View allAll Photos Tagged Behaviour
This building is the work of two former students of Mies Van der Rohe. It shares the basic concepts put in practice by Mies in many of his buildings, but in this case the structrure is covered by a pronounced, curved skin.
experiencing some behaviour that I have never seen before from young red squirrels. These kits were unafraid of the water and would enter without any fear
Lunchtime!
Trachinocephalus myops, also known as the blunt-nose lizardfish is a species of fish in the family Synodontidae found in Atlantic Ocean. This species grows to a length of 40 centimetres (16 in)
Eared grebes have a variety of interesting bonding behaviours. I'm going to try to describe one of them. This images shows shows a single frame from a sequence (wish I had a video) where the male and female grebe face each other and are slightly puffed up. They vocalize, turn their heads, tilt their heads down and away from each other and do a quick bit of preening on their own neck area, face each other again, turn to the opposite side, and preen again. This is repeated a few times. Quite intriguing.
Having already made some standard gannet shots, I then went in search of something that showed their behaviour. I think that the gannet on the right had just landed in the other's territory and it was now on the receiving end of its wrath. Needless to say it didn't hang around any longer than two seconds. I managed to fire off two shots and this was arguably the strongest version.
Best viewed large as you can see the dust being kicked up by the bird on the left.
The robin is on high alert. There was another robin in the garden and he did not like that one bit. So after chasing him around and making him leave the garden he found himself a high perch to stand guard :-). You gotta love them
I have read about elephant grieving behaviour, but I had not expected to witness such a beautiful moment. Yet, it was suddenly, soundlessly in front of me: An old bull elephant approached the bones and stood in solemn reverence, feeling the skull with his trunk. His head held low for quite some time, until he finally moved on, ears down, seemingly in quiet thought.
I found out that the bones were of an old bull elephant whose last set of teeth wore down so low that he could only eat grass soaked in water. So, instead of roaming and foraging, he lived near this watering hole, until he died of natural causes. He lived here and he died here, and for this old bull, he is not forgotten.
Many thanks for your visits, faves and comments. Cheers.
Brolga
Grus rubicunda Gruidae
One of the most obvious features of the Brolga’s behaviour is its courtship display, an elaborate dance. The dance begins with a pair of birds picking up grass, tossing it into the air and catching it again. This is followed by the birds repeatedly leaping a metre into the air with wings outstretched, followed by stretching their necks upwards, bowing to one another, bobbing their heads, walking about and calling. Sometimes the dance is done alone or in a group, with the birds lining up opposite one another.
Description: The Brolga is a large grey crane, with a featherless red head and grey crown. The legs are grey and there is a black dewlap under the chin. Females are shorter than males. The energetic dance performed by the Brolga is a spectacular sight. Displays may be given at any time of the year and by birds of any age.
Similar Species: The Sarus Crane, G. antigone, another species of crane found in Australia, can be identified by its dull pink legs and the red of its head extending down the neck.
Distribution: The Brolga is found across tropical northern Australia, southwards through north-east and east central areas, as well as central New South Wales to western Victoria.
Habitat: The Brolga inhabits large open wetlands, grassy plains, coastal mudflats and irrigated croplands and, less frequently, mangrove-studded creeks and estuaries. It is less common in arid and semi-arid regions, but will occur close to water.
Feeding: Brolgas are omnivorous (feeding on both vegetable and animal matter), but primarily feed upon tubers and some crops. Some insects, molluscs, amphibians and even mice are also taken.
Breeding: Brolgas probably mate for life, and pair bonds are strengthened during elaborate courtship displays, which involve much dancing, leaping, wing-flapping and loud trumpeting. An isolated territory is established, and is vigorously defended by both partners. The white (blotched with brown and purple) eggs are laid in a single clutch. The nest is a large mound of vegetation on a small island in a shallow waterway or swamp. Both adults incubate the eggs and care for the young birds.
(Source: www.birdlife.org.au/bird-profile/brolga)
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© Chris Burns 2025
All rights reserved.
This image may not be copied, reproduced, distributed, republished, downloaded, displayed, posted or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying and recording without my written consent.
A resident starling and a winter visitor to our region. These birds share the same habitat as other starlings and are similar in behaviour to the Brahminy starling or Rosy Starling. They are found often on the Acacia bushes on the roadsides or trees in flocks near water bodies.
The birds are local migrants - I am not sure where they migrate from to our region yet though. They are beautiful birds and are seen together in groups - a behaviour similar to other starlings. This one flew early onto this perch hoping the others in his group would follow suit. But only a few did and so he flew away shortly from this perch.
Thank you so much in advance for all your views, feedback and faves. Much appreciated.
Every once in a while you are surprised by the behaviour of the critter you are photographing. In this case, the great grey owl kept flying down the fence line, from one post to another, towards me. It would pause and check for voles, then move yet closer again. It then flew right past me, went across the road, and perched again to continue hunting.
This image was taken in the fall of 2024. I posted a shot of the same owl flying previously (www.flickr.com/photos/40724294@N04/54144281190).
hello my friends,nice to see you again.
here a very young yellow baboon (papio cynocephalus) showing us a tipical human behaviour.
there isnt any doubt we share a lot with them.
"almost human"
luangwa valley ,Zambia.
original 3K file here:
Hypopyrrhus pyrohypogaster
(Red-bellied Grackle / Cacique candela)
La Ceja, Colombia
Some male birds will bring food to a female as part of courtship to show he can provide for any chicks she may produce. He may simply bring the food for her to eat or in some cases actually transfer it directly to her mouth just as he would to hungry nestlings.
www.britishbirdlovers.co.uk/articles/courtship-behaviour-...
In February of this year, before the pandemic changed behaviours and made birding trips impossible, I went on a solo jaunt for a couple of nights in Algonquin Park. It was mostly sunny, very cold, almost perfect weather for winter birding and bird photography.
This was one of my most exciting finds. The main highway that runs through the Park is a winding small road, frankly, but a road on which one can find many bird species and the occasional moose. But the shoulders are narrow and the corners often tricky, and so stopping is often dangerous.
So one is left with the small parking lots to trails that are unplowed in the winter. Snowshoes are super handy. And there were regular birding reports (when they were encouraging visits pre-pandemic) to give you a sense of where there might be birds to find.
This find was a fluke, as they often are. There had been reports that small flocks were visiting the parking lot of the Park’s Visitors Centre. There were a few there, but they were high up in the trees looking for cones or down on the ground eating the dirt/grit that was spread on the ground in the parking lot to help cars manage the snow. Crossbills eat the grit, drawing them to some unpleasant photo opportunities like parking lots, to aid their digestion of cones.
I noticed some birds flying behind the Visitors Centre along a line of tall pines. So I marched down the somewhat treacherous path along the side of the Centre, which is built upon a lookout. As I went down the side of the building, I saw the birds: dirt had been spread down below for the maintenance people in the Centre, and the birds were happier eating their grit there, without the cars in the parking lot.
This bird, a younger and somewhat timid creature, was waiting his turn, watching for an opening in the group of birds on the ground. He was perfectly perched for a photograph, and a light snow was starting to fall, making it a great Algonquin birding moment.
The fascinating part of backyard birding is that I get to see many phases of a bird's life cycle and the unique behaviours each species has. We have three Hummingbirds coming consistently to the feeder in the month of August. Last week, I was able to capture a shot of this rather ragged looking bird. When I researched it, I discovered that Hummingbirds start to molt around this time of the year. I think that is what's happening to this guy. Here are some interesting facts about this process for Hummingbirds.
"Hummingbirds do not lose all their feathers at once. New feathers grow as "pin feathers" covered in a protective sheath that crumbles away. A molting hummingbird might look a bit ragged or balding around the head and neck, which is completely normal."
Amazing that they have this ability to still fly so well as they go through the change. Some may even finish their molting after their migration south! A Hummingbird balances how their feathers renew, how often they need to revisit a flower for the renewed nectar and how they hover in mid air. I love when they come close to check me out. Happy Wing Wednesday!
Radiohead - „There, There“
www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AQSLozK7aA
In pitch dark
I go walking in your landscape
Broken branches
Trip me as I speak
Just ′cause you feel it
Doesn't mean it′s there
Just 'cause you feel it
Doesn't mean it′s there
There′s always a siren
Singing you to shipwreck
(Don't reach out, don′t reach out)
(Don't reach out, don′t reach out)
Steer away from these rocks
We'd be a walking disaster
(Don′t reach out, don't reach out)
(Don't reach out, don′t reach out)
Just ′cause you feel it
Doesn't mean it′s there
(Someone on your shoulder)
(Someone on your shoulder)
Just 'cause you feel it
Doesn′t mean it's there
(Someone on your shoulder)
(Someone on your shoulder)
There, there
Why so green
And lonely, and lonely
And lonely
Heaven sent you
To me, to me
To me
We are accidents
Waiting, waiting
To happen
We are accidents
Waiting, waiting
To happen
Birds are starting to disperse and there's lots of fighting going on, typical breeding season behaviour - the Bramblings are hanging on but if the weather stays warm they'll soon be off.
This sandhill crane has just landed after doing a leap (a bit of a hop and a wing flap) to impress another crane. There was another one a few metres away. Apparently, the most vigorous dancers are those youngsters that haven't paired up yet. The behaviour diminishes over time if a mated pair is able to stay together year-after-year. But even the oldies will still do some dancing. Sounds like humans!
After being decimated by avian flu, the population of northern gannets on Bird Rock at Cape St. Mary's is slowly making a recovery. Of course, recovery requires mating and successful nesting. This image (big crop) shows bonding in progress. The male has just brought some seaweed, known as wrack or rockweed (Ascophyllum
nodosum), to the cliff-side nest site. It will be added to the simple nest they have made. Along with displaying the seaweed, there was some rubbing of necks and heads. That latter behaviour is shared with other species of seabirds, such as the common murre.
The Great Spotted Cuckoo (Clamator glandarius) is a fascinating bird known for its specialised brood parasitism and unique survival strategies. Unlike many other cuckoos, this species uses sophisticated, sometimes "vengeful" tactics to ensure its young are raised by unsuspecting foster parents, primarily Eurasian magpies.
If a magpie recognises the strange egg and removes it, the Great Spotted Cuckoo pair might destroy the host's nest in return. They have been observed returning to the scene to peck or destroy the magpie’s eggs, a "vengeful" behaviour rarely seen in other bird species.
Great Spotted Cuckoo chicks are highly unique because they release a foul-smelling, noxious liquid from their cloaca when threatened by predators. This chemical acts as a repellent, protecting not only the cuckoo chick but also the host's own chicks in the nest.
Great Spotted Cuckoo (Clamator glandarius) adult Spring Spain_1678
Behaviour:
White-tailed eagles spend much of their day perched on trees or crags, and may often not move for hours. Perhaps up to 90% of a day may be spent perched, especially if weather is poor. Also, they will alternate periods of soaring with perching, especially flying over water or well-watered areas, but do considerably less soaring on average than do golden eagles. Pairs regularly roost together, often near to their nest, either on a crag or tree or crevices, overhung ledges or small isolated trees on a crag.
White-tailed Eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) Apetlon, Burgenland Austria_7512
"At not one point did I say I was innocent darling...."
Model: Stella Fiorani
Photographer: Stella Fiorani
Location: Sunny's Photo Studio
maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Sunny%20Photo%20Studio/128...
Backdrop "Devilish in Black"
Pose customized in Black Dragon
There was quite a chill in the air as the sun rose above the horizon. That didn't stop the red-winged blackbirds from staking out their territorial rights by singing and displaying. As they exhaled, moisture in their breath formed visible condensation and, in the right circumstances, would refract the bright sunlight and create rainbows that floated in the breeze.
Of course, you absolutely need to listen to the wonderful duet by William Prince & Serena Ryder called, Sing Me A Song.