Trip to Iceland pt.1

Hello bird fans. You may have noticed, or maybe not, that your favorite bird blog hasn't updated in a pretty long time. There are several reasons for this, but most crucially, I just don't have that much time. Don't have much time for trips where I might get to do some good birding, don't have much time for photography don't have much time to write these little updates. It doesn't help that I left twitter due to it becoming a cesspool, and so now my audience is just you, the person who stumbles upon this or who I know on facebook.

Anyway, it's ok for me to be out of the bird blogging game, I am content. I've seen a lot of good birds, and I will always love birds, and the experience of identifying birds, either for myself, or for others. So that being said, this will not be a traditional bird blog, but more like a travelog. Those who go way back might remember my other blog. Imagine something like that. 

Now, recently I was able to sneak a little trip to Iceland in during what was otherwise a summer family vacation to Nova Scotia. Our plan for our first day was a drive on the fabled Golden Circle- a circuit of natural wonders easy driving distance from Reykjavik, where we were based. After partaking of a lovely hot springs (the second of the trip), we were on to our first natural feature, the famous waterfall Gullfoss (lit. Golden Falls).

It was an incredible waterfall, easily making it's way in to my top tier of waterfall experiences, despite the grey weather we had that day. Just look at this bad boy, it's got it all- a rugged and striking landscape, massive volume, an aesthetically pleasing mist, and... wait a minute... 

Computer, enhance. 

Is that a fucking BIRD???

Oooooh shit, every time I think I'm out, they pull me back in. I mean it folks, when I saw this swan just completely chilling as millions of gallons of water (this is literally true, it is an approximately 1.7 million gallons/minute waterfall) rushed past it, I said "ok, I guess I will do a bird blog about this".

So who do we have here? I'm glad you asked

Whooper Swan aka. The Elk aka. Hooper aka. Wild Swan (Álft)
Gullfoss, Selfoss, Iceland
Member of the Duck, Goose, and Swan Family
★The National Bird of Finland★
★The Largest Native Herbivore in Iceland★
§A Lamentation of Swans§

~True Bird Fact~ Very accomplished fliers, despite their size (frequently noted online as 'one of the heaviest flying birds'. Their typical airspeed is around 62mph, however, they have been known to travel to extraordinary heights, up in the lower stratosphere, in order to make use of the jetstream. One group of birds was clocked traveling almost 100 miles per hour using this technique while migrating from Iceland to Ireland. Extremely tough!

~Real Bird Myth~ A wikipedia 'citation needed' fact (off to a strong start) notes that sounds this bird makes upon death and the source of the phrase 'swan song'. I did not hear any of them die, so thus cannot verify myself.

~Real Icelandic Bird Myth~ A 1921 Icelandic Fairytale, Sagan af Dimmalimm by Guðmundur Thorsteinsson, recounts a tale of a princess who, through the power of love, breaks a curse on a swan, who then becomes a prince. It's essentially Swan Lake.

Well, I hope my extremely scant handful of readers have enjoyed this rare bird blog. But you know what? I'm going to do some more. Because shockingly being in Iceland for 4 days without my kids afforded me the time to see some pretty cool birds. And now you're going to see them too, or at least you will, if you keep clicking on the bird blog.

Black-bellied Whistling Duck

Black-bellied Whistling Duck, fka Black-bellied Tree Duck

Green Cay Nature Center and Wetlands, Florida, USA
April 2022
Member of the Ducks, Geese, and Swans Family
§A Brace of Ducks§

{Etymology Corner} I don't usually mention this, but the Latin name of this duck is Dendrocygna autumnalis, which translates roughly into Autumnal Tree-swan. I think that's a great name, it is a very autumnal looking bird.

~True Bird Fact~ Fascinating bird, with behavior that is very unique for ducks- ready for some bullet points? Cause this duck needs bullet points

• Does whistle
• Does nest in trees (in South America, where the duck is most commonly found, it nests in palm trees. Boy I'd like to see that)
• Does form monogamous pair bonds
• Has increased it's North American population by 6% per year from 1966 to 2019, and they expand northward every year. They used to be a rare bird, but now are quite common in southern states. If things continue at this rate, soon the only life this continent will sustain will be Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, and honestly, that's fine.

What a cool duck, huh? Well, anyway, that's all for today... Unless you'd like to talk about how this is my first blog post since January. Two this year! How did this happen? Well, to be honest, I had a second kid (as recounted here), and boy, does that take a lot of time up. Birding time has been minimal, but not as minimal as looking-through-photos time and sitting-down-to-write-a-blog time. Still, I am resolved to revive this blog, so I'm going to make a commitment to catch up on my blogging and come out with at least a total of 10 this year, to match my last year's total. I can do 10, right? That's super easy. Lots more birds to come. 

Hugs and kisses, 

The Amateurnithologist

Cackling Goose

 

Cackling Goose
Miller/Knox Regional Shoreline, Richmond, California, USA
November 2020
Member of the Ducks, Geese, and Swans Family
§A Plump of Geese§

~True Bird Fact~ So, where to begin? Probably, we should address that most people with cursory bird knowledge would look at this bird and say "that's a Canada Goose". Yes, this bird is nearly indistinguishable from that familiar and frequently villainized waterfowl. Now this is nothing new for bird identification- I could rattle off a dozen pairs of birds that are nearly indistinguishable from one another to the untrained eye. However, in this case, it is only since relatively recently that this bird has been considered to be a different species from the Canada Goose. The primary difference is really just the size. Check out the picture below, which has a Canada Goose or two in it as well. The largest sub-species of Canada Goose is 4 times as large as the smallest sub-species of Cackling Goose. Incredible as this may seem, up until 2004 this bird was just considered to be "a small Canada Goose" basically. 

After the split was made, one ornithologist, Harold C. Hanson (can't quite explain it, but this is the most Ornithologist name you can have) suggested that the Canada Goose be further divided into 6 species and 200 sub-species. It's hard to tell to me, as an amateur, if this proposition was sincere or more of a "fuck it, they're all different species now" from Harold. In terms of the other ways to distinguish whether you have a Canada Goose or a Cackling Goose, if you were inclined to try to do so, there's something about the neck ring being thinner, but that's not even always visible. When you google search for Cackling Goose, the second result is an article about how to tell them apart from Canada Geese, which should tell you something about the processes. I suggest just finding them in a mixed flock, like I've done.

"Don't Talk to Me or My Son Ever Again"

And finally, it's time to return to probably my actual favorite segment we do here on the blog- Bird Reviews from BackyardChickens.com!

These reviews were pulled from a forum thread rather than an official review page, because these are a non-domesticated species of bird.

"there are very few of us that own these geese"

"I have Cackleing geese .... LOVE THEM!!!" ... "They free range every day and get along with everything." ... "they are not bonded to me, but are not terribly wild either."

"She does not know she's a goose. She thinks she's a dog. She has stayed around here, even though she can fly, likes her kiddie pool, doesn't like to share with other geese, but if you bark at her she comes running and honking."

"Cackling geese are better and smaller and easier to take care don't get them pinned" [as compared to Canada Geese]

Long-tailed Duck and Chasing Rarities

The winter months in the California Bay Area are definitely Weird Duck Time.

Follow the excellent Rosemary Mosco on Twitter

It's a great season to go out and see all the seasonal migrators. We even have our share of unusual visitors. Lake Merritt in downtown Oakland is well known for the occasional Tufted Duck (which I was lucky enough to see without knowing what a big deal it was). This winter I heard about a different unusual duck, a Long-tailed Duck who had somehow ended up at Point Reyes. These hearty and striking ducks breed in the high arctic and winter along the cold northern coasts. Usually on the west coast they don't make it down past Seattle.

There's only been a handful of times I've made an effort to see an uncommon or rare bird in an area, and most of the time this has been a local species that isn't particularly hard to see, just rare overall. Our Berkeley shoreline Burrowing Owls come to mind, or the Island Scrub Jay. They're just... there. And not many other places. But this was different. The bird clearly ended up somewhere it wasn't meant to be, and had become a target of at least some minor local birding interest. 

So obviously I went to see it. I mean, this was before the Snowy Owl in Central Park turned the birding world's attention towards the ethics of chasing rare or misplaced birds. I did feel a little strange about it, in ways that would predict the debate to come. For one, it was in the peak coronavirus month of December, and for two, I was concerned that increased attention from birders could be bad for the bird, or bad for the park. But I love Point Reyes, and I resolved that if things looked crowded, I just wouldn't bother when I got there. As you can see, the expedition was somewhat of a success. I say somewhat because the duck wasn't as cool looking as maybe you would hope when you look up pictures of Long-tailed Ducks, and because even with the substantial zoom on my camera, this was as close as I could reasonably get.

I was a little concerned about what others might do to get a better shot, and my view of the steep, sandy dunes that ringed this lagoon indicated that quite a few people had slid down the banks. Perhaps to look for the duck, but maybe it's just a popular park anyway. I would say that foot traffic was increased, and I would guess that perhaps a third of the hikers I saw gave me "birder vibes" or were openly just scouting around for the duck with their giant cameras. I didn't see any bad behavior, except, maybe, for some dubious mask usage. There was plenty of space, and no one seemed to be crowding the animals while I was there. 

But it did make me consider, you know, the implications. If this duck weren't at the end of a few miles of trail, in a park that's popular, but requires the commitment of a day trip to get to, perhaps the situation would've been different. As it is, I do think it's worth some personal reflection on the part of the birder when a rarity is nearby with potential to be hunted. Have I ever seen this bird before? Could I theoretically see it closer to it's normal range? Can the bird be observed without disturbing it, or the nature surrounding it? Basically, Is it worth it? I'm not sure the answer is going to be yes for me very often. After all, there are still plenty of birds that I could try to find without feeling dubiously unethical about it. I'm coming for you Pileated Woodpecker.

Long-tailed Duck aka, Olds**** (you can read up here about why this bird's name is not a slur anymore. Seems like maybe there's a lot of birds whose names we should change, perhaps)
Abbotts Lagoon, Point Reyes National Seashore, Inverness, California, USA
December 2020
Member of the Ducks, Geese, and Swans Family
§A Flush of Ducks§

~True Bird Fact~ An extraordinarily hearty and skilled diver- not only do they mostly dive in icy waters, but they are the only species of duck to use their wings to 'fly' underwater. This enables them to dive to extraordinary depths of 200-480 feet. They also stay underwater longer than any other diving duck, spending 3-4 times the amount of time below water as above when feeding.

Post-script: The duck appears to have moved on from Point Reyes- the last sighting recorded was on February 6th, after a long stretch of being pretty easy to see there. So just in case this blog made you feel like going to look for the duck, don't. There have been reports lately of a Tufted Duck in Point Reyes, but I will not be going after it.

Ring-necked Duck

Ring-necked Duck aka. Ringbill

Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, California, USA
December 2020
Member of the Ducks, Geese, and Swans Family
§A Brace of Ducks§

{Etymology Corner} This duck's name is universally reviled. Every resource that I usually check for bird facts mention that the name is not very accurate, and that the ring around the ducks neck is very hard to see on a living animal. Here are some quotes, because why not:

• This species might better be called the "Ring-billed Duck," for its chestnut neck ring is usually seen only at close range, while the white ring on the bill can be a prominent field mark.
• his bird’s common name (and its scientific name "collaris," too) refer to the Ring-necked Duck's hard-to-see chestnut collar on its black neck. It’s not a good field mark to use for identifying the bird, but it jumped out to the nineteenth century biologists that described the species using dead specimens.
• Despite the name, the ring on its neck is almost never visible.
• The cinnamon neck ring is usually difficult to observe, which is why the bird is sometimes referred to as a "ringbill"
• The "ringneck" name is derived from a faint brownish ring around the base of the neck, which is visible only upon close inspection.

That was 5 different websites (in order: Whatbird, All About Birds, Audubon, Wikipedia, and Ducks Unlimited) finding their own coping strategy for how badly named this bird is. My favorite is wikipedia, which goes so far as to point out that a better alternate name already exists. The only website that resists opining is good old businesslike ebird.org. There aren't really any other interesting facts about this bird. It's just a very sharp looking duck with a bad name.

Gets excited when talking about obscure scientific topics

Bigger in person than you'd expect

Perpetual sinus infections

Snow Goose

Snow Goose
Richmond Marina, Richmond, California, USA
January 2019
Member of the Ducks, Geese, and Swans Family
§A String of Geese§

~true bird fact~ A canny, tough goose to be reckoned with. Well known for their long migratory flights to and from the arctic, these geese are also no joke on foot, where they can outrun most of their predators. Even the baby geese might walk 50 miles in a day to find better nesting ground. And those babies? Largely safe, because the geese prefer to nest near Snowy Owls and Rough-legged Hawks, which prey on their main predators, Arctic Foxes.

Cross this goose at your own peril
A well developed sense of honor
Hardened by battle, prepared for the long winter to come



How Endangered Are They? Not endangered at all, I'm happy to say. But they were, at one point, quite endangered. At one point in the 1900's there were only 2000 birds or so left alive, mostly due to hunting. However strong conservation laws were enacted, and they recovered. Maybe a little too well.
Now there are 5 million of these bad boys, and their population is growing by 5 percent a year. There's so many of them that they're actually sort of damaging the habitat of other animals now in the tundra. New, less restrictive hunting laws have done little to slow their growth, probably because a lot of land that used to be forest is now goose-friendly farmland. Oopsa doopsa, we messed up again, but good for the Snow Goose I guess. I welcome out new Goose overlords.

Black Scoter

Black Scoter aka. Common Scoter
Richmond Marina, Richmond, California, USA
January 2019
Member of the Ducks, Geese, and Swans Family
§A Flush of Ducks§

[Etymology Corner] Common Scoter is a little bit of an archaic name, but it's also grossly inaccurate, since this is the least common of the three North American scoters. The Eastern Hemisphere version of this duck is still called that over there. I bet you thought I was going to tell you where the word 'Scoter' came from here, but nope. There doesn't seem to be any explanation of the origin out there, it's just a word that's used for this genus of sea ducks.

~True Bird Fact~ In France, Roman Catholics were allowed by their church to eat this bird on Fridays (on which you normally can't eat non-fish meats). The reasoning is that they have a 'fishy' taste to them, which raises some questions for me about what Catholics thought makes something a fish, and also makes me even less likely to eat this duck.

Another quote I saw a lot while researching this bird was a description of his call as a 'constant mellow, plaintive whistling', so to me that says that this bird has a real Jeff Bridges vibe, and I don't think any more personality speculation is needed.



How Endangered Are They? Well, not that endangered. They are considered near-threatened by the IUCN with a global population between 350,000 and half a million. However, their population is slowly declining, and they are threatened by oil and gas drilling, as well as climate change. So something to watch out for, at the very least.

Good Birds, Bad Pics

Hey all. Sometimes birding is hard out there. When you've been doing it for as long as I have, and trying to blog about once a week, for the last, like, 6 years, sometimes you come up short of really great pictures of birds you've never written about before. More and more I'll come back from a walk with a camera full of birds and find that they're mostly ones I've already done. Being truly 'out of birds' is not something that I have to worry about for a while, but there's also the pictures to think about. I know I don't need to tell you, reader, that sometimes the quality of the pictures varies a lot. Of course, I do try to keep some kind of standard, or at least only flex that standard for a bird I'm really excited about. Sometimes a bird pic is just not good enough to run as a 'portraiture' entry. I just know I haven't captured the 'essence of the bird', so to speak, so I don't count it.

All that is to say that after looking through the last few months of bird photos, and a couple of misstarts to the ol' blog, this is what I've decided to go with. A trio of birds I was quite excited to get, but that don't really warrant a full blog on their own. Just on a, like, quality level. This way I get to show off these cool birds, but still reserve the right to do a full entry on them later, if I ever get a great picture. Let me know if you hate this blog entry, cause it's a little different. Love you lots. -A

Savannah Sparrow
Salinas River State Beach, Moss Landing, California, USA
January 2018
Member of the American Sparrows and Towhees Family
§A Flutter of Sparrows§

Quickly dismisses others' concerns



Hooded Merganser (male, non-breeding)
Mountain View Cemetery, Oakland, California, USA
February 2018
Member of the Ducks, Geese, and Swans Family
§A Brace of Ducks§

Feels persecuted for his taste in music

Hermit Thrush (probably..)
Point Molate Beach Park, Richmond, California, USA
February 2018
Member of the Thrush Family
§A Hermitage of Thrushes§

Spaces out

Red-breasted Merganser

Red-breasted Merganser

Monterrey Bay, Monterrey, California, USA 
January 2018 
Member of the Ducks, Geese, and Swans Family 
§A Raft of Ducks§

{Etymology Corner} You might wonder what exactly a merganser is, if you're the type of person who reads this blog. Well, what separates this guy and his relatives from other ducks, for the most part, is that he is a hunter. He's got a saw-toothed bill, and dives for fish (Red-breasteds like to hunt at sea, other mergansers prefer rivers or lakes). But what does the name Merganser mean? Well, it comes from his Latin name, Mergus (no surprise there, when you see a nonsense word in a bird's name, it's probably from the latin). The fun part is that Mergus translates to 'unidentified water bird'. Really reaching for the stars with that ID.


~true bird fact~ May in fact be the fastest duck. Wikipedia states that the fastest recorded speed for a duck came from a Red-breasted Merganser, flying at 100 miles per hour. The speed was recorded as the duck was being pursued by an airplane. To me this just raises so many questions about what we're doing out there with these ducks. Did the Merganser commit a crime? Anyway, I don't feel confident in really calling it for the record, since who knows what many species would be capable of with a plane barreling after them. Still. an impressive feat. No word on whether the bird got away or not.

Owns a lot of obscure metal band t-shirts (doesn't play an instrument)
Definitely thinks hunting in the ocean rather than a lake makes him cooler and more legit
Gets a tattoo every year on his birthday

Wood Duck

Wood Duck aka. Carolina Duck
Mountain View Cemetery, Oakland, California, USA
February 2018
Member of the Duck, Goose, and Swan Family
§A Flush of Ducks§


{Etymology Corner} Wood Duck is slang for a sucker or rube (I would argue infrequently used). Apparently it's 70's era lingo from the used car salesman community. No information presents itself on how this originated/why it would make sense.

~true bird fact~ A very different kind of duck from what we usually see, at least physiologically. Wood Ducks have sharply clawed feet, which they use to perch in trees near water. Wood Ducklings are born into nest cavities and have to leap up to 50 feet into the ground or water and can do so without injury. So all those videos of people 'helping' baby ducks by catching them as they jump out of their nest can go take a hike as far as I'm concerned.

You know that quote about 'dance like no one's watching'? Wood Duck always acts like someone's watching him.
Master of the celebrity encounter name drop
Gets a lot of his food at the farmer's market



 How Endangered Were They? A distinctly North American species, Wood Ducks never had much of a range outside of the USA and Canada (they're in other places now because they were popular ornamental birds). This was bad news for Wood Ducks during the height of American expansionism. They were actually on the verge of serious trouble by the late 19th century, both because of loss of habitat, and because of hunting, mainly for their feathers (the infamous 19th century fancy hat industry strikes again).

Happily, Wood Ducks are doing much better now, because at that crucial moment, some sweeping government regulation was enacted to protect them. The 1918 Migratory Bird Treaty Act declared them a protected species, and, along with the introduction of constructed nesting boxes, enabled them to bounce back. You know who else helped? Beavers, who also have a rebounding population, and happen to naturally make perfect Wood Duck habitats. So thanks beavers, and thanks reasonable regulations, for making this bird alive. And of course, zero thanks to our current president, who is choosing to roll back the Migratory Bird Treaty Act's protections for birds after 100 years of success stories like this. Hopefully this move loses him the bird vote.

Trip Report: Cosumnes River Preserve

Cosumnes River Preserve, Galt, California, USA
January 2017

Duck, var.

Another day in paradise, another trip to a local birding destination. These pictures were taken when your amateurnithologist found himself with some unusual time off and was able to go on some fun day trips to birding locales slightly further afield.

Cinnamon Teal, has a youtube prank video series

Today's pictures come from the Consumnes River Preserve and the adjacent Woodbridge River Preserve in eyebrow-raisingly named Galt, California. The preserves are part of California's heavily farmed central valley and the Consumnes River represents the last free flowing river of the valley. Located between Sacramento and Stockton, there are 46,000 acres of protected land, 40,000 of which are farmed.

Green-winged Teal couple, collect salt and pepper shakers

It's an important spot for birds, and your amateurnithologist was blown away by the variety and sheer quantity of birds present. And that makes a lot of sense, since this spot is part of the Pacific Flyway, one of the 4 major migration routes for American birds. Among its 250 native bird species are the rare Sandhill Cranes (got em') and Tri-colored Blackbirds (WHEN?). Both the Audubon Society and the American Bird Conservancy have declared it an "Important Bird Area."

Sandhill Crane, always stands next to shorter birds to make himself appear taller

The preserve itself is beautiful and well-maintained, and given that we attended in the middle of the day, on a weekday, it was surprisingly well-attended, mostly by like-minded bird people. Some serious scopes were on display.

White-fronted Goose, high tolerance for crowds

It was mostly a waterfowlful affair, and all manner of ducks and geese and assorted others were on display. I had the great experience of getting a much, much better shot of a Northern Pintail immediately after I had posted a blog about him. Such is the life of a bird blogger. We appeared to be right in the middle of White-fronted Goose migration, who got riled up and all took off together and blacked out the sky a few times.

Northern Pintail, always acts weird when you try to take a picture of him

Best spots for me were the rarely observed Sora (still have no idea how I spotted him in the reeds) and the vaunted and endangered Sandhill Crane. It was my first time getting a shot of the California subspecies (all previous cranes I had seen were in Florida). Other birds seen, but not included in this photo essay included Great Egret (in breeding plumage), Northern Shoveler, Belted Kingfisher, Canada Geese, American Kestrel, and Black-necked Stilt.

Sora, loves to do amateur research on topics that interest her

Overall I would give Galt, CA objectively high marks. It's a veritable fountainhead of birds, and you won't find yourself shrugging off enough birds to fill a whole atlas. Take the train. Go Ayn-y time.

Final Rating: Yes

White-cheeked Pintail

White-cheeked Pintail aka. Bahama Pintail aka. Bahama Duck aka. Summer Duck 
Cabbage Beach, Paradise Island, The Bahamas
April 2017
Member of the Duck, Goose, and Swan Family
§A Brace of Ducks§

~true bird fact~ Something about these ducks must make them especially suited to the island lifestyle, since in addition to being spread throughout the Caribbean, they are also native to the Galapagos Islands. They are the only native duck there.

Soft-spoken to the point where it's a little weird. Is it an affectation?
Prefers an unconventional work schedule
Will take a sip of your drink without even thinking about it
Can party, sure, but prefers to have some alone time

Greater White-fronted Goose

Greater White-fronted Goose aka. White-fronted Goose (regional) aka. Greater Whitefront aka. Specklebelly (colloq.)
Wetland's Edge Park, American Canyon, California, USA
January 2017
Member of the Duck, Goose, and Swan Family
§A Chevron of Geese§

~true bird fact~ Like many geese, whitefronts have unusually strong familial bonds within the bird world. Not only do couples stay together, but children will often migrate and form lasting relationships with their parents. Goose siblings even continue to interact with one another throughout their lives. This is kind of a tangent, but why are we so quick to point out and assign value to animals showing monogamous behavior? This is listed as a fun fact on so many birds. Seems like we might be projecting..



~also of note~ The Greater White-fronted Goose wikipedia page contains one of the more egregious examples of someone editing themselves onto wikipedia that I've personally encountered. Check out the section entitled 'Backtracking Technique" near the bottom for a passage about Micha Horacek's Goose tracking technique that definitely, definitely was written by Micha Horacek. Or more likely, copy-pasted from his research paper.

Smokes a pipe
Resentful of being seen as 'part of the flock'
A creature of habit. Always orders the same thing at restaurants.
Hides a dark suburban secret

Mute Swan

Mute Swan
Wetland's Edge Park, American Canyon, California, USA
Member of the Duck, Goose, and Swan Family
★The National Bird of Denmark★
§A Bevy of Swans§


~true bird fact~ Mute Swans are not native to the United States and are considered a widely disliked invasive species. All Mute Swans in the states are descended from birds brought from overseas to decorate estates, zoos, and parks. They eat a ton of aquatic plants, making survival more difficult for other waterbirds, and are exceptionally aggressive, often attacking humans and pets. The attacks are no joke either, these are very big, strong birds, and a wing-beat is strong enough to break a person's arm. A quick google search was able to confirm that they have killed, but couldn't establish in what numbers.

~alternative bird fact~ Not so fast, say several advocacy groups. There are disputes about whether or not Mute Swans could actually be native to the US in some fashion (flying over from Russia, perhaps). "Save The Mute Swans" presented fossil evidence to this effect to the US Department of the Interior, but their claim was rejected. Mute swans continue to be the subject of culling efforts or even a kill-on-site species, especially on the West Coast, where they have not established themselves as fully.


~true bird myth~ The phrase 'swan song', comes from the Mute Swan, who is fairly quiet, although not silent, throughout his life (this is where his name comes from). The legend says that this bird is silent up until the moment of his death, at which point he sings an unbelievably beautiful song before expiring. Poignant stuff.

~true bird history~ Insanely, all Mute Swans are owned by the Queen of England. They were "Claimed by the Crown" in the 12th century and the ownership is retained to this day, although it's not really used for much other than some weird annual Swan ceremony.


~haven't had enough true bird facts yet?~ This is also the lead character in The Ugly Duckling.

 

Northern Pintail

Northern Pintail aka. "The Greyhound of the Air"
Wetlands Edge Park, American Canyon, California, USA
March 2015
Member of the Duck, Goose, and Swan Family
§A Paddling of Ducks§

~true bird fact~ Seems unusually prone to misfortune as a species. Their population dropped from 10 million to 3.5 million in the 7 years from 1957 to 1964 as a result of  avian diseases. A similar die-out happened in 1997, when 1.5 million waterbirds died of avian botulism, most of which were pintails. Furthermore, they're one of the more popular ducks for hunting. They are also disproportionately impacted by the lead poisoning that results from the shot used in aforementioned hunting as well as sinkers in fishing. All that being said, they're got a healthy and fairly stable population for now. You have to wonder though, with that kind of record...

Loves sports, a big part of hislife
Strives to give back to the community
Owns many fancy suits and watches
Needs "time to think" alone

Northern Shoveler

Northern Shoveler aka. Northern Shoveller (Brit.) aka. Shoveller aka. Spoonbill aka. Spoony (colloq.)
Wetlands Edge Park, American Canyon, California, USA
December 2016
Member of the Duck, Goose, and Swan Family
§A Team of Ducks§

~true bird fact~ Lets talk about that bill, which is unique among ducks, and is this bird's namesake. In addition to the unusual spatula shape, the bill is surrounded by 110 fine 'teeth' called lamellae. These allow the duck to filter out plankton and tiny crustaceans from the water's surface. This adaptation means they eat a lot of stuff no other duck eats, and having a unique food source is no joke, evolutionarily speaking. Shovelers have even been observed working together by swimming in circles, stirring up the water and skimming the food particles up.

Surprisingly multi-lingual
Seems to attract unlikely events
Might believe some pretty crazy stuff about aliens and history
Puts little value on expert opinions or scientific research