06-21T07:19:35.938-07:00European Roller<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6MvFnQZxrgplhgx1RT740IxlfnmFxCJSg8jgF3akPs69BB8xV9ZizSLWdDN8p_sVhPkNaVG180nws5mPBSNN5iH1z2XbJxIwTI7nT-FxKiCoQbGb8-US5GBNrQqile-qTJ85gbfuiS5ph/s1600-h/200px-European_roller.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5078522043156093122" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6MvFnQZxrgplhgx1RT740IxlfnmFxCJSg8jgF3akPs69BB8xV9ZizSLWdDN8p_sVhPkNaVG180nws5mPBSNN5iH1z2XbJxIwTI7nT-FxKiCoQbGb8-US5GBNrQqile-qTJ85gbfuiS5ph/s320/200px-European_roller.jpg" border="0" /></a>The European Roller, Coracias garrulus, is the only member of the roller family of birds to breed in Europe. Its range extends into western Asia and Morocco. It is a long-distance migrant, wintering in southern Africa.<br />It is a bird of warm open country with some trees. The European Roller is a stocky bird, the size of a Jackdaw at 29-32 cm in length with a 52-58 cm wingspan, but it is mainly blue with a warm brown back. Rollers often perch prominently on trees, posts or overhead wires, like giant shrikes, whilst watching for the large insects, lizards and frogs that they eat.<br />This species is even more striking in its strong direct flight, with the brilliant blue contrasting with black flight feathers. Sexes are similar, but the juvenile is a drabber version of the adult.<br />The display of this bird is a lapwing-like display, with the twists and turns that give this species its English name. It nests in an unlined tree or cliff hole, and lays up to six eggs.<br />The call is a harsh crow-like sound.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-65604015200879696202007-06-20T07:28:00.000-07:002007-06-20T07:29:54.133-07:00Nilgiri Wood-pigeon<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzU8R_t14xXt20Gk7l44ZRutmHkYHwkWqdt25IomPyYX-NT8NKldX6_DhUMnRoKfdrJMkQgvOdPL7G_ySooY6w612s91ml6GwPRv_-DJitbaiPqeixmtkxq-eELYrZ_ipfKeyGnobf4KkT/s1600-h/200px-Columba_elphinstonii.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5078153646631246002" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzU8R_t14xXt20Gk7l44ZRutmHkYHwkWqdt25IomPyYX-NT8NKldX6_DhUMnRoKfdrJMkQgvOdPL7G_ySooY6w612s91ml6GwPRv_-DJitbaiPqeixmtkxq-eELYrZ_ipfKeyGnobf4KkT/s320/200px-Columba_elphinstonii.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Nilgiri Woodpigeon (Columba elphinstonii) is a bird endemic to moist deciduous forests and sholas of the Western Ghats in southwestern India. They are identified in the field by the checkerboard pattern on their napes.<br />This pigeon species qualifies as vulnerable owing to its small, declining population, restricted range and widespread destruction of its forest habitat.[1] A few relict populations survive on the high altitude hills of the peninsula outside the Western Ghats formation including the Biligirirangan Hills and Nandi Hills near Bangalore.<br />The binomial commemorates the Hon. Mountstuart Elphinstone (1779-1859).porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-3493410578399171502007-06-19T07:46:00.000-07:002007-06-19T07:47:42.333-07:00African Grey Hornbill<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBY7oEYpivfSkC38J8pkNngIkk0JFv3Mi7-9_BOGSmlWGsCMjbULUQloFJ9m1exy0xoG61XuAqctrE9VFQ1iEEokn1Jh7lVNtU_tca-eB6vCR1tdWrQjuZLSBOWmfSIoVElAbaIW6ByvVc/s1600-h/200px-AghornbillforWIKI2007.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077787148481943714" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBY7oEYpivfSkC38J8pkNngIkk0JFv3Mi7-9_BOGSmlWGsCMjbULUQloFJ9m1exy0xoG61XuAqctrE9VFQ1iEEokn1Jh7lVNtU_tca-eB6vCR1tdWrQjuZLSBOWmfSIoVElAbaIW6ByvVc/s320/200px-AghornbillforWIKI2007.jpg" border="0" /></a>The African Grey Hornbill, Tockus nasutus, is a hornbill. Hornbills are a family of tropical near-passerine birds found in the Old World.<br />The African Grey Hornbill is a widespread and common resident breeder in much of sub-Saharan Africa and into Arabia.<br />This is a bird mainly of open woodland and savannah. The female lays two to four white eggs in a tree hole, which is blocked off during incubation with a cement made of mud, droppings and fruit pulp. There is only one narrow aperture, just big enough for the male to transfer food to the mother and the chicks.<br />When the chicks and the female are too big to fit in the nest, the mother breaks out and rebuilds the wall, then both parents feed the chicks.<br />This species is a large bird, at 45cm in length, but is one of the smaller hornbills. It has mainly grey plumage, with the head, flight feathers and long tail being a darker shade. There is a white line down each side of the head and one on the back which is visible only in flight. The long curved bill is black and has a small casque and a creamy horizontal stripe.<br />Sexes are similar, but the male has a black bill, whereas the female has red on the mandibles. Immature birds are more uniformly grey. The flight is undulating. The similarly sized Red-billed Hornbill has uniformly grey plumage.<br />The African Grey Hornbill is omnivorous, taking insects, fruit and reptiles. It feeds mainly in trees.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-52126678860091024342007-06-18T06:52:00.000-07:002007-06-18T06:54:48.734-07:00Collared Kingfisher<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU-WLUTEp8yDQbSFrbKcxVnbhwYitcMzokHRiHoIVaBZo4uVdf-KGBLItGZJmVR_C6ErLyn_X203gtORW9nBcKxKzE5v3eXb0vOV7k48dY-QemZxntxshSa-DPLdX0K2aSq0iST3__CTM5/s1600-h/240px-Collared_Kingfisher.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077402392426666130" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU-WLUTEp8yDQbSFrbKcxVnbhwYitcMzokHRiHoIVaBZo4uVdf-KGBLItGZJmVR_C6ErLyn_X203gtORW9nBcKxKzE5v3eXb0vOV7k48dY-QemZxntxshSa-DPLdX0K2aSq0iST3__CTM5/s320/240px-Collared_Kingfisher.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Collared Kingfisher (Todiramphus chloris) is a medium-sized kingfisher belonging to the family Halcyonidae, the tree kingfishers. It is also known as the White-collared Kingfisher . It has a wide range extending from the Red Sea across southern Asia and Australasia to Polynesia. It is a very variable species with about 50 different subspecies.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-6824523825144268002007-06-10T05:01:00.001-07:002007-06-11T20:38:52.524-07:00South Polar Skua<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5074404711412488322" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUrAJh3CfECG3qyTC9mvyTS25UZhCV6u_k1Xgn_cklK7touiPmGMTnwkkoWfUhjBRQtsAeZ43-nrt10XuE1fJnqELPJLRG1u4zT33HSXXjidvSIuXP1u-Gr356M6gz4pZB0hp0DBT7MzFN/s320/250px-IMG_0645-skua-rothera.jpg" border="0" />The South Polar Skua, Stercorarius maccormicki, is a large seabird in the skua family Stercorariidae. An older name for this bird is MacCormick’s Skua. This species and the other large southern hemisphere skuas, together with Great Skua, are sometimes placed in a separate genus Catharacta.<br />This is a large bird at 53 cm length. It breeds on Antarctic coasts, usually laying two eggs in November and December. Like other skuas, it will fly at the head of a human or other intruder approaching its nest. It is a migrant, wintering at sea in the Pacific Indian and Atlantic Oceans. In the eastern North Atlantic it is replaced by the Great Skua.<br />The South Polar Skua eats mainly fish, which it often obtains by robbing gulls, terns and even gannets of their catches. It will also directly attack and kill other seabirds.<br />Like most other skua species, it continues this piratical behaviour throughout the year, showing less agility and more brute force than the smaller skuas when it harasses its victims.<br />Distinguishing this skua from the northern hemisphere Arctic, Pomarine and Long-tailed Skuas is relatively straightforward. The large size, massive barrel chest and white wing flashes of this bird are distinctive even at a distance. The flight is direct and powerful.<br />Identification of this skua is more complicated when it is necessary to distinguish it from the closely-related Great Skua of the North Atlantic, and the other large southern hemisphere skuas.<br />Adult South Polar Skuas are greyish brown above, and have a whitish (pale morph) or straw-brown (intermediate morph) head and underparts, and the contrast between head and body makes it easy to separate from similar species with good views.<br />Juveniles and adult dark morphs are harder to distinguish from their relatives, and more subjective or difficult-to-observe criteria, such as the colder brown plumage and blue bill base, must be used.<br />Identification problems make claims of any southern hemisphere skua in the eastern North Atlantic problematic, and few records of South Polar Skua have been accepted in Western <a title="Europe" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europe">Europe</a>. Similar problems occur, of course, with extra-limital claims of Great Skua.<br />This bird is named after the naval surgeon <a title="Robert McCormick (explorer)" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_McCormick_(explorer)">Robert McCormick</a>, who collected the type specimen.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-69363680817867676772007-06-09T19:21:00.000-07:002007-06-11T20:38:34.599-07:00Ruddy Kingfisher<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5074255813486270578" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLjOiKpCsvr4WiwNpjp0Qc56FoDiZMKzmVg5Rsdf1YePq3mSOjLzRXsd2g-rgAuGJt6Aba_LVOeWI4vrVPSt5oi1tWUF4JjoNtXCBllf2Mqz0850LCvcvoIPAV_FqG6qEhvK2EjFDUZmfD/s320/200px-HalcyonCoromanda.jpg" border="0" />The Ruddy Kingfisher (Halcyon coromanda) is a medium-sized tree kingfisher which is widely distributed in east and southeast Asia, ranging from South Korea and Japan in the north, south through the Philippines to the Sunda Islands, and west to China and India. It is migratory, with birds in the northern part of the range migrating as far south as Borneo during winter. Locally common in southern parts of its range, the Ruddy Kingfisher is rare in Japan, where it is highly sought after by birders. Ruddy Kingfishers inhabit forested areas from the temperate to tropical zones, often in thick jungles and rainforests.<br />Reaching approximately 25cm, the Ruddy Kingfisher has a very large, bright red bill and equally red legs. The body is rust red, generally deepening to purple at the tail. There is little sexual dimorphism though some sources state that male birds are somewhat brighter in plumage.<br />Like other kingfishers, Ruddy Kingfishers generally feed on fish, crustaceans, and large insects, though in areas with less running water, they are known to take frogs and other amphibians. Due to its preference for heavily forested areas, the kingfisher's high, descending call is more often heard than the bird itself is seen, and these birds generally travel singly or in pairs.<br />The binomial name recalls the Coromandel Coast of India.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2162955397097679896.post-10779586194488626272007-06-08T02:18:00.000-07:002007-06-11T20:38:17.321-07:00Red-wattled Lapwing<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5073620733852080226" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIUXJuyJGmdsTAfTyyz4pYbKf-sQjcCRO8vxyQyxlmm7s35zzyJTZ0fFmzQxVf4IrDwwJ0sN7IwTRU99g5q2Cglbq39wfsE5IO8BWKjSXi9hkQggswpOMcSKg0WMJHsS4QbFtVKyZhtTnq/s320/204px-Vanellus_indicus.jpg" border="0" />The Red-wattled Lapwing (Vanellus indicus), (local names: Hindi: titeeri, titai, titori, Sindhi: tAteehAr, Gujarati: titodi Kashmiri: hatatut, Assamese: 'bAlighorA', Telugu: yennappa chitawa, Tamil: alkati) is a lapwing or large plover, a wader in the family Charadriidae. It is sometimes called the did-ye-do-it bird due to its unmistakable call.porhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12841562707906416025noreply@blogger.com0