Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)

(120 views)
by Terry Costales

This female Killdeer is standing over eggs in its "nest." Three eggs are actually present but only one is clearly visible. Even the clearly visible one is very well camouflaged. It is reputed their call sounds like "kill deer" and thus the name. I don't hear it myself but maybe that's just me.

Double-crested Cormorant

(118 views)
by Terry Costales

Here is a cormorant in its classic drying off pose. The name "double-crested" is insired by the tufts of white feathers over the eyes that only appear in breeding season.

Harbor Seal

(118 views)
by Terry Costales

This photo of a Harbor Seal was taken very near the Lucy Evans Interpretive Center at the bird sanctuary. I was very surprised to see it but the ranger verified that they have been known to occasionally appear.

Anhinga (Anhinga anhinga)

(118 views)
by Terry Costales

Anhingas look a lot like cormorants. They differ in that they have straight not hooked bills, longer tails and necks, and have silver-white markings on their wings. This was a female. A male would have had a black neck.

Avocet non-breeding plumage

(118 views)
by Terry Costales

This photo was taken late March of this year and many birds were still in just black and white. For courting and breeding the necks and chest acquire a rusty or tan color. They really seem to enjoy their mud-flats.

Zebra (Equus burchelli boehmi)

(118 views)
by Terry Costales

A beautiful Zebra with gorgeous long lashes. I would love to see Zebras in California fields alongside the horses, sheep and cows. We have Ostriches and Llamas, why not Zebras?

Meerkat (Suricata suricatta)

(118 views)
by Terry Costales

Here is a meerkat enjoying a good scratch and, as you can see, he has the nails for it. Meerkats have been popular since the movie "The Lion King" which had a meerkat as a funny side-kick character with the voice of Nathan Lane. Now there is even a tv show called "Meerkat Manor" where you can learn more than you ever wanted to know about the life of this desert mongoose.

Wood Pigeon (Columba palumbus)

(118 views)
by Terry Costales

Of course England has it's fair share of "flying rats". For some reason this one in Hyde Park seemed more like an actual bird to me than just feathered vermin. I'm sure if I was there long enough they would become just as annoying as pigeons are here at home.

Heermann's Gull

(118 views)
by Terry Costales

This juvenile Heermann's gull exhibits its main identifying marks clearly: black feet, red bill and dusky body. As an adult, its head will become pure white.

Avocet in breeding plumage (Recurvirostra americana)

(117 views)
by Terry Costales

This view shows the extent of the buff coloring avocets acquire on neck and chest in the breeding season. They stand about 15 to 20 inches tall and Wikipedia has more info on these birds if you're interested.

Young Snowy Egrets

(117 views)
by Terry Costales

These 3 birds are all siblings but one is quite smaller than the rest. I kept expecting it to get shoved aside, or even knocked out of the nest, but it really held it's own. The mother would fly up to feed them and the little one was always in the front making the most noise and waggling its outstretched wings up and down in a frantic "feed me" dance. The young don't have the black legs or yellow feet like their parents, just a green that changes gradually to the adult colors as they grow.

Two Red-tailed Hawks

(117 views)
by Terry Costales

I took this photo before the fog had burned off yesterday. These two aerial acrobats had a good time swooping and clowning around. After this display they landed on top of a cypress tree and then sat peacefully side by side.

Great Egret and Pheasant

(117 views)
by Terry Costales

I didn't see a pheasant when I looked at this tree, only the Egret. As the boat drew nearer to the tree the pheasant burst out, startling the egret and me. I tried to get a shot of them as they flew past, but I was much too slow. It wasn't until I looked at the photos at home that I had the pleasure to see I had gotten a shot of the pheasant after all.

Young Night Heron

(117 views)
by Terry Costales

This photo was taken early in May. There were 4 or 5 young ones about this size on the ground all within the fenced in area. Sometimes one of them would clamber up into a bush, but mostly they sat quietly on the ground. This little night heron actually flew a short distance to explore the edge of the nearby pond. He made a few jabbing motions with his bill and managed a couple of times to pick up a twig I felt quite privileged to have witnessed and recorded these birds and their behavior. . . .

Great Egret

(117 views)
by Terry Costales

I got this shot just as the egret was landing. Look closely and you can see the feet haven't quite come to rest on the pipe.

Snoozing Rhinocerous

(117 views)
by Terry Costales

What a face. A puppy and a kitten sleeping together in a basket couldn't be cuter than this! Visit the San Francisco Zoo whenever you can.

Mute Swan (Cygnus olor)

(117 views)
by Terry Costales

Something about a swan. I see one and I feel like I am getting a small glimpse into a fairy tale. Swans conjure images of fairy princesses, enchanted lakes and talking animals. I almost expect to turn my head and see a unicorn come to drink at the edge of this pond. A more realistic approach to these birds is not to just admire them but protect them as well. The population of swans had declined in the UK due to habitat loss and lead poisoning, but their numbers are rising again. The Mute s . . .

Black-crowned Night Heron (nycticorax nicticorax)

(117 views)
by Terry Costales

At the sanctuary, there is a group of palm trees next to the large pond that provides prime nesting spots. It is fenced off to ensure the breeding birds are not disturbed. In late March, this was one of many night herons nesting amongst the snowy and great egrets. Its usually yellow legs are pink because it's breeding season.

Warthog

(117 views)
by Terry Costales

The profile of a warthog is not handsome. Neither is any other view. They do have their niche in nature, but they just don't look good filling it.

Male Lion Sleeping

(116 views)
by Terry Costales

Here is a photo of a lion doing what a lion does best.

Otter (Lutra canadensis)

(116 views)
by Terry Costales

This is a North American River Otter having a scratch and a yawn. There were two in the exhibit and their cute faces and playful antics drew quite a crowd.

Juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron

(116 views)
by Terry Costales

Taken late March, this bird is probably a year or two old and has the yellow legs you see on both juveniles and non breeding adults. They get their full adult plumage in the third year. If you look at this shot and the thumbnail below it, you can see they are roughly the same size and shape. Nice of them to pose for their comparison shots.

Young Canada Geese

(116 views)
by Terry Costales

Yesterdays picture was taken of a gosling that was only a few days old. Today's photo was taken three weeks later. Now you should definitely be able to see that they are becoming adult geese. These goslings have lost their cute baby fuzz, but don't yet possess the handsome markings of an adult. But such is the bane of all adolescents.

Jackdaw

(116 views)
by Terry Costales

The Jackdaw is another type of crow common to Europe. Smaller than the Hooded crow from yesterday's posting and much less shy.

Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus)

(116 views)
by Terry Costales

The moorhen is a very commonly found bird in England, Europe and the States. Even so, I had never seen one before this day in Hyde Park. Moorhens are related more to Coots than to ducks. Moorhens and Coots both have greenish feet with lobed toes which allows them to walk over water-plants and mud.