DAY 255: RUBY THROATED HUMMINGBIRD

You may have seen this photo recently on Facebook.  Here's some interesting info about these beautiful tiny birds (from worldofhummingbirds.com)

• Hummingbirds are the tiniest birds in the world.
• Hummingbirds can flash their bright colors, as well as hide them when needed.
• The bright radiant color on hummingbirds comes from iridescent coloring like on a soap bubble.
• A Gorget is the bright flashing colored feathers of the hummingbird's neck.
• A hummingbird's brain is 4.2% of its body weight, the largest proportion in the bird kingdom.
• Hummingbirds are very smart and they can remember every flower they have been to, and how long it will take a flower to refill.
• Hummingbirds can hear better, & see further than humans
• Hummingbirds can see ultraviolet light.
• Hummingbirds have little to no sense of smell.
• A hummingbird will use its tongue to lap up nectar from flowers and feeders.
• A hummingbird's tongue is grooved like the shape of a "W".
• Hummingbirds have tiny hairs on the tip of the tongue to help lap up nectar.
• A hummingbird's beak is shaped like any other bird beak, just longer in proportion to its body.
• The edges of the hummingbird's top beak will overlap the edges of the hummingbird's bottom beak.
• Hummingbirds do not drink through their beaks like a straw. They lap up nectar with their tongues.
• A hummingbird's heart beats up to 1,260 times per minute.
• A hummingbird's heart is 2.5% of the total body weight.
• A hummingbird will take about 250 breaths per minute while at rest.
• A hummingbird's metabolism is roughly 100 times that of an elephant.
• Hummingbirds have very weak feet and can barely walk. They prefer to fly.
• Hummingbirds like to perch.
• A hummingbird baby is generally smaller than a penny.

DAY 254: PARROTS RULE, OK?

Continuing from yesterday's post.....

Do you like to clean? Birds of all kinds are messy. They eat by shelling their seeds and, generally, tossing the shell out on your floor while eating the "meat." If you think that's messy, you should see them do the same to a piece or fruit or pelleted food! Some are notorious for dunking their food in water and then tossing it. Some have a penchant for playing food war. That is not to mention the spilled water, feathers and everything else. If you can't stand a messy house, stick with another type of pet.

Are you afraid to be "outsmarted" by a bird? Most parrots have the intelligence level of a 2-3 year old child but they act like a spoiled child. Every parrot I've known delighted in finding ways to make it's owner or whoever was around pay attention to them. "Moms not around, maybe if I tump my water dish, she'll come over." They know exactly what they're doing and they demand to be in the centre of attention. Most bird people I know are often tricked by their birds to give them exactly what they want.

Are you ready for a lifetime commitment? A Macaw can live for up to 75 years? He's liable to outlive you! 

DAY 253: POLLY AND HER CRACKERS

Parrots are wonderful pets. They are beautiful, intelligent, loving companions who will keep you occupied for hours and keep you company for the rest of your life. But, Parrots are loud, destructive animals, throw temper tantrums, scream, throw food, make you clean up after them for hours and will be with you the rest of your life!!

Both scenarios are true of this popular pet. It's true that a parrot can make a wonderful pet for the initiated. However, a bored, lonely, badly socialized parrot can be your worst nightmare. Before you invest your money and your time in a parrot think about a few things:

Do you need quiet? In the wild, parrots show "love" by screaming at each other. That is why, if you scream at Polly, Polly gets excited and screams even louder back at you. She's saying "yay! This is a fun game with my friend". In the wild, this is how they call to each other. She thinks you're calling to her.

Do you like to clean? Birds of all kinds are messy. Bird eat by shelling their seeds and, generally, tossing the shell out on your floor while eating the "meat." If you think that's messy, you should see them do the same to a piece or fruit or pelleted food! They attempt to shed everything, even if it's not "shelled." 

There's lots more, but maybe you've already been put off.......

DAY 252: THE STINKY HOOPOE!

In addition to its beautiful plumage, the hoopoe is unfortunately also noted for its filthy, malodorous (stinky) nest. The bad odour comes from a combination of putrefying excrement (poo), which the bird does not trouble to remove, and from defensive musty-smelling secretions released from the preen gland of the female when she is disturbed. 

This reminds me of a story told when we were visiting Hout Bay - we took a trip on the boat that goes around Seal Island. All was going well and there was a lovely fresh breeze blowing. Then the captain issued a warning:  when the boat turned direction to head back to harbour, there would be a very strong smell - and he put it down to:  the more slippery the animal (the seal), the stronger the smell.  He was right - it was HORRENDOUS! 

DAY 251: THE HOOPOE AND ISRAEL

Did you know that the Hoopoe is Israel’s national bird? 

This peculiar-looking bird encapsulates a typical Israeli: although it has a crown, it doesn’t act like a snob, you can find it everywhere and people refer to it as a symbol of wisdom. The hoopoe is a beautiful bird with a crown or crest on top of its head. It has a peculiar call of “hood hood hood” which is why it is named “Hood” in Arabic and “Upupa Epops” in Latin. 

It has no housing problems -  it nests on walls and cracks and gender equality is on its agenda; male and female are equally pretty and take similar responsibilities over their offspring.

Next time you visit Israel, look for the hoopoe – you will find it walking or flying in couples almost everywhere, decorating nature with its beautiful colors, shapes and unique crown.

DAY 250: THE HOOPOE

HOOPOE is the common name for a beautiful shy, solitary, Old World woodland bird. Its body color ranges from cinnamon to chestnut, with white-barred, black wings and tail, and a head topped by a prominent, erectile crest. 

Hoopoes measure from 27–30 cm, bill to tail. They are primarily ground feeders and use their long, slender, decurved bills to probe for large insects, worms, and lizards. Less frequently, the Hoopoe feeds while airborne, exhibiting its characteristic undulating erratic flight.

Hoopoes are excellent runners. Found throughout the Old World, Hoopoes frequent warm, dry areas, which are at least partially open. The northernmost species, which reach the English Channel and the Baltic Sea, are migratory in winter. The nest is built in a tree cavity or a rock crevice, sometimes lined with debris, or sometimes bare. The female lays and incubates from four to six pale blue to olive colored eggs per clutch and is fed during incubation by her mate. Both sexes care for the naked, helpless young.

DAY 249: FLAMINGOS (7) WHAT'S ON THE MENU?

Flamingos are filter feeders, the bird equivalent of baleen whales. They skate slowly through their chosen wetland, as stiff and pompous as Monty Python’s philosophers on a soccer field, treading through mud and water with their webbed feet, panning for brine shrimp, algae, insects, larvae, whatever the local microbios may be.

A flamingo submerges its head upside down, allowing its bent upper bill, with its curtain of comblike filaments, to serve as scoop and colander, all abetted by its formidable machine tool of a tongue. 

The tongue is like a piston - it moves back and forth rapidly, pumping water into the bill and then squirting it back out the sides. And so the pumping and squirting continues, until the flamingo has managed to sieve together some nine ounces of food a day.