oksanaetal 的最愛

I keep seeing these birds recently. This is one in particular that I saw. ID suggested by friends that I consulted. It flew off too quickly to get a photo, but I sketched what I remembered on my phone immediately after I saw it.

Dark-brownish-grayish bird with a rusty-colored belly, a yellow beak, and some light gray streaks around the ends of the wings.

http://bugguide.net/node/view/549549

Identification

Black abdomen with white triangles in middle only, "distinctive and unmistakable"(1)

Range

Eastern North America, primarily northern

Très mauvaise photo (qui mérite de figurer au "What’s the worst pic you uploaded to iNat?" [1]), mais oiseau très bien observé... juste pas eu le temps de faire la mise au point 😉

[1] https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/whats-the-worst-pic-you-uploaded-to-inat/40286/471?u=sylvainm_53

On a hunch, I flipped a rock over to look for red-backed salamanders. Lo and behold, I found 3! After carrying them to safety (away from the chickens) I flipped over another rock and found a fourth salamander. This one was carried to the same mossy puddle as the other ones.

Aquí hay una importante población de Bisontes desde hace más de 50 años, cabe mencionar que este lugar fue parte de su distribución natural por lo que puede considerarse como una especie nativa al lugar.

I feel like I should post one of those warnings you see on some TV shows...."Viewer Discretion is Advised; some images may be disturbing to some viewers". After some of the road kill images that are posted on iNat perhaps this is not too bad. At least it was completely natural, unlike the slaughter caused by vehicles on our wildlife.

Between 1996-2005, I was a bird guide on 13 trips to Antarctica. During those trips I saw lots of Leopard Seal attacks on penguins, but none stands out in my mind more than this one. This adult Chinstrap Penguin had somehow escaped from the jaws of a Leopard Seal, but was mortally injured. The penguin was virtually "de-gloved" whereby its skin was almost removed from its body. The penguin struggled ashore where it stood still for 10 or 15 minutes, much to the distress of several tour participants I had with me. As the penguin stood there, several Brown Skuas began to gather about, waiting for the inevitable to happen. Slowly the penguin walked farther away and out of immediate view, with 4 or 5 skuas walking along behind it. I did not follow, but rather decided to allow the scene to unfold without my observation and intrusion. It was a reminder that nature can be tough and brutal.

Image 4 shows a small portion of the Chinstrap Penguin colony at this location.

image scanned from 35 mm slides
Bailey Head,
Deception Island,
Antarctica
29 January 2002