ornithology
tetrapodzoology | June 22, 2009Ground hornbills - or bucorvids - have been Tet Zoo mainstays since the early days of 2006. However, the only species that I ever feature is the Southern ground hornbill Bucorvus leadbeateri (sometimes incorrectly referred to by one of its junior synonyms, B. cafer). It's easily recognisable for its red facial skin and low casque.
To bring balance, here's the other species: the Abyssinian or Northern ground hornbill B. abyssinicus (this one photographed at Dublin Zoo). In contrast to its close relative, it has a much taller casque, and blue facial skin. Its throat pouch is blue in females…
grrlscientist | June 22, 2009tags: Birds in the News, BirdNews, ornithology, birds, avian, newsletter
Gyrfalcon chicks in 2500 year-old nest in Greenland. Gyrfalcons are the largest species of falcon in the world.
Image: Jack Stephens.
This edition of Birds in the News is dedicated to Bob, Asa, Neil and Biosparite in honor of their kind $upport. I deeply appreciate your generosity and thoughtfulness.
Birds and Science
Why aren't birds larger? Fifteen-kilogram swans hold the current upper size record for flying birds, although the extinct Argentavis of the Miocene Epoch in Argentina is estimated to have weighed 70…
grrlscientist | June 22, 2009tags: Pied Avocet, Recurvirostra avosetta, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Pied Avocet, Recurvirostra avosetta, photographed in Walvis Bay, Namibia, Africa [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Dennis Paulson, April 2007 [larger view].
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 21, 2009tags: Cedar Waxwing, Bombycilla cedrororum, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Cedar Waxwing, Bombycilla cedrororum, photographed in Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Richard Ditch, 12 November 2007 [larger view].
Date Time Original: 2007:11:12 09:11:15
Exposure Time: 1/639
F-Number: 8.00
ISO: 400
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 20, 2009tags: Sanderling, Calidris alba, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Sanderling, Calidris alba, photographed at Galveston, East Beach, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 19 May 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200 ,Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/750s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 19, 2009tags: Bohemian Waxwing, Bombycilla garrulus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Bohemian Waxwing, Bombycilla garrulus, photographed near Brandon in Minnehaha County, South Dakota. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Terry Sohl, 12 February 2005 [larger view]
Photo taken with a Canon 20D, 400 5.6L.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 18, 2009tags: Green Heron, Ardeola virescens, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Juvenile Green Heron, Ardeola virescens, photographed on a farm pond in central Kentucky. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Mark Selter, 14 June 2009 (thanks to Roger Brown for sharing) [larger view].
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 17, 2009tags: Purple Gallinule, Porphyrio martinica, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery birds] Purple Gallinule, Porphyrio martinica, photographed at Anahuac Wildlife Refuge, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 19 May 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200 ,Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/500s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 16, 2009tags: Bateleur Eagle, Terathopius ecaudatus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Immature Bateleur Eagle, Terathopius ecaudatus, photographed in Tarangire National Park, Tanzania, Africa. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Dan Logen, 31 August 2007 [larger view].
Nikon D2X 200-400 NIkon VR lens, at 400 mm. ISO 400, f4.5, 1/250 sec.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 15, 2009tags: Mountain Plover, Charadrius montanus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Mountain Plover, Charadrius montanus, photographed in Arizona. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Richard Ditch, 25 December 2007 [larger view].
Date Time Original: 2007:12:25 10:06:24
Exposure Time: 1/319
F-Number: 10.00
ISO: 400
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 15, 2009tags: parrot, head-banger, umbrella cockatoo, music, dancing parrot, streaming video
This is an interesting video is a headbanging umbrella cockatoo -- this bird really rocks out! Be sure to turn the sound down before you view this video, lest you go deaf... [0:38]
grrlscientist | June 14, 2009tags: Tree Swallow, Tachycineta bicolor, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Tree Swallow, Tachycineta bicolor, photographed at Lake Thompson in Kingsbury County, South Dakota. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Terry Sohl, 2 May 2009 [larger view]
Photo taken with a Canon 50D, 400 5.6L.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
grrlscientist | June 13, 2009tags: Pectoral Sandpiper, Calidris melanotos, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Pectoral Sandpiper, Calidris melanotos, photographed at Anahuac Wildlife Refuge, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 19 May 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200 ,Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/180s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 12, 2009tags: Little Bee-eater, Merops pusillus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Little Bee-eater, Merops pusillus, photographed in Amboseli National Park, Kenya, Africa. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Dan Logen, 6 August 2006 [larger view].
Nikon D2X, 200-400 mm VR lens at 400. ISO 250, 1/160, f/5
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 11, 2009tags: Sharp-tailed Grouse, Tympanuchus phasianellus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery birds] Sharp-tailed Grouse, Tympanuchus phasianellus, photographed at roughly 9am in the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument in Montana. [I will identify these birds for you tomorrow]
Image: Bardiac, 7 June 2009 [larger view].
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 10, 2009tags: Northern Pygmy-Owl, Glaucidium californicum, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Northern Pygmy-Owl, Glaucidium californicum, photographed in Clallum County, Washington State. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Marv Breece, 23 May 2009 [larger view].
Canon EOS 350D 1/2000s f/7.1 at 300.0mm iso400
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 9, 2009tags: Pangani Longclaw, Macronyx aurantiigula, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Pangani Longclaw, Macronyx aurantiigula, photographed in Tarangire National Park in Tanzania, Africa. [I will identify this bird for you tomorrow]
Image: Dan Logen, 30 August 2007 [larger view].
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 8, 2009tags: Birds in the News, BirdNews, ornithology, birds, avian, newsletter
Boreal or Tengmalm's Owl, Aegolius funereus.
Boreal Owls are circumpolar, occupying subalpine and northern, or boreal,
forests around the globe. These seasonally monogamous birds nest in small
cavities; woodpecker holes, other natural tree cavities, or man-made nest boxes.
These small owls occasionally irrupt from their northerly homes in search of food.
Image: orphaned [larger view].
This edition of Birds in the News is dedicated to Snowflake and Biosparite, and to Miriam, whose $upport was inspired by Birds in the…
grrlscientist | June 8, 2009tags: Tree Swallow, Tachycineta bicolor, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery birds] Tree Swallow, Tachycineta bicolor, photographed at Anahuac Refuge, Texas. Are they all the same species? [I will identify these birds for you tomorrow]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 1 May 2009 [larger view].
Nikon D200 ,Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/320s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Review all mystery birds to date.
grrlscientist | June 8, 2009tags: dancing bird, Wire-tailed manakin, Pipra filicauda, behavior, ornithology, birds, nature, streaming video
This streaming video records the dance of a male Wire-tailed manakin, Pipra filicauda, a lovely passerine species endemic to the lower areas near rivers in the rainforests of northeastern Peru, southeastern Colombia, eastern Ecuador and western Brazil [1:30]