Tag: feather

Colony

The beautiful Boulders Beach is one of Cape Town’s most visited beaches and the only place in the world where you get close to African Penguins. In 1982 a couple of these little crowd-pleasers settled on the soft white sand between the large granite boulders that protect the beach from wind and large, stormy waves, and currently the population is estimated between 2,000 and 3,000 birds. Sadly the African Penguin has been classified as an endangered species, due to things like over-fishing, habitat destruction, pollution, and irresponsible tourism activities, and the Boulders Beach colony has also felt the effect, with numbers dwindling over the last couple of years.

Colony

Picture of the day, Travel, Wildlife

Whistler

White-faced whistling duck vocalizes frequently with distinctive high-pitched, multi-syllabic whistles which sound very unduck-like. Male and female calls differ slightly and may be a bonding mechanism. Its attractive appearance make it a popular bird in waterfowl collections. They are usually in flocks. They spend a lot of time sitting on the banks. Most foraging activity takes place at night; during the day the birds roost near the water, often in flocks of several hundred, and preen themselves and others. Whistling ducks are more arboreal than many other species of duck, spending part of the day perched on a branch. They are fast swimmers but do not dive except for food.

Whistler

Picture of the day, Wildlife

Raucous

The pied crow is approximately the size of the European carrion crow (46–52 cm in length) but has a longer bill, slightly longer tail and wings, and longer legs. As its name suggests, its glossy black head and neck are interrupted by a large area of white feathering from the shoulders down to the lower breast but the tail, bill and wings are black. The eyes of a fully matured bird are dark brown. The white plumage of immature birds is often mixed with black. It resembles the White-necked and thick-billed ravens but is much smaller, less stocky and has a smaller bill.

Raucous

Picture of the day, Wildlife