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top 25 items viewed per day
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(181 views)
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.
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(178 views)
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.
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(177 views)
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.
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(177 views)
I think I am addicted to taking shots of flying egrets.
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(176 views)
These large egrets are graceful and breathtaking in flight. I watched this bird flying back and forth several times bringing nesting material back to it's mate.
There was only one pair that I saw amongst dozens of the smaller Snowy Egrets.
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(176 views)
Taking photos from a boat was a new experience. I was able to get much closer to this flock of Pelicans before they took flight.
These appear to be Australian Pelicans
because of the pink bills. Or do American White Pelicans have pink bills in the winter? Further research needed.
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(175 views)
The Great Egret has just caught a small fish.
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(175 views)
Killdeer are a shy and fast bird. Consequently I rarely get a good shot of one. I was lucky this day to get that elusive shot.
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(175 views)
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.
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(175 views)
To get a shot of a graceful bird flying is always a coup.
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(173 views)
This is a photo of three very well camouflaged eggs in a Killdeer "nest." Because Killdeer often lay their
eggs on gravel,
the parking lot at the sanctuary had become a favorite nesting spot for them. Unfortunately a parking lot is a dangerous place for eggs, which leads to much failure for the Killdeer who lay eggs there.
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(172 views)
The female Killdeer in this picture is adopting a wounded bird pose and making a distress call. She is trying to lure me away from her nest by convincing me she is easy prey. Luckily for her I only wanted her photo.
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(172 views)
I took this photo April 4th of this year while in London. I didn't know what it was at the time but I knew I had never seen this duck before. I was quite taken with the brilliant gold of it's head. When the sun shone on its head there was an amazing metallic sheen which really has to be seen in person to be appreciated.
These pochards
are not found in the United States.
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(171 views)
When I first saw this duck I thought it was a
Canvasback
.
Later, I realized only its basic coloration was the same.
The Pochard
is not found here in the States. It's closest relative, in England, is the
Red-crested Pochard.
Both species were present in Hyde Park the day I took this photo.
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(171 views)
Yesterday I thought these birds might be Australian Pelicans
but with further research I found they are
American White Pelicans
in non-breeding plumage.
I'm glad that's settled.
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(171 views)
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.
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(171 views)
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.
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(170 views)
This is a photograph of a pair of Mallards nesting on a concrete outcropping that is part of this
canal lock.
The roar of the water as it leaves the lock and close proximity to boats going by doesn't seem to faze them.
The female Mallard is sitting on the nest a few feet behind the male and is very well camouflaged.
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(170 views)
When Canada Geese trumpet their arrival while flying directly overhead, no-one could possibly pass up the opportunity to photograph them.
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(170 views)
This shows all the markings you would look for in identifying this bird in the breeding season. The lacy plumes on the back and the green/blue "mask" that extends from the base of the bill to the eye are only present during this time.
The Audubon Society came into existence to stop the extermination of great Egrets by plume hunters and has this bird as it's logo.
Great Egrets are found world-wide, even in Australia
.
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(170 views)
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.
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(170 views)
A gosling is so darn cute when it's little. It's hard to believe that there is an entire industry devoted to the task of making them go away. When large flocks of adult geese show up in a
"wrong locations"
they are considered by some to be a nuisance.
Would you want them in your swimming pool? Your Koi pond? Your child's
playground?
It's really a matter of make peace or make them go away. There's always a choice.
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(169 views)
I was fascinated to watch this egret hunt
.
He moved very patiently and slowly, then his head would dart into the shallow water and he would come up with a little fish. It must take a lot of little fish to fill such a large bird.
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(169 views)
The most obvious difference between the Eurasian Coot and the American coot is the larger white face shield. The coots were very numerous in
Hyde Park
and seemed to behave just like the coots I'm familiar with here in California.
This shot shows the face shield, the greenish feet and the lobed toes. They are fascinating little
birds.
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(169 views)
The face of an Australian bird
which is odd, but compelling.
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