View allAll Photos Tagged behaviour
This species is a migrant that breeds locally in Ottawa. Here, a female gathers nest-building materials from a wetland. These are the previous year’s Spotted Jewelweed branches.
Though the females can, in the right light and with the right colouring, warrant the French name for the species, this creature was much subtler. Her behaviour though was quite something. She used this material to weave in the nest some fifty metres away.
I made an album cover for cactus island recordings.
This is an awesome compilation with beautiful music inside!
I'm very happy with this work, is very special to me and one of my song is on it.
Released: 16th february, close to valentines day ; )
more info: www.cactusisland.net
Late evening, just finished watching bear and on our way back to Hagensborg, when we saw this guy sitting at the side of the road. From his behaviour gather he was used to people, completely unfazed!
It was fantastic watching how these little creatures' behaviour and how they've have adapted to desert life and the intense heat. Most of the times we wouldn't see anything but the sand and little gravel pebbles by the side of the road, but we only needed to slow down or stop the car and, almost out of nowhere, living being would show up from every direction. Any shadow cast by a small pebble or minuscule bush would house a bird or some other creature :-). It was curious watching how, instead of fleeing, these tiny Larks in the picture ran towards us, to the point where we couldn't photograph them since they were so close. We had to reverse the car a bit so we could see them :-) and it was amazing watching how they ran after it ... or rather, its shadow :-) we even felt a bit guilty for leaving them without a shadow to cool off.
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Foi fantástico ver como estas pequenas criaturas se adaptam à vida no deserto e ao calor intenso e como se comportam.
A maior parte das vezes não vÃamos nada a não ser areia e pequenas pedras da gravilha na berma da estrada, mas era só abrandar ou parar o carro e quase do nada surgiam seres vivos por todo o lado. Qualquer sombra produzida por uma pequena pedra ou um arbusto minúsculo, albergava uma ave ou outra qualquer criatura:-). Foi curioso ver como estas minúsculas aves, da imagem, correram para junto do carro, em vez de fugirem. Estavam tão próximas que não as conseguÃamos fotografar e tivemos de fazer marcha atrás para as ver:-)... e foi espantoso ver como corriam a seguir o carro...ou melhor a sombra do carro:-). Até ficámos com pena de ir embora e deixá-las sem a sombra do carro para se refrescarem:-)
Etosha National Park
Namibia
Things are changing within the pride. The girls are growing up and because they are remaining at the zoo and not being moved to another zoo, they needed to be implanted so no inbreeding would occur.
This was the day that happened and Milo was far more concerned about his girls than Misty was.
Both Milo & Kiros walked by the den doors doing their low lion grunts.
It surprised me that the boys were more concerned than Misty the mum.
First time I think seeing one of these, thanks to Donald and Charlene for pointing it out.
Bee-flies are fascinating insects that have mastered the art of mimicry. These agile, fluffy, flying creatures look similar to bees, but they are in fact flies. They have only one pair of wings, whereas bees have two, and their most unmistakable feature is a long, straight, straw-like tongue, known as a proboscis.
One of the first bee-fly species seen in spring is the dark-edged bee-fly (Bombylius major), common across Britain and a frequent garden visitor. It has yellowy-brown hair, a long tongue, and darkened wing edges that extend halfway across each wing.
Bee-fly behaviours
One peculiar behaviour displayed by the bee-fly is its slow-moving hover where it lightly touches the ground. It keeps its legs slightly grounded, while slowly and gently brushing the surface with its abdomen – if you look closely, you can see the abdomen creates movements in the sandy surface. This is because the bee-fly is scooping up sand and mud to coat its eggs for camouflage.
This camouflage is important, as bee-flies will lay their eggs in unsuspecting solitary bee burrows, hovering over the burrow entrances before catapulting their eggs inside. As the eggs hatch, the bee-fly larvae spend their time maturing in the nest, eating up the pollen stores that the solitary bees have left for their own young. Although this sounds like bad news for the bees, a healthy population of bee-flies means that you have a good population of bees.
Naples Botanical Gardens
Southwest, Florida
USA
Osprey viewed in the distance sitting on the top of a tall dead tree.
The osprey or more specifically the western osprey (Pandion haliaetus) — also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk — is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor, reaching more than 60 cm (24 in) in length and 180 cm (71 in) across the wings. It is brown on the upperparts and predominantly greyish on the head and underparts.
The osprey tolerates a wide variety of habitats, nesting in any location near a body of water providing an adequate food supply. It is found on all continents except Antarctica, although in South America it occurs only as a non-breeding migrant.
As its other common names suggest, the osprey's diet consists almost exclusively of fish. It possesses specialised physical characteristics and exhibits unique behaviour to assist in hunting and catching prey. As a result of these unique characteristics, it has been given its own taxonomic genus, Pandion and family, Pandionidae. Three subspecies are usually recognized; one of the former subspecies, cristatus, has recently been given full species status and is referred to as the eastern osprey.
Look for Ospreys around nearly any body of water: saltmarshes, rivers, ponds, reservoirs, estuaries, and even coral reefs. Their conspicuous stick nests are placed in the open on poles, channel markers, and dead trees, often over water. - Wikipedia
To me zoo photography or any sort of animal photography is about knowing animal behaviour and if you know and preempt their behaviour you can ready yourself to what may unfold.
Most animals after they wake will yawn, (like Khumbu here )stretch and maybe shake or they will simply change position. Around their feed times they usually are a lot more active and will often move about their enclosure waiting for their meal, which is another opportunity to get different shots.
Knowing these behaviours and waiting for them pays off.
Red Fox. Wondered why fox was making this unusual face. Then noticed cat had come into garden for food.
Lagunas de Lo Monte 7 December 2025
I’ve often mentioned my disappointment at the lack of maintenance in the park and the decline of many bird species that used to be seen here. Still, as it’s very close to my home, I continue to make quick visits to monitor any sightings.
My video/slideshow was recorded on my most recent visit. It’s always a pleasure to see the beautiful Red-crested Pochards, which I believe are only passing through. They were around 250 metres away, tucked into a corner, so I used the call from my Collins app to see if they might come out where I could see them from my hide. To my surprise, they swam all the way to the front of my hide!
I know some people feel strongly that using recorded calls is wrong. Personally, I use them very sparingly and with great discretion—never during the breeding season and never when there are many other species around that could be disturbed. Still, I’m always open to feedback, so feel free to share your thoughts on whether you think I’m doing anything wrong.
Guidelines for Using Playback (if used at all)
• Using recorded bird songs to attract birds is controversial.
• Playback can bring birds into view, but it may also stress them, especially during the breeding season.
• Birds may waste energy responding to what they think is a rival, ignore their young, or become habituated to fake calls.
• It’s particularly harmful for rare or sensitive species and in areas with lots of visitors.
Ethical Use
• Keep playback very brief and infrequent.
• Avoid it entirely in the nesting season.
• Stop immediately if a bird shows stress or agitation.
• Don’t use playback in busy birding locations.
• Whenever possible, rely on non-disturbing methods such as patience, blinds, and knowledge of bird behaviour.
Bottom line: Playback isn’t inherently unethical, but careless use can harm birds—so most experts recommend using it rarely, responsibly, and thoughtfully.
The guardians of Gravesend's Gordon Gardens, also self appointed Guardians Of Others' Morals, who have eyes in the backs of their heads, are horrified - HORRIFIED - and disgusted by the bad behaviour of the youth.
On a different note, my father's music teacher was Andrew Lloyd Webber's dad, and here is the only decent song Mr Lloyd Webber junior was involved in, because I pinched the title and have entirely mis-represented it.
[www.youtube.com/watch?v=8D6UfPtrB9k&list=RD8D6UfPtrB9...]
[DSC_8390c]
Not sure what the guy in the centre is doing - - but - I have a good idea.
Turbo Island is not a formal community garden; rather, it is a small, iconic piece of urban land located at the junction of Stokes Croft and Jamaica Street in Bristol. It is widely recognised as a site of significant cultural and social debate rather than a horticultural project.
Origins: The land became vacant after a building (a shoe shop) on the site was destroyed during a World War II air raid in 1940. Cultural Status: It has served for decades as a "de facto" public space—a central hub for street socialising, music, and impromptu gatherings. It is often described by locals as the "spiritual heart" or "Vatican City" of the Stokes Croft area, noted for its constant activity, street art, and frequent—though often controversial—bonfires.
Current Status: The site is currently the subject of a public inquiry (as of June 2026) to determine whether it should be formally registered as a "village green." This designation is being sought by campaigners to protect the land from private development and ensure it remains accessible to the community. The Conflict: The land is privately owned (most recently confirmed as belonging to the advertising company Out of Hand). Owners and objectors often point to issues such as litter, anti-social behaviour, and the site's history as an unofficial dumping ground for furniture and bonfire materials. Proponents, however, view it as a vital, non-commercialised space where diverse communities can interact.
Stokes Croft, Bristol, UK.
Taken @ Bellvue NL
Ruddy turnstones engage in a variety of behaviours to locate and capture prey. These behaviours can be placed into six general categories:[10]
Routing: The turnstone manipulates piles of seaweed through flicking, bulldozing, and pecking to expose small crustaceans or gastropod molluscs hidden underneath.
Turning stones: As suggested by its name, the turnstone flicks stones with its bill to uncover hidden littorinids and gammarid amphipods.
Digging: With small flicks of its bill, the turnstone creates holes in the ground substrate (usually sand or mud) and then pecks at the exposed prey – often sandhoppers or seaweed flies.
Probing: The turnstone inserts its bill more than a quarter-length into the ground to get at littorinids and other gastropods.
Hammer–probing: The turnstone cracks open its prey's shell by using its bill as a hammer, and then extracts the animal inside through pecking and probing.[11]
Surface pecking: The turnstone uses short, shallow pecks (less than a quarter bill-length) to get at prey at or just below the ground's surface. Wikipedia
The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson
Shorebirds of Ireland with Jim Wilson.
Freshwater Birds of Ireland with Jim Wilson
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
A mixed bag of a flock containing predominantly Black-tailed Godwit, with Eurasian Teal and Black-headed Gull thrown in for good measure. This was part of a low-tide feeding frenzy at Poolbeg in Dublin Bay recently.
OBSERVE Collective
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germanstreetphotography.com/michael-monty-may/
Photographed at my private feeding station. If you'd like to join me for a workshop, please get in touch.
'Going out for supper'.
The Short-eared Owl, Asio flammeus, capturing here its amazing long outstretched wing backlit by the golden hour sunshine, a late evening shot of this Short-eared Owl hunting and quartering a grass and scrub clearing in West Yorkshire…it can be seen here that Short-eared Owls have incredibly long wings in relation to their body length!
Many thanks for visiting my Flickr pages ...Your visits, interest, comments and kindness to 'fave' my photos is very much appreciated, Steve.
Short-eared Owl Notes and Information:
There is something almost magical about Short-eared Owls, a sense of otherworldliness that comes from their nomadic nature. For many birdwatchers it is the winter months that provide the best opportunities to catch up with this species. Wintering ‘shorties’ make use of lowland grazing marshes, areas of early-stage plantation and rough grassland - habitats that in previous decades might once have supported breeding pairs.
Better up North:
The three Breeding Bird Atlases show how the breeding range of the Short-eared Owl has contracted northwards within Britain. The species is becoming increasingly restricted to our northern uplands, the Hebrides and Orkney. Short-eared Owls are nomads, turning up to breed wherever their favoured small mammal prey are abundant. Historically, large numbers turned up to exploit the plagues of Field Voles that once occurred in parts of Scotland and northern England, their populations changing dramatically from one year to the next. The northwards retreat has virtually seen the disappearance of the population that once bred around the East Anglian coast, south to the north shore of Kent, and the loss of the species from the brecklands of the Norfolk/Suffolk borderlands. It is thought that our breeding population now stands at between 750 and 3,500 pairs but, like many things about the species, there is uncertainty around these figures because of our wider lack of knowledge about them.
Small mammal specialist:
The Short-eared Owl is a specialist predator of small mammals, predominantly voles and the Field Vole forms c.90% of the prey taken. Short-eared Owls can be seen quartering an area of suitable habitat, hunting on the wing and listening and looking for signs of prey in the grass below. Quartering flight involves a mixture of flapping and gliding, the bird sometimes hovering before dropping down onto an unsuspecting small mammal or bird.
Bird prey can be important at some sites and at some times of the year, with pipits, small waders and other species taken more often during the winter months. It is not unusual to see several Short-eared Owls hunting over the same area, sometimes hunting alongside Barn Owls and even Kestrels. These hunting ‘shorties’ will often roost on the ground using taller cover, typically close to the sites where they have spent time hunting.
On the wing
While many Short-eared Owl populations are nomadic, some live a more settled existence. Information from Short-eared Owls ringed as young at the nest, reveals that our birds undertake long-distance movements, dispersing away from the area in which they were born. A wider examination of movements, looking across Europe, reveals that the average distance moved after ringing has declined since the 1970s. This may reflect the pattern of less pronounced vole cycles and the amelioration of the climate, both of which may see these birds remaining further north than they did just a few decades ago. This would also explain the contraction that we have seen in the UK breeding range. As with a number of other species, there is good evidence that northerly populations are more migratory than southern ones.
The business of breeding
Short-eared Owls are early breeders and many pairs will be back on their breeding territories by late March. Strongly territorial, the birds may be seen advertising ownership of their breeding territory or chasing away intruders. Individuals utilise a number of different display postures and rely more on these than on vocalisations, something that reflects their association with open rather than wooded habitats. These birds have a reputation for defending their nest and young, attacking predators, dogs and human observers with some ferocity.
Increasing our understanding
Researchers based at BTO Scotland have been carrying out work to improve our understanding of this charismatic species. Some of this work has been directed to improving fieldwork methods for detecting and censusing this species, while other work has looked at ranging behaviour and longer distance movements. Knowledge of where Short-eared Owls occur during the winter months comes from periodic atlas surveys and, importantly, from the records of birdwatchers collected through BirdTrack, meaning that anyone can contribute to our knowledge of this enigmatic species. BTO Notes.
These huge boulders are called glacial erratics ... dropped here like this eons ago when the glaciers that covered the island during the last ice age melted.
This is not really erratic behaviour for erratics, since it is not uncommon to find them perched in precarious places such as this. These are up on top of the Annieopsquotch Mountains. I have a photo on my photostream taken from the other side. A photo that really is an optical illusion. This one is a straight on photo taken just today.
www.flickr.com/photos/33774669@N00/4463751866/in/dateposted/
Shadowed by a Coastal or Longfin Trevally (not possible to distinguish which without disection). This is opportunistic behaviour and allows the Trevally to snatch any suitable creature disturbed by the Puffer as it rummages in the sand which it does pretty constantly searching for food
The official provincial bird of British Columbia, Steller’s Jays are year-round residents in British Columbia and not normally migratory.
Cool fact: Steller Jays exhibit intelligent behaviour and have the ability to mimic the calls of raptors such as the Red-Tailed Hawk in order to scare other birds from feeders.
I observed this Foxes behaviour while it followed its prey under the snow. Jumping up and then down and digging under the snow, while being followed by an opportunistic Magpie to the left of the image.
Foxes are, in visual terms, arrhythmic (or 24-hour) mammals, meaning they can be active at any time, day or night (compare this to most squirrels, who are almost totally blind at night and can only be active during daylight). There are several adaptations that allow for this activity pattern; all help control the amount of light available to the animal.
Foxes, unlike most canids, have vertically-slit pupils, which provide them with three significant advantages over hunters with round pupils. Primarily, vertically slit pupils can be closed more tightly than rounded ones and this, in conjunction with eyelids that close horizontally, allows their owner to more precisely regulate the amount of light entering the eye, helping them hunt across a wide variety of different light conditions.
During a fishing trip off the west coast near Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Canada we had a pod of Humpback Whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) swim by the boat under the surface of the water and circled in front of out boat and blowing bubbles. This is referred to as "Bubble Net" feeding where the whales swim in a circle around a mass of bait fish, "Herring" in this case, and cause them to bunch together in a tight mass. The whales then swim up to the surface through this mass of fish with their mouths wide open and break the surface of the water in a group with their mouths full of bait fish.
It was my first experience in viewing this behaviour and was incredible to view. There were at least four whales in this feeding activity.
23 July, 2019.
Slide # GWB_20190723_9327.CR2
Explore # 39 - July 27, 2019.
Use of this image on websites, blogs or other media without explicit permission is not permitted.
© Gerard W. Beyersbergen - All Rights Reserved Worldwide In Perpetuity - No Unauthorized Use.
Black Guillemots / cepphus grylle. Oban, Scotland. 15/05/22.
I watched Black Guillemot courtship behaviour whilst pairs were swimming and also, when they flew to the top of the esplanade wall. The short displays were very intense and animated and I think would become more protracted as the month advanced.
The pair shown here had suddenly flown up from the sea and were vocalising to each other, beaks pointing slightly downwards. Moments later the male started a high-stepping walk around the female, his beak angled more acutely downwards. She immediately crouched submissively, but copulation didn't take place. It was early days for them and the behaviour more about strengthening their pair bond than procreation.
What a striking pair they made!
BEST VIEWED LARGE.
OBSERVE Collective
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