Bird Behaviour in Action
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the horbills are quite large birds used to feed on fruit and mainly insects,arachnids and small vertebrates.
but they are not used to kill aduld birds.
in this case an African Grey Hornbill (tockus nasutus) has cought and killed a social weaver.
"a strange behaviour"
Etosha National Park ,Namibia
original 3K file here:
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Barn Owl - Tyto Alba
Norfolk,
Like most owls, the barn owl is nocturnal, relying on its acute sense of hearing when hunting in complete darkness. It often becomes active shortly before dusk and can sometimes be seen during the day when relocating from one roosting site to another. In Britain, on various Pacific Islands and perhaps elsewhere, it sometimes hunts by day. This practice may depend on whether the owl is mobbed by other birds if it emerges in daylight. However, in Britain, some birds continue to hunt by day even when mobbed by such birds as magpies, rooks and black-headed gulls, such diurnal activity possibly occurring when the previous night has been wet making hunting difficult. By contrast, in southern Europe and the tropics, the birds seem to be almost exclusively nocturnal, with the few birds that hunt by day being severely mobbed.
Barn owls are not particularly territorial but have a home range inside which they forage. For males in Scotland this has a radius of about 1 km (0.6 mi) from the nest site and an average size of about 300 hectares. Female home ranges largely coincide with that of their mates. Outside the breeding season, males and females usually roost separately, each one having about three favoured sites in which to conceal themselves by day, and which are also visited for short periods during the night. Roosting sites include holes in trees, fissures in cliffs, disused buildings, chimneys and haysheds and are often small in comparison to nesting sites. As the breeding season approaches, the birds move back to the vicinity of the chosen nest to roost.
Once a pair-bond has been formed, the male will make short flights at dusk around the nesting and roosting sites and then longer circuits to establish a home range. When he is later joined by the female, there is much chasing, turning and twisting in flight, and frequent screeches, the male's being high-pitched and tremulous and the female's lower and harsher. At later stages of courtship, the male emerges at dusk, climbs high into the sky and then swoops back to the vicinity of the female at speed. He then sets off to forage. The female meanwhile sits in an eminent position and preens, returning to the nest a minute or two before the male arrives with food for her. Such feeding behaviour of the female by the male is common, helps build the pair-bond and increases the female's fitness before egg-laying commences.
Barn owls are cavity nesters. They choose holes in trees, fissures in cliff faces, the large nests of other birds such as the hamerkop (Scopus umbretta) and, particularly in Europe and North America, old buildings such as farm sheds and church towers. Buildings are preferred to trees in wetter climates in the British Isles and provide better protection for fledglings from inclement weather. Trees tend to be in open habitats rather than in the middle of woodland and nest holes tend to be higher in North America than in Europe because of possible predation.
This bird has suffered declines through the 20th century and is thought to have been adversely affected by organochlorine pesticides such as DDT in the 1950s and '60s.
Nocturnal birds like the barn owl are poorly monitored by the Breeding Bird Survey and, subject to this caveat, numbers may have increased between 1995-2008.
Barn owls are a Schedule 1 and 9 species.
Population:
UK breeding:
4,000 pairs
Europe:
110-220,000 pairs
A black Swan attacking a Muscovy duck.
Hope you will enjoy this shot.
Many thanks to everyone who chooses to leave a comment or add this image to their favorites, it is much appreciated.
©Elsie van der Walt, all rights reserved. Please don't use this image on websites, blogs or other media without my explicit permission. If you are interested in using one of my images, please send me an E-mail (elsie.vdwalt@gmail.com).
" Early morning mist over the marsh has no effect on the Avocet's behaviour...pairs making claim to the best territory and defending it against all comers "
I was observing a group of sea gulls next to the Yarra River when I took this shot.
I am sure you would have seen these postures and calls before.
I was also curious about these postures and their meanings.
Here you can see two common postures.
The gull in the front is showing the Forward Posture.
As the name implies, this posture is all about displaying a forward motion by holding the body roughly horizontal or slightly diagonally with the neck kinked characteristically.
The tail can sometimes be spread; the bill is either slightly opened or closed.
The Forward posture is used in the following situations:
1) hostile encounters
2) pair formation sequences
3) as a response to a bird approaching in flight
When used in hostile encounters on land, it often includes running towards an opponent, whereas in a pair formation sequence both gulls move parallel to each other
The Gull behind is doing the Mew Call
The Mew call is accompanied by a characteristic Arch-posture in which the head is held down and the wings are held slightly away from the body.
It is usually performed while walking but can be performed while standing, flying, or swimming as well.
The Mew call is used in both aggressive and non-aggressive situations:
Aggressive
1) In defense of food or territory, aimed at an opponent
2 )To attract a mate for support in territory defense
Non-aggressive
1) To attract a partner (also for courtship)
2) To call chicks that have wandered too far from the nest
3) To gather chicks for feeding or after they have been hiding after a disturbance
4) As a nest-relief invitation
5) As a call performed upon landing.
Many thanks for your visit, comments, invites and faves...it is always appreciated...
Peaceful Sunday
Mute Swan taking flight on the frozen lake of Saint-Point, Jura, France.
Swan, largest waterfowl species of the subfamily Anserinae, is generally classified in the genus Cygnus. There are around 7 different species of swan found around the world. The size, colour and behaviour a swan individual is largely dependent on it's species and the area in which it lives.
Today swans are a threatened species of animal mainly due to hunting and habitat loss. Pollution (mainly water pollution) is also a major reason as why the swan populations are declining.
Dove and Red-headed Finch.
Many thanks to everyone who chooses to leave a comment or add this image to their favorites, it is much appreciated.
©Elsie van der Walt, all rights reserved. Please don't use this image on websites, blogs or other media without my explicit permission. If you are interested in using one of my images, please send me an E-mail (elsie.vdwalt@gmail.com).
RKO_8179. A pelican showing its catch!
Copyright: Robert Kok. All rights reserved! Watermark protected.
More of my work and activities can be seen on:
Please do not use my photos on websites, blogs or in any other media without my explicit permission.
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RKO_9069.
Copyright: Robert Kok. All rights reserved! Watermark protected.
More of my work and activities can be seen on:
Please do not use my photos on websites, blogs or in any other media without my explicit permission.
Thanks for visiting, commenting and faving my photos. Its very much appreciated!
This little sparrow was really taken with the seed head. It was a joy to watch it work its way round it.
American Robin adapted to winter. Worms in the summer and minnows in the winter for the ones that stick around. Interesting but not such a rare behaviour as we might think.
"Somersaulting behaviour of Canada Geese On ist February
1970 we [...] witnessed an extraordinary performance by about 200 Canada Geese Branta canadensis [...]..
By far the largest proportion of the Canada Geese, [...] were
indulging in an elaborate routine which none of us had ever seen
before. By plunging their heads into the water and somersaulting
forwards they would turn on their backs, with belly upwards and feet
clawing the air. This position was deliberately maintained for some
seconds when the birds, by simply rolling sideways, righted themselves
without difficulty. Once again a flurry of body shaking and vigorous
preening followed. [...]."
WILLIAM MULLIGAN and CHARLES LINFOO T
4)2 Parrs Wood Road, East Didsbury, Manchester
britishbirds.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/article_files/V63/V...
I also observed this behavious in Porteau Cove and also in a lake in Alberta, Canada.
The great thing about RSPB Bempton is that there are areas that you can get extremely close to the seabirds and capture some of their intimate behaviour.
Taken on my recent trip to Yorkshire.
A Red-winged Blackbird clings to a bullrush, voicing his displeasure with my presence. Based on behaviour. these have to be my least favourite bird but the males, with their bright reddish-orange wings, are certainly a striking subject.
Thanks for viewing and have a great day :)
Stag frantically digging up mud at the edge of a lake to cover its antlers before dressing them in vegetation. Not sure if this is to impress the ladies or threaten other males in the rut.
I made a quick trip to the nature reserve after work and met this beautiful and friendly girl. After moving to a very photogenic spot on the grass she spent several minutes turning, preening and generally showing off all her best sides for the camera! It was hard to pick a shot in the end :)
Mute Swans display courtship behaviour in late winter with synchronised head dipping and lifting and the pressing together of necks and breasts. I watched the poetry of this beautiful interaction play out amongst a wall of reeds on the water at Mill Dam, Beaulieu.
Thank you all for your kind responses.
Not sure what,s going on here.At first i thought the ants were moving their larvae to another location,but the first larvae is clearly a plant hopper nymph! So moving plant hopper larvae for security,or food?
Thanks for your comments and faves,they are truly appreciated.
First is a Cinnabar Moth Caterpillar, next a Soldier Beetle, then a Ladybird and a Hoverfly. Please try viewing large. Thank you....
The sea was very keen on climbing the steps. For a short while I thought that perhaps it was heading for the local chippy, in order to secure a nice large portion of chips and some vinegar. These, I suspected, would go rather well with all the fish and the salt that the oceans are famous for.
It turns out though, that it was just high tide and that this behaviour was quite normal and nothing whatsoever to do with chips.
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The Bathing Pool, Summerleaze beach, Bude, Cornwall.
Stonechats are so photogenic. I love to photograph them at any opportunity. They can often pose for the camera very well and will tolerate a close approach if you are patient and careful. I photographed this one last week while she was very active, trying to avoid the attentions of a male bird, which was chasing her around. I wonder if it was preliminary behaviour prior to attempting a second brood ?
Thank you for having a look at my photos. Comments or faves are very welcome and much appreciated.
A closer view of a previous upload, of an adorable male leafcutter bee, probably Megachile centuncularis (patchwork leafcutter bee), feeding on the pollen of a calendula flower in my garden last summer. I often saw these males (and female Megachile centuncularis, which are far easier to ID) at these stunning flowers.
These two male Blackbucks were fighting for the coveted female herd. The one on the left was a challenger while the right one was defending its territory - I knew this since I was at the place and not from this picture.
The Right Blackbuck pushed the left one away until the challengers head was turned completely and he was pinned down. The challenger left the field gracefully, but as if to say - "I will be back" !
This competitive behaviour to please the females is known as "Lekking". Something that I read as not very common in animal kingdom.
Blackbucks are a common species of antelopes found in the bird sanctuary that I visited. They numbered in 100's with the ratio of females outweighing males by a big number.
Thanks in advance for your views and feedback.
OBSERVE Collective
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