feather Archives - Page 8 of 30

Scarlet

The Southern Red Bishop is a common and widespread resident and local nomad in marshy grassland, savanna and fields, usually associated with water. They favour breeding in reed beds, and sometimes also in crops. They are highly gregarious and sedentary, and feeds, roosts and breed in flocks. Their distribution is from Angola, Uganda and Kenya, south to the whole of Southern Africa; mainly near perennial water and less common in the dry west. Locally common to abundant, the females outnumber males at a ratio of 3 to 2. Longevity is 12 years. Their general habitat is open grassland, marshes and cultivated areas, typically with close access to perennial water. They are gregarious year-round, form large flocks during the non-breeding season, often with other granivores, and roost in reed beds. It regularly drinks water by sipping, then tips the bill to swallow.

19 March 2019Nature, Picture of the day

Strut

The beauty of the Egyptian goose is sometimes taken for granted, thanks to its proliferation all over South Africa, and stretching right up to the north of the African continent. It is endemic to the Nile Valley and the entire area south of the Sahara Desert. The Egyptian Goose is related to the shelduck and is a cross between a duck and a goose. The Egyptian goose has vivid markings that are striking and impressive. In fact, they were considered to be holy by the Egyptians, who often included them in works of art due to their undeniable beauty. This bird is pale brown and grey, with rich brown or chestnut markings around the eyes, around the neck (resembling a collar), on a portion of the wings, and under the otherwise black tail. In stark contrast, there are crisp white markings on the wings, complemented by an intense emerald on the secondary feathers of the males. There is also a well-defined brown patch right in the centre of the chest. The female of the species is slightly smaller than her male counterparts. Apart from this, there are few to no clear differences between the sexes.

19 February 2019Picture of the day, Wildlife

Burst

The common bulbul is usually seen in pairs or small groups. It is a conspicuous bird, which tends to sit at the top of a bush. As with other bulbuls they are active and noisy birds. The flight is bouncing and woodpecker-like. The call is a loud doctor-quick doctor-quick be-quick be-quick. This species nests throughout the year in the moist tropics, elsewhere it is a more seasonal breeder with a peak in breeding coinciding with the onset of the rainy season. The nest is fairly rigid, thick-walled, and cup-shaped. It is situated inside the leafy foliage of a small tree or shrub. Two or three eggs is a typical clutch. It, like other bulbuls, is parasitised by the Jacobin cuckoo. These species eat fruit, nectar, seeds and insects.

16 January 2019Picture of the day, Wildlife