Freckled Ducks (Stictonetta naevosa), male (top) and female. Native to southern Australia, it is protected by law in all states. The ducks are easily identified by their large heads with a peaked crown. The Freckled Duck feeds by dabbling in shallow water, often by wading near the edge. It prefers large, well-vegetated swamps, but moves to open water after breeding or in dry periods.
(photo: Benjamint444) (via: Wikipedia)
Conservation for Migratory Birds
Today we announced $25 million to conserve habitats for migratory waterfowl, shorebirds, waterbirds, and landbirds.
With the help of U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service_Federal Duck Stamp dollars and North American Wetlands Conservation Act grants, USFWS and partners will conserve more than 170,000 acres.
Learn more: http://www.fws.gov/
photo: Northern Pintail Ducks, byJM Garg
Sea-Level Rise Forecasted in New Study Poses Grave Threat to Many Nesting Birds at Pacific Islands
ABC media release
Dynamic modeling of sea-level rise, which takes storm wind and wave action into account, paints a much graver picture for birds at some low-lying Pacific islands under climate-change scenarios than the so-called passive models used in earlier research, according to a new U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) report.
A team led by research oceanographer Curt Storlazzi of the USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center compared passive “bathtub” inundation models (which analyze rising sea levels without considering effects of wave action and storm wind) with dynamic models for two of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands in the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. The team studied Midway, a classic atoll with islands on the shallow (2–8 meters or 6–26 feet deep) atoll rim and a deep, central lagoon, and Laysan, which is higher, with a 20–30 meter (65–98 feet) deep rim and an island in the center of the atoll.
Together, the two locations exhibit landforms and coastal features common to many Pacific islands. Managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, they are also among the world’s most important seabird nesting sites, as well as being home to the endangered Laysan Duck, Laysan Finch, and a recently established population of Millerbirds…
(read more: American Bird Conservancy) (photo: USFWS)
Spectacled Eider (Somateria fischeri)
…is a large species of sea duck native to the coasts of Alaska and Siberia. Like other sea ducks the spectacled eider dives for its meals which usually consist of molluscs and crustaceans. The spectacled eider like other eider species is sexually dimorphic as males sport a striking white, black and green coloration while females have a more modest chocolate brown coloration. During the breeding season eider pairs will move inland to tundras close to the sea to lay their young.
Phylogeny
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The Paradise Shelduck (Tadorna variegata) is a large goose-like duck endemic to New Zealand.
Uncommon prior to European settlement, populations of this prized game bird have increased considerably due to habitat changes and deliberate provisioning on ponds by duck hunters. Before the arrival of Europeans, the Māori hunted Paradise Shelducks, but overexploitation of smaller duck populations was prevented by a taboo on hunting during the breeding season.
More about this species on EOL: http://eol.org/pages/1047362
(“Surfer chicks” image by Dave Young via Flickr)
A female Common Merganser (Mergus merganser), in Hogganfield Loch, Glasgow, Scotland.
(photo: Mark Medcalf)
A female common merganser catching a fish was taken by wildlife, photographed by Henryk Janowski who managed to get inches away from the action by using an ingenious floating canopy crafted to look like a swan.
Picture: HENRYK JANOWSKI/CATERS NEWS
(via: Daily Telegraph UK)
fairy-wren: Torrent Duck (Merganetta armata), South America
- males with black and white, females with ruddy and gray
(Photos by L.Kay, Dustin Huntington and Sam Woods)
Wash from my feet
the edges of mud, brown earth
water sky water
Fair winds feather
across the newly aroused
wetlands, my love
Unshakable
the grass filtered moon
tails of ducklings
Shadows of the cold
faced moon, we shed the white
wind long sky
Ann says:
After an accidental encounter between Dan Collins’ truck and a duck, he wrote a haiku series to honor his unfortunate victim. Notice how the poems are written from a waterfowl’s point of view and move through the seasons.Copyright 2013 by Dan Collins. You can read more of Dan’s work here.
Image credits: 1.dreamstime.com 2. M. Scott Moon 3. ehow.com
fairy-wren: Common Eider (Somateria mollissima), Northern Seas
(photos by tony persson)
Harlequin Duck (Histrionicus histrionicus)
Is a species of sea duck native to northeastern North America. Named for the males impressive blue, white and chestnut markings. Females on the other hand are a less impressive brown color. Like most sea ducks they feed in the ocean where they will either dive or dabble for a meal of crustaceans or molluscs. During breeding season the will move to inland streams where they will nest.
Phylogeny
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fairy-wren: male Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola) in Flight
* finally got to see one :>
(photo by conrad tan)
Instincts by Mark Pain
dendroica: King-Eider (Somateria spectabilis)
Æðarkóngur og æðarkolla
(photo by sindri_skulason on Flickr)
Genus Vegavis
vegavis was a genus of anseriform (ducks, swans, geese and allies) birds native to Cretaceous Antarctica Although it is an anseriform and related to ducks and geese it not thought to be a direct ancestor of modern ducks and geese. So far there is only one species described (V. iaai) the discovery of this species demonstrated the diversity of birds that were living with the “dinosaurs” during the Cretaceous period.
Phylogeny
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