Les perrouches sauvages dans le parc....

Here are some wild parrots for you... OOPS.. it's a pidgeon!
Here are the Real McCoys! Amazing to see these parrots flying around in the park...

FYI - Green Indian ring-necked parrots...

were what Barbara and I saw at the park today. I just found them on Google. I guess they are birds that were let free by their owners or somehow escaped... I'm just happy to see they are surviving because I know it gets pretty cold! Maybe they will multiply over the spring and have lots more by next fall... Oh... well... there are only 3 that we saw and I don't know what their sexes were. I do hope they have long lives in their beautiful surroundings!! (Pics courtesy of Google Images search).

Indian Parrot

Indian Parrot

Indian Ringneck Parrot is a very smart and intelligent bird having length 16 inches including the tailfeathers. These birds are very charming and social bird. They love to be with their owner. Guava, nuts, chilli are the favorite diet of ringneck parrot.

Wildlife officials seize 46 endangered parakeets

In West Bengal wildlife officials seized 46 parakeets from a bird trader in West Bengal's Darjeeling District. The illegal wildlife trader was nabbed when officials raided a bus and found parakeets packed in a carton. The flock comprised blossom-headed, slaty-headed (left) and rose-ringed parakeets (right).

The illegal bird trade thrives in the northern parts of West Bengal, and demand for them is high, with Bihar being a major market.

Wildlife agencies claim that poaching is adding to the decline of the bird population in India. Birds are already facing the threat of a shrinking habitat, said Animesh Bose, program coordinator of the Himalayan Nature and Adventure Foundation. Parakeets and Hill Mynahs (left) are included in endangered list of birds.

India is home to 1,225 bird species, including 257 water birds. The country also supports 81 species of migrant water fowls, which arrive from Central Asia and Europe during winter.

The hunting or the caging of endangered wildlife is banned in India, but lax laws and lax law enforcement and/or mild punishment, leave poaching and smuggling of rare species to run rampant.

Wildlife authorities say that in most cases, the birds are trapped and their feathers torn out. At times the birds are killed for their pristine feathers.

In India, parrots (right) are used by fortune tellers to forecast the future. The caging of the birds, especially parrots, is considered illegal and punishable with a fine, or imprisonment of up to five years.

Birdlife International, a worldwide conservation group, recently warned that some 300 Asian bird species face extinction, particularly in India, Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia and China, due to poor protection and habitat destruction.

Wild Quaker Parrots

Quaker parrots enjoy taking refreshing baths
It's really cute when they yawn

Quaker parrots love to build nests

They breed like crazy in Brooklyn, New York

The amazing thing about Quaker parrots is that they can survive in colder climates

This actually looks cozy

Those Crazy Animals...

Fun Animal Pictures from one of my favorite places to browse and giggle...
Dark Roasted Blend

Creepy tortoise..

That's some expression there...

!!!!

Uh oh..... Darn drainage holes!

Rar!


Awww!! It's my sloth!!! LOVE IT!!!

Hehe... poor thing...

It's a flying mop!

Awww... you found me!

Gotter Love Otters!

Peekaboo!

Not sure what animal this is...
..Similarities... hmm...

Beak of the Week!

Last week's fish-loving beak of the week was correctly identified by anonymous as a pelican. I don't know if this is the same anonymous who won the B.O.W. of the week before, but if so, you are on a roll! Either way, excellent guess. The beak of the American White Pelican belongs to Scoop, or, as he likes to be called, His Majesty. Scoop is an awesome guy.

This week's beak is native to Africa as well as India, Russia, Siberia, portions of the middle east, and more! The sound that comes out of this particular beak is hoarse, sharp barking “kyow” and boy do I hear it a lot at the ETC. Sometimes he talks with his mouth full. Here's a rare picture of his beak closed:



In the wild, these beautiful eyes search the desert, semi-desert, steppes, and open savannah for food:

These powerful talons often pirate food from other raptors. They kill their prey on the ground as opposed to in the air:

This week's bird is extra difficult, in my opinion, so I'll give you a little cheat. The scientific name for this bird is Aquila rapax. How well do you know your Latin?

Corvid beauty tips

Sometimes when I am chatting with the corvids, I ask how they get their feathers so glossy and shiny. Surely they spend a fortune on product! They all look a little bit sorry for me as they explain that their beauty is natural. All they need is a bath.

I've never known birds that take as much pleasure in bathing as crows and ravens. The moment I've refilled the water bowls, they dive right in! After their bath, they spend hours preening and grooming their feathers until they gleam.

Here you seen Einstein the pied crow and Little Guy the white naped raven just after bathing:



And the results:


Wow!

Adopt a Bird Spotlight: Nemo (Congo African Grey Parrot)

Nemo's Story

Species: African Grey Parrot
Hatched: 11/2/2003

Nemo was hatched by a local breeder and aquired by World Bird Sanctuary in May 2004 to become a member of our Care For Critters program. From May until September 2005, he was a part of the Milwaukee County Zoo Bird Fair where he returned for a repeat performance this year.

Nemo has a very sweet, happy-go-lucky personality and is a favorite of all who work with him. True to the African grey's reputation of being one of the most intelligent of the psitticines, Nemo learns very quickly. He has a vocabulary that increases almost daily and learns new behaviors in an incredibly short period of time. He learned to wave in less than week!

Nemo loves unusual sounds and whistles, and his favorite foods are grapes, bananas, and peanuts (treats).

To adopt Nemo, simply click our donation button, make a donation of $100, and specify in your payment notes: Adopt-a-bird: NEMO. Also include your name, phone number, and mailing address so that we can send you your adoption materials!

Every donation helps to feed, house, and provide medical care for the bird of your choice! Adopt-A-Bird Parents Receive:

Bird ID Quiz Winner!

Congratulations to Neil Gilbert, who writes about Orange County Birding in his OC Birding Blog, for being the first BOTB reader to correctly identify this bird as a bay-breasted warbler. Neil, who is 16, lends further proof to my belief that today's young birders are WAY better informed and knowledgeable than most of the rest of us were (at least those of us older than 35 or so). Check out Neil's blog, too. He gots mad skilz.

I know I should be saying here that there's no such thing as a Confusing Fall Warbler. Better birders than I often say that, and I suppose it's true. But I still find myself scratching my head at some of the individual fall warblers that slip through our ridgetop trees here in SE Ohio. If that's not confusion, then I need to change shampoos.

There are three species that, in fall, look a lot like this bird: plain olive-yellow overall with wingbars and some streaking on the breast or back (or both). These three are: pine warbler, bay-breasted warbler, and blackpoll warbler.

At this point you might want to grab your favorite field guide(s) for handy visual reference points. I'd also suggest reading "The Blackpoll Trio" chapter in Kenn Kaufman's excellent book Advanced Birding.

All of these birds are subtly plumaged, and, in their most confusing versions (first year or hatching year females) they are REALLY similar. Adults are less confusing in fall because they tend to hang on to some of their breeding plumage coloration. Fall adult pine warblers look exactly like breeding plumage birds. Fall adult bay-breasteds of both sexes usually show some of the rusty "bay" coloration on the flanks (sides). Fall adult blackpolls are flying south over the Atlantic Ocean and are rarely seen inland. But if you DID see one, it would look streaky—and quite similar to breeding plumage adults.

In navigating the murky waters of identification of the "baypolls" as some birders call this trio, you should resist the urge to rely upon one single field mark. But two or three field marks vastly increases your likelihood of making a correct identification.

Let's review a few of the field marks than make this a bay-breasted warbler.

Our bird has definite streaks on the back, which pretty much eliminates pine warbler (which nearly always shows an unstreaked back). A close look at the bill shows it to be relatively thin and finely tipped. Pine warbler bills look stout and more bluntly tipped to me—perfect for a bird that sometimes probes beneath bark for insects. Pine warblers often show an obvious, though small, broken ring (pale in young birds, yellow in adults) around the eye, which this bird does not have. First year female pine warblers are the very definition of dull colored‚ almost gray-brown. Adult pine warblers show a lot of yellow on the throat and breast. This bird (above) shows quite a bit of greenish color, but not much yellow on the throat and breast.

So let's toss out pine warbler. mmmK? mmmK!
[For an excellent walk through the identification of a pine warbler, see Jeffrey A. Gordon's recent post about this very thing.]

So, how do we choose between blackpoll and bay-breasted? At this point I often look at the legs and feet. If I get a good look and I see that the bird has pale or yellow feet or legs, I'm leaning toward blackpoll. If the legs seem gray or dark, or if I cannot get a good look, then it could be either.

Next we should look at the streaking. If the bird has noticeable streaking on the breast AND the back, it's most likely to be a blackpoll. The Sibley guide (page 443) and the new Peterson guide (page 352) both show this quite well. The National Geographic guide (page 381) does not—the birds seem too dark to me. (Please don't get me started on the imperfections of printing, a subject about which I am all too experienced.)

Looking at the underparts of a "baypoll" warbler, the quality and location of the color can help steer you toward one species or the other. If the warbler's underparts are relatively uniform in color from throat to undertail (and lacking in streaking, remember?) you almost certainly have a bay-breasted warbler in your sights. If, however, there is a distinct change from greenish-yellow (near to the throat) to white (on the belly) and there's a little bit of faint streaking on the flanks, you're looking at a blackpoll warbler. For a nice discussion of this, please read the "Streaky Fall Warblers" chapter on page 296 in Identify Yourself.

Osprey and Dunlin

A couple of Photos sent in by Melvin Grey taken yesterday around midday at Newport Harbour. Click on images for larger versions.

Dale Area

This morning at Dale Airfield there were a dozen Pied Wagtails accompanied by 3 White Wags, 50+ Meadow Pipits, 6 Wheatears, 100+ Goldfinches, 5 Chough, 2 Kestrels and, by a big puddle on one of the runways, a Ruff.
At St Anne's Head 5 Yellow Wags were still present but again very flighty, also 3 White Wags and a few Mipits.
8 Brent Geese still at The Gann and at Marloes Mere 6 Lapwings.
Sandy Haven Pill held 6 Greenshanks and 7 Little Egrets.

(Richard Crossen & Morris North)

No prizes!

Like most of we non ringing people, I much prefer a bird in the bush rather than a bird in the hand. Especially when the bird in the hand is dead.

A neighbour brought this pathetic scrap of feathers to me and I have to say it took a long time for me to identify it for her. If it had been flitting around shiny eyed and vibrant with life, it would have taken half a nano second but the first thing that foxed me was its small-ness. It had to be a goldcrest... er no it didnt, my imagination flickered, something eastern and exotic, seconds were passing into minutes... No get a grip forget the citrine flush, the rich sheen of the olive green, the exquisite form, the delicate insectiverous beak, impossibly slender almost black legs. How do wings this small cross ocean and continents?

Bog standard I guess! If any one wants this little jewel, its in my freezer,

Grey Wagtails

Three of these beautiful creatures visited our lawn this morning - we often get fleeting visits at this time of the year. This plumage, with the apricot/buff breast is not shown in most of the bird books I have consulted with the exception of the Mitchell Beazley Pocket Guide with Peter Hayman's excellent illustrations. Are they juveniles, as I have always supposed, or could they be autumn females? (Picture taken through the kitchen window)

Pelagic

Another Pelagic with Seatrust , this time aboard the "Cartlett Lady". We went out, passing Grassholm , still "white-capped" with Gannets , then headed out further into the Celtic Deep, going out past The Smalls before heading back in past Skokholm. We encountered many Dolphins - perhaps up to 400 in all in numerous pods. Many came to investigate the boat and rode with us in the bow wave. Amongst the adults there were numerous juveniles and plenty of young calfs. A small Sunfish was also seen.

With an, at times, rather lumpy sea birding was not easy but amongst the background birds of Gannets, Manx Shearwaters, Kittiwakes, Guillemots and Razorbills we saw 20+ Commic Terns, 2 Great Skuas, 6+ Puffins, a Red Throated Diver, a Kestrel off Grassholm and a fleeting glimpse of a Grey Phalarope. A small but steady passage of Swallows was seen all day. A "small brown job" flew alongside briefly whilst we were over 20 miles out and shortly after the bizarre sight of a Bat which circled the boat and continued to fly strongly away until lost to sight.
A memorable day in the sunshine of this Indian Summer.

Dale Area

This morning at Dale Airfield there were a dozen Pied Wagtails accompanied by 3 White Wags, 50+ Meadow Pipits, 6 Wheatears, 100+ Goldfinches, 5 Chough, 2 Kestrels and, by a big puddle on one of the runways, a Ruff.
At St Anne's Head 5 Yellow Wags were still present but again very flighty, also 3 White Wags and a few Mipits.
8 Brent Geese still at The Gann and at Marloes Mere 6 Lapwings.
Sandy Haven Pill held 6 Greenshanks and 7 Little Egrets.

(Richard Crossen & Morris North)

Birds of the Shrublands

Shrublands once moved across the land in response to fire, and shrubland birds thrived. Bringing back this habitat of impermanence may be the next big thing in conservation.

My favorite day in the field is a day in June when the birds invite me into their living room. I pull up a “chair” at the edge of a shrubby meadow and enjoy myself in plenty of good company — indigo buntings carrying worms into the nursery, catbirds mewing from the fridge, rumpled song sparrows peering from a footstool, and a cuckoo toc-toc-tocking from just outside the window.

The birds make these places so convincingly their own each summer that it’s hard to believe their homes are not at least as permanent as mine. Yet the shrubland I am observing on this perfect day may be utterly changed in just a few years, with most of its birds gone. Unlike so many disappearing habitats, though, this is all part of a natural cycle.

That cycle hinges on disturbance. If a fire roars through, or a brush clearing crew, and if the site is large enough, grassland birds may replace the shrubland birds, which will search for more suitable homes elsewhere. If left undisturbed, the landscape of shrubs will transition to thickets and forests, attracting yet a different set of birds.

For thousands of years, the grand fires that annually redeemed the grasslands also imparted a rhythm to shrublands. “Barrens” of stunted oaks, and thickets of hazel, plum, crab, hawthorn, dogwood, viburnum, blackberry, rose, and others bounded and shuffled around the landscape in response to fire. Other disturbances — beaver dams, major floods, and windstorms — also played a part.

Once the large fires were stopped, we lost our native shrublands along with our grasslands. Large oak barrens and thickets of hazel are a thing of the past.

Despite these enormous changes, most shrubland bird species are still present in the region — a testament to their adaptability. Today, they are just as likely to be using invasives such as honeysuckle, buckthorn, or Osage orange as they are native plum or viburnum. While some animals such as butterflies will only use one specific plant species, birds are less picky, responding to the structure of shrubs and shrublands — if a plant’s got the right shape, size, height, and location, it will probably serve for shelter, lookout, nest site, and camouflage from predators.

But numbers of many shrubland species are declining, and some of these declines are beginning to cause real concern. In fact, only grassland birds as a group are declining more rapidly than shrubland birds across the United States.