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how to display birds
fantastic display of new zealand birds in a museum
they were taped down in a drawer which you only found if you opened it
pukeko
pukekos are always about, but they seemed to be loads of them last weekend which delighted me. as i love them.
the keepers have their favourites
you see that parrot ? it's superb
just sleeping ?
there were a number of dead birds on auckland's queen street earlier in the week. i spotted a leg first, then another leg, then some seagull feathers. and then this further up the hill. makes you think doesn't it ?
kea
a pesky kiwi bird botherer
two tuis in the garden
these two tuis were in our garden which was quite nice as they are lovely and kiwi-y.
do not hop in the pens
blatant disobedience by the cockerel here
but putting a prohibition on hopping was a bit unfair on the rabbits
so good on the birds for breaking rank and revealing the sign's stupidity
the pigeons fight back
please do not feed the pigeons
do not abandon chickens
it is illegal to abandon chickens or to uplift them from this area
meany red legs
this bird single handedly (wingedly) cleared a whole flock of birds out the way at a beach we visited recently. it ruffled its feathers up, pushed its head back and stomped at each one in turn, driving them away like an over zealous school care takers. it was the stuff of comedy gold.
wild chickens
we live a bit out of town from the main part of Auckland - we're not rural by any means, but we're close to it. you can get all the way from my office to our home without leaving any urban streets containing houses for example.
but within a few short minutes drive you can be out in the sticks (or the 'wops' as they refer to it). and one of the great thing about that is you see a lot of wild chickens wandering about.
this was a particularly large one in an ice cream shop carpark.
some birds
it's a flying king fisher and a heron in down town auckland
two birds just like back in the UK. both common sights over here apparentlinio.
headless penguin
another of my classic headless birds/animals pictures.
and to make up here's a penguin with two heads
two heads are better than none i say
red kites
you know what, i'm going to really miss the red kites when we leave
sometimes there are literally over a dozen swooping by around our house
and if i'm working from home they often swoop lower than our upstairs window meaning we can look down on them
just the other day one sat on the roof across the road. i just had time to grab my camera before it whizzed off again. i hadn't realised their faces were so blue. i guess that's why they call them red kites.
the birds at auckland zoo
the birds at auckland zoo wre very good at sitting next to their sign posts so you could see what they were.
although sometimes you did need to look closely to see where they were
and if you stood still long enough they would fly at you
and sit on your head
but elsewhere they just looked and stared
strange bird in hyde park
what sort of bird is this that was wobbling round hyde park yesterday ? let me know i you can brave the commenting system. or comment on the flickr picture here
pretty (but dead) bird
this bird had dropped out of a tree and was lying on the ground quite stiff. but still looking very beautiful. i resisted the urge to wear it as a brooch and just took a photo instead.
queuing for their treats
i'm reading animal farm with esther at the moment. these swans have learnt to queue up for their treats
falcons
there are birds up the tate modern chimley
sometimes they have people with telescopes so you can see them proper.
here's a view down (up?) the telescope
day 11 pembrokeshire county show part 3
of course there were animals at the show too
and i loved how they covered a bull's head with rosettes.
because you don't want to upset a bull by sticking things all over its face do you ? note the slobber
no one likes being called heavy.
ducks with a nice long necks. i think they could do with some arms stuck on the sides of their bodies
this was a bit unfortunate. it was a cage with something hidden under some sawdust. no one likes a loser
there were some more serious birds outside
this little barn owl brought his barn owl caravan
and he was keeping an eye on me
here is a sign i can agree with.
and i loved how they covered a bull's head with rosettes.
because you don't want to upset a bull by sticking things all over its face do you ? note the slobber
there was a bird section
no one likes being called heavy.
ducks with a nice long necks. i think they could do with some arms stuck on the sides of their bodies
this was a bit unfortunate. it was a cage with something hidden under some sawdust. no one likes a loser
there were some more serious birds outside
this little barn owl brought his barn owl caravan
and he was keeping an eye on me
here is a sign i can agree with.
and some of the animals seemed slightly larger than life
the bird in our garden
this bird of prey popped in to our garden when we were having tea last night. it then dived in to our neighbour's garden.
we have a lot of nature round our way. in the last few days, from our garden you've been able to see a passing hedgehog, half a dozen red kites and now a hawk (?).
there was a moth on the lawn the other day too.
not a red heron
well done to mr exile who scores a direct hit. it's a grey heron in hyde park.
classic combo
you don't get better than this. falconry displays and 'have a go' archery.
wildlife photography
tony gets up real close to a heron. click to admire in full glory
pigeon worrier
today and yesterday i'm on a work course at Chelsea football club. during the breaks we popped out on to the terrace to look at the view. at one point this bird landed on the railing next to our seating area. there were two of these flying machines apparently worrying pigeons
biological hazards
there are signs along the M4 motorway on the way in to london which inform drivers they are entering a Foot and Mouth control zone. i always pull over my car and let the cows out.
there are enough biological hazards in the UK without people risking further infection by putting pigeons on their heads in the name of tourism. i can't be doing with pigeons.
the day i got terrorised by seagulls whilst looking for puffins thus proving i'm a chicken
i went to inchcolm island to see the puffins. but unfortunately i got terrorised by hundreds (literally) of angry seagulls who were nesting along the path that would take me close to where the puffins would be. the puffins have been scared off too it seems which is a shame.
i did see the seals (sea the seels?) but that wasn't quite the same. the closest i got was possibly this but it's probably not puffins
home of a tree
what kind of bird lives in these funny boxes ?
lost bird
this chap had lost his bird of prey.
it eventually turned up of course, and nearly flew in to the commentary box
mystery bird
is this some fancy bird flapping around central london ? It seemed to be doing that fancy stationary flying (treading air?) that those kinds of birds do
and is was making quite a bit of noise too, which is why i looked up and sawed it.
caption competition
before:
after:
what did they say to upset the bird on the left ?
sky rat landing zone
this tourist is taking her life in hand by letting these pidgies land on her head. they are known to carry horrible diseases as well as being unpleasant to look at.
and the pigeons are just as bad. boom tish.
woodpecker outside our front door
jane spotted this and knew what it was.
where to check in (chicken) at the bird hotel
bird box with the word 'reception' writen on it. can birds read ?
twitchy
i went for a walk yesterday afternoon with Richard drummer and Big Eye Tony. our walk took us by some bird hides so we decided to become bird experts.
tony big eye is already a bird expert it seems, but Richard was less so, and, as you are already aware, i'm generally clueless on matters of nature.
here is tony with his fancy binoculars (bins/binos/'oculas)
if you want to know what birds we saw then there's a list below:
three legged bird
here's a funny thing. it's a bird with three legs. you might need to click the picture for a bigger view
greedy grebe
grebe and wiggly fish
grebe with stiller fish
grebe with swallowed fish
pigeon in flight
are you familiar with the John Shuttleworth song Pigeons In Flight ? If not, you should be. it's very good.
seagulls
seagulls and eagles are actually different words. i've tried explaining that to kezia but she won't listen. perhaps it's me that's got it wrong. it wouldn't be the first time i've got very confused on such things.
dove
another bird appearing to have no head. this picture looks a bit better bigger, so don't be frightened to click it
here it is half a second later (proving it does have a head)
mad chicken
this is a fancy breed of chicken which has mad feathers on its head preventing people from seeing its face. unfortunately it also gives the appearance that its head has been chopped off ! (which it hadn't)
two herons in a tree
here they are a bit closer up
bird flew
it's a day for sequences today, so here's a sequence of a pelican flying in st james' park
they never seem to get very high
it seems to be about shaking your wings enough to fling yourself out of the water
before giving up and splatting back down in the water
vin's birds
Vin is a regular commenter on funkypancake, and sent me this fantastic bird picture which he made reference to on his comment here.
click to enjoy it's excellentness. i really should spend longer trying to take my photos !
bird
it's that bird again. this time flying away
diving madly in to the crowd
bird of prey
here's a bird of prey at a country show demonstration. no idea what sort.
peregrine falcon
remember this ? i thought they were photographers, but they were/are actually bird watchers. i attempted to take some photos but failed miserably:
there's a couple of peregrine falcons living up the Tate Modern tower and they've got their telescopes trained on them.
if you are in the vicinity of the South Bank you must go and have a look. they are quite fantastic
here are the two bird-men looking completely in the wrong direction
