Dragoness Eclectic (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
dragoness_e) wrote2010-01-02 06:29 pm
dragoness_e) wrote2010-01-02 06:29 pm
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Birds at the Park, January 1
Happy New Year!
New Year's day, the whole family went to the park. It was quite cold, and the birds were very hungry. The seagulls attacked in swarms and frenzied whenever there was bread in sight. (This was the first visit I was very glad I was wearing a hat--and I had to wash it afterwards).
The first new and interesting sight was this Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis). He was
remarkably tame, following us in the water along the shoreline and snapping at the first bit of bread that fell near him. Apparently he thought we were carrying fish in our pockets or something, because once he tried that first piece of bread, he decided it wasn't what he wanted and ignored what we threw afterwards.
Brown Pelican
Hello! I am a most handsome bird, can't you tell?
Cruising on the swamp habitat pond were TWO white pelicans, dipping and seining in unison.
Two White Pelicans
Note also the two Northern Shovelers (Anas clypeata) in the foreground, for size comparison. (I didn't even notice that
these guys were wild ducks until I put this essay together).
Today, the black swan pair and their cygnets were swimming in the swamp habitat pond. We spotted them from the boardwalk that crosses the swamp habitat, and they came swimming toward us. Apparently they recognize people with bread from a long way off.
Cygnets swimming
The mute swan was also there, looking beautiful and being as belligerent as ever.
White swan
Black swan
Note the slightly raised, ruffled wings. That's a threat display. This will become important later.
Of course, once we started feeding them, it didn't take long for the seagulls to show up and start being a nuisance. The swans found this annoying and ducked under the boardwalk to loose them periodically, coming out on the other side.
Seagulls cutting in on the action
Swan, cygnet and seagull
Harassment by gulls
Swans head for cover under boardwalk (to the right)
Even the mute swan found them annoying
Ebony and ivory, side by side
They look lovely and romantic, don't they? Note the raised, ruffled wings. They're making threat displays at each other.
Black and white
Still looking romantic, still uttering threats
White swan runs black swan off. There's a metaphor here somewhere...
But you're still going to feed us, right?
New Year's day, the whole family went to the park. It was quite cold, and the birds were very hungry. The seagulls attacked in swarms and frenzied whenever there was bread in sight. (This was the first visit I was very glad I was wearing a hat--and I had to wash it afterwards).
The first new and interesting sight was this Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis). He was
remarkably tame, following us in the water along the shoreline and snapping at the first bit of bread that fell near him. Apparently he thought we were carrying fish in our pockets or something, because once he tried that first piece of bread, he decided it wasn't what he wanted and ignored what we threw afterwards.
Brown Pelican
Hello! I am a most handsome bird, can't you tell?
Cruising on the swamp habitat pond were TWO white pelicans, dipping and seining in unison.
Two White Pelicans
Note also the two Northern Shovelers (Anas clypeata) in the foreground, for size comparison. (I didn't even notice that
these guys were wild ducks until I put this essay together).
Today, the black swan pair and their cygnets were swimming in the swamp habitat pond. We spotted them from the boardwalk that crosses the swamp habitat, and they came swimming toward us. Apparently they recognize people with bread from a long way off.
Cygnets swimming
The mute swan was also there, looking beautiful and being as belligerent as ever.
White swan
Black swan
Note the slightly raised, ruffled wings. That's a threat display. This will become important later.
Of course, once we started feeding them, it didn't take long for the seagulls to show up and start being a nuisance. The swans found this annoying and ducked under the boardwalk to loose them periodically, coming out on the other side.
Seagulls cutting in on the action
Swan, cygnet and seagull
Harassment by gulls
Swans head for cover under boardwalk (to the right)
Even the mute swan found them annoying
Ebony and ivory, side by side
They look lovely and romantic, don't they? Note the raised, ruffled wings. They're making threat displays at each other.
Black and white
Still looking romantic, still uttering threats
White swan runs black swan off. There's a metaphor here somewhere...
But you're still going to feed us, right?