Feathers and Fluff

 

Here we have a selection of birds starting at the top with a mallard duckling, then a black necked stilt and finally a Puna teal.

All of the pictures were taken in Chester Zoo but the first two species can be seen in the wild around the UK whereas the teal is a resident of the Andes in Peru. It has a striking blue bill.

The ducklings were sat with their mother in the shade of a picnic table and while a common sight I couldn't resist the calm relaxed expressions.

The stilt is very elegant and I loved the reflections as it carefully waded through its pool in search of food.

Dabbling

The teal is a surface feeding duck dabbling on the surface for seeds or upending to feed just below the surface on small snails or insect larvae.

They are quite small and tend to flock together in small social groups.

As with most birds the males are much more brightly coloured that the females as can be seen in the second picture.

They really are beautiful birds but the teal also gives its name to a colour but looking at these pictures I wonder what the colour teal actually is. I am told it is the stripe around and behind his eye...

It's A Teal

Today I have a couple more pictures from my New Years photo shoot at Mere Sands. This is a teal which is the smallest common duck and generally can be found in marshy ponds.

This one was part of a small flock that were feeding in the shallow waters around a reed bed. Although it looks quite relaxed it was very alert and they are able to take off almost vertically if alarmed. Luckily there was nothing to spook this chap and the still water provides nice reflections and gentle ripples.Te