BIRDS ( feathered kind ) #3.

 

BURROWING OWL.

 

Athene Cunicularia.

 

Burrowing owls are unique from other owl species because they nest underground. They are capable of digging their own burrows, but often use abandoned mammal tunnels. Interestingly they place mammal dung outside their burrows to attract beetles to prey upon. Young owlets are capable of mimicking the noise of rattlesnakes which scares potential predators away from the burrow. Unlike most owls, burrowing owls are often active in the day. Habitat - grasslands, plains, savannah and desert. Diet - invertebrates, small mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles. Lifespan - up to 10 years.

 



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SNOWY OWL.

 

Nyctea Scandiaca.

 

The snowy owl is a bird of the Artic Tundra and is only a rare visitor to northern most parts of the British Isles. It likes open country where it can hunt for lemmings, voles and other small mammals or birds like ducks, geese and ptarmigan. It hunts in daylight and its flight is more like that of a hawk or eagle than other owls. It has a wingspan of around 1.5m and is capable both of hovering to watch prey on the ground, and flying incredibly fast to strike down birds in the air.

 

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AVOCET.

 

Recurvirostra Avosetta.

 

A distinctively patterned black and white wader with a long up curved beak. Avocets nest in loose colonies of up to around 150 pairs. Outside the breeding season the birds are usually in flocks of 6 - 30 individuals but feeding flocks can be several hundred strong. Flocks break up for duration of the breeding season. There are two feeding methods. In clear water Avocets feed by sight by picking prey from the surface of water or mud. In poor visibility and when locating prey from within the sediments they forage by touch, sweeping the long up curved bill from side to side through water or loose sediment to locate hidden prey. Habitat - coastal lagoons, east and south coasts of England, Mediterranean and Africa. Diet - invertebrates, crustaceans and worms. Lifespan - 7 years.

 

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TEMMINCKS TRAGOPAN.

 

Tragopan Temminckii.

 

The Temmincks Tragopan or crimson bellied tragopan as it is sometimes called is one of the most beautiful of all the Pheasants. The male has a flamboyant red and blue throat bib seen on display during courtship. The bib or wattle inflates and is shaken to attract the females attention and if she is sufficiently impressed she will allow mating. The female is much drabber than the male. Habitat - forests, dense evergreen and bamboo. Diet - plants, shoots, berries and insects. Lifespan - 4 years in the wild, 12 years in captivity.

 

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DOMESTICATED TURKEYS.

 

The males ( stags ) have a fleshy snood just below their eyes. In the middle of the stags chest are a group of long feathers called a beard, some hens ( females ) also have beards but not all of them. Its purpose is unknown.

 

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EUROPEAN EAGLE OWL.

 

Bubo Bubo.

 

Adults have a wingspan of five to six feet and will weigh up to nine pounds. There are between twelve and forty wild European eagle owls in the UK. Some may have arrived here after flying across the north sea from Europe and some may be escapees from captivity. Occasionally some species of owl have been seen resting on oil platforms in the middle of the north sea.

 

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GREAT HORNED OWL.

 

Bubo Virgin Ianus.

 

Also known as the Tiger Owl or the Hoot Owl. It is a large owl native to the Americas. It is an extremely adaptable bird with a vast range and is the most widely distributed true owl in the Americas. Its primary diet is rabbits and hares, rats, mice and voles, although it freely hunts any animal it can overtake including rodents and other small mammals, larger mid sized mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates.

 

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KESTREL.

 

The name Kestrel is given to several different members of the Falcon genus Falco. Kestrels are most easily distinguished by their typical hunting behaviour which is to hover at a height of around 10 - 20 metres over open country and swoop down on prey, usually small mammals, lizards or large insects. Kestrels are notable for usually having a lot of brown in their plumage.

 

 

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BARN OWL.

 

The Barn Owl is the most widely distributed species of owl and one of the most widespread of all birds. The barn owl is found almost everywhere in the world except polar and desert regions. This owl does not hoot, but utters an eerie drawn out shriek. The barn owl is nocturnal over most of its range but in Britain and some Pacific islands, it also hunts by day. Barn owls specialise in hunting animals on the ground and nearly all of their food consists of small mammals which they locate by sound, their hearing being very acute.

 

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INDIAN TAWNY EAGLE.

 

The Tawny Eagle is a large bird of prey. Like all eagles it belongs to the family Accipitridae. It breeds in most of Africa both north and south of the Sahara Desert and across tropical south western Asia to India. It is a resident breeder which lays one to three eggs in a stick nest in a tree or crag on the ground. Throughout its range it favours open dry habitats such as deserts, semi desert, steppes or savannah plains. The tawny eagles diet is largely fresh carrion of all kinds but it kills small mammals up to the size of a rabbit, reptiles and birds up to the size of a Guinea Fowl. It also steals food from other raptors.

 

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AFRICAN HOODED VULTURE.

 

Necrosyrtes Monachus.

 

The hooded vulture is a typical vulture with a bald head that is usually white but flushes red when agitated and a greyish hood. It has fairly uniform dark brown body plumage. It has broad wings for soaring and short tail feathers. It is a small species compared to most vultures.

 

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Sorry for the cage netting showing in some of the photos but it is not always possible to throw them out of focus. Can be a real pain at times and very frustrating.

 

 

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