View allAll Photos Tagged preening
I love the mourning doves. They are gentle little souls, never aggressive at the feeders. They mate for life, so I usually see them in pairs. This one's mate was sitting on a nearby branch.
An Australian Pelican - Pelecanus conspicillatus - preening its feathers while swimming in a fresh water lagoon in Central Queensland, Australia. Photo CHRIS ISON.
It was reported that there were many young Green Herons that had fledged at Salmon Creek in Bodega Bay. It took me a lot of searching before I spotted one up in the cedar trees 'preening' then soon found others nearby.
I never did see the adults that I'm sure were still feeding them.
Another scanned slide (see ramble in previous upload). This would have been quite an image, I think, if I'd got the head of the gentoo penguin properly sharp!
Another shot from the stunning Stromness Bay, South Georgia. Gentoo penguin in the foreground, with two bokeh king penguins behind.
A juvenile Northern Harrier grooming in the early morning light. She kept her back to me the whole time she was perched but at least she turned her head in my direction a few times.
Upland Sandpiper is a characteristic species of New World grasslands, breeding in North America in such habitats from the eastern and central United States through the Canadian prairie provinces and up into the Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Alaska. The wintering grounds are in southcentral South America. This individual near Chaplin, Saskatchewan, Canada, was engaged in some preening with a foot — an essential activity to keep the feathers in good shape, especially important considering how far these birds fly each year.
Female or juvenile
St James's Park, Central London
Preening is a maintenance behaviour of birds that use their beaks to position feathers, interlock feather barbules that have become separated, clean plumage, and keep ectoparasites in check.
Feathers contribute significantly to a bird's insulation, waterproofing and aerodynamic flight, and so are vital to its survival.
Because of this, birds spend considerable time each day maintaining their feathers, primarily through preening. Several actions make up preening behaviour.
Birds fluff up and shake their feathers, which helps to "rezip" feather barbules that have become unhooked.
Using their beaks, they gather preen oil from a gland at the base of their tail and distribute this oil through their feathers. They draw each contour feather through their bill, nibbling it from base to tip.
Hi All!
A marvelous photo shoot at St. Andrews Lock and Dam and lucky me! The gate was open which allowed me to walk down the stairs and get fairly close to these young Pelicans. This was exceptionally nice because I operate with a 70-300 mm lens. The youngsters were drying off and preening in the early morning sun. I chose this image to introduce you to how I began my day.
American White Pelican - Pelecanus erythrorhyncos
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Had another round with a group of hooded mergansers this weekend. Quickly becoming one of my favorite species to photograph.
Burnham Prairie
Periodically the juvenile Eurasian Coot would pause in his preening to look across at the adult, as if to see what he should do next or to ask how much longer this had to go on.
Glen Iris Wetlands, Melbourne
...in my garden, these 2 suddenly got into this vigorous preening and I just happened to have my camera handy.
Canada goose preening on out a thin layer of water covered ice after several days of very cold weather. Warmer days now but not for too long.
Sorry for so many photos, just catching up. No need to comment, just saving memories. :-)
This Pied-billed Grebe was seen busily preening itself at Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve.
I was visiting nearby, and so only spent a short time at Bolsa. I should return for a longer visit.
In order to keep her more than 20,000 feathers in tiptop shape, this Prothonotary Warbler (Protonotaria citrea) preens several times a day--click on the photo to see additional detail from your desktop. She will fluff her feathers and align them with her beak, removing dust particles and any parasites along the way. She will also waterproof her feathers by applying diester waxes from her uropygial gland. This allows her to combat rain and take baths without losing her flight ability. Keeping is no squawking matter...it allows her to stay active and healthy. After all, life in the swamp isn't always a sparkling affair!
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There seems to be a variety of birds showing up at Heather Farms, but I think this lovely Western Bluebird may make it a home year round. This bluebird had just finished a bath and went to 'preen & pose' waiting for it's picture to be taken....by me...:)
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Waiting and watching these White Pelicans preening...and hoping they will stop long enough so I can take a decent shot!
Flamingos spend about 15% to 30% of their time during the day preening. This is a large percentage compared to waterfowl, which preen only about 10% of the time. Flamingos preen with their bills. An oil gland near the base of the tail secretes oil that the flamingo distributes throughout its feathers.