Birds of the World

Common white and black ibis. Adult has bare black head, while juvenile has feathered head. Originally associated with wetlands and marshes (fresh and salt), it is now often seen in urban areas and has developed a reputation as the "Bin Chicken" due to its habit of scavenging food.

Identification
63–76 cm; 1400–2500 g, female lighter; wingspan 110–125 cm. Male generally larger, with longer bill, as in most ibises. Narrow pinkish transversal nuchal tracts . Bill thinner and legs less intensely black than congeners; in breeding plumage easily separated from T. aethiopicus by extensive feathering up neck , with ornamental plumes on foreneck; black tips to primaries only . Non breeding adult has tertials dull grey, less lacy, and lacks neck plumes; bare skin of underwing pink instead of red. Immature totally feathered on head and neck , variably dark; tertials greyish brown, not lacy. Race pygmaeus significantly smaller.

Habitat
Inland wetlands , especially shallow swamps with abundant vegetation , and floodplains; sheltered marine habitats, especially tidal mudflats, mangrove swamps, salt pans and coastal lagoons; also grasslands, cultivation, open areas and recently burnt land, often far from wetlands.

Movement
Most adults sedentary, although throughout range some irregular, nomadic movements occur, sometimes over long distances, and usually related to availability of water. Population of SW Australia partially migratory, apparently moving N in winter, returning S in summer. Young birds disperse widely.

Breeding
Season very variable according to prevailing water conditions. Usually forms colonies of up to 20,000 pairs, sometimes with other Ciconiiformes; occasionally in single pairs. Nest is compact cup of sticks and twigs, lined with leaves and other soft materials; where breeds in swamps, nest built of reeds. 1–4 eggs , with clutches of 5–6 eggs recorded, but possibly laid by 2 females; incubation 20–23 days; chicks have blackish brown down on head and neck, white on body; leave nest at 30–48 days. Success varies annually: in study of 2025 breeding attempts, 51% failed; 1·73 young fledged per successful nest.

https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/ausibi1/cur/introduction

Australian Magpie (Western Gymnorhina tibicen dorsalis

Distribution
SW Western Australia (E almost to Eucla, S of Great Victoria Desert).

Identification
37–43 cm; c. 210–360 g (races combined), 212–325 g (terraereginae), 265–360 g (dorsalis), c. 300 g (nominate). Large black-and-white cracticid with long, heavy bill slightly hooked at tip, tail relatively short and square-ended, thighs feathered, long legs with large strong feet; wings long, broad at base, with pointed tip.

Habitat
Open habitats with low ground cover such as grasses. Originally inhabited open eucalypt (Eucalyptus) woodlands, now found also in farmland and urban areas that provide open areas of grassland with mature trees nearby. Occurs in remnant vegetation patches, homestead trees, shelter-belts and windbreaks, along roads and rivers, also on edges of forest or woodland adjacent to farmland; in urban areas common in large parks, vegetation reserves and older suburbs with large gardens, lawns and well-grown trees.

Movement
Primarily sedentary. Non-breeding flocks formed by some races are more mobile within local areas, roosting several kilometres from feeding locations. Occasional long-distance movements of ringed individuals recorded, but no indication that such movement is frequent.

Diet and Foraging
Invertebrates , especially terrestrial insects; also small vertebrates, including frogs, lizards, small birds and small mammals. Will eat carrion if available, or take insects present on a carcass. Forages in groups, members of which spread out over quite a large area, rather than feeding close together. Feeds mainly on ground

https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/ausmag2/cur/introduction?login
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_magpie

Small upright duck. Male is gray with a brown head, while the female is more heavily marked with pale marks on face. Nests in tree-hollows and can be quite noisy when perched up in the branches. Often abundant in urban parklands and grassy areas.

Identification
44–56 cm; male 700–955 g (1), female 662–984 g; wingspan 78–80 cm. Structure reminiscent of small Chloephaga, with plump body, relatively long legs, stubby bill and conspicuous black-and-white-spotted breast. Male has warm brown head and neck, with black, mane-like crest that can be expanded in display, largely grey body that is vermiculated on flanks, and charcoal black back to tail, as well as belly and vent; bill dark grey, legs and feet grey-brown, and eyes dark brown. Female is less obviously patterned, having paler head , but obvious white supercilium and stripe below eye, spotted breast and brown-barred underparts, white white belly to undertail-coverts; in flight both sexes show grey forewing with broad white patch on innerwing and dark green speculum. Juvenile resembles female, but paler and has breast distinctly streaked, rather than spotted.

Habitat
Favours freshwater marshes, waste stabilization ponds (2) and farm dams with abundant grazing, often surrounded by open deciduous forest and swampy open woods; generally inland , moving up rivers; also on saline wetlands early in their drying cycle (3). Particularly common in croplands and stock-grazed areas, but commonly seen at ponds in urban areas (1)

Movement
Mostly sedentary, perhaps occupying same waterbody throughout life but also somewhat dispersive, with concentrations mainly found in far SW Australia and throughout wetter parts of E Australia (1); can be found almost anywhere with suitable habitat in Australia and Tasmania, but is largely absent from arid zone running from NW of continent to Australian Bight (1).

Breeding
Starts mainly Jul (1)/Aug, but season variable and can occur year-round, depending on rainfall. Monogamous with long-term pair-bonds (1). In single pairs, which prospect for suitable site together (1); nests in tree hollows or nestboxes, adding much pale grey down (1). Clutch 8–11 creamy white or cream-coloured eggs, up to 18 recorded, probably due to dump laying, with eggs laid at 1–2-day intervals, size 53–62 mm × 40–45 mm, mass (in captivity) 45–62 g (1); incubation c. 28–34 days by female alone guarded by male (1); chicks have grey-brown to dark brown down above , whitish buff below, with two dark stripes on face and weigh c. 38 g on hatching (in captivity) (1); capable of grazing at 2–3 days old (1), fledging 57 days, being cared for by both parents until this time in brood-rearing territory (often within 400 m of nest-site) (8), thereafter gathering into larger flocks (1).

https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/manduc1/cur/introduction?login

Ghostly pale and strictly nocturnal, Barn Owls are silent predators of the night world. Lanky, with a whitish face, chest, and belly, and buffy upperparts, this owl roosts in hidden, quiet places during the day. By night, they hunt on buoyant wingbeats in open fields and meadows. You can find them by listening for their eerie, raspy calls, quite unlike the hoots of other owls. Despite a worldwide distribution, Barn Owls are declining in parts of their range due to habitat loss.

Size & Shape: These medium-sized owls have long, rounded wings and short tails, which combine with a buoyant, loping flight to give them a distinctive flight style. The legs are long and the head is smoothly rounded, without ear tufts.

Color Pattern: Barn Owls are pale overall with dark eyes. They have a mix of buff and gray on the head, back, and upperwings, and are white on the face, body, and underwings. When seen at night they can appear all white.

Behavior: Barn Owls nest and roost in cavities, abandoned barns and other buildings, and dense trees. At night, Barn Owls hunt by flying low, back and forth over open habitats, searching for small rodents primarily by sound.

Habitat; Barn Owls require large areas of open land over which to hunt. This can either be marsh, grasslands, or mixed agricultural fields. For nesting and roosting, they prefer quiet cavities, either in trees or man-made structures such as barns or silos.

Cool Facts

• Barn Owls swallow their prey whole—skin, bones, and all. About twice a day, they cough up pellets instead of passing all that material through their digestive tracts. The pellets make a great record of what the owls have eaten, and scientists study them to learn more about the owls and the ecosystems they live in.
• Up to 46 different races of the Barn Owl have been described worldwide. The North American form is the largest, weighing more than twice as much as the smallest race from the Galapagos Islands.
• Barn Owl females are somewhat showier than males. She has a more reddish and more heavily spotted chest. The spots may indicate the quality of the female. Heavily spotted females get fewer parasitic flies and may be more resistant to parasites and diseases. The spots may also stimulate the male to help more at the nest. In an experiment where some females’ spots were removed, their mates fed their nestlings less often than for females whose spots were left alone.
• The Barn Owl has excellent low-light vision, and can easily find prey at night by sight. But its ability to locate prey by sound alone is the best of any animal that has ever been tested. It can catch mice in complete darkness in the lab, or hidden by vegetation or snow out in the real world.
• The oldest known North American Barn Owl lived in Ohio and was at least 15 years, 5 months old.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Barn_Owl/id

A buoyant, large-headed duck that abruptly vanishes and resurfaces as it feeds, the tiny Bufflehead spends winters bobbing in bays, estuaries, reservoirs, and lakes. Males are striking black-and white from a distance. A closer look at the head shows glossy green and purple setting off the striking white patch. Females are a subdued gray-brown with a neat white patch on the cheek. Bufflehead nest in old woodpecker holes, particularly those made by Northern Flickers, in the forests of northern North America.

Size & Shape: Bufflehead are very small, compact ducks with large, rounded heads and short, wide bills.

Color Pattern: Adult male Bufflehead have a white body, black back, and a dark head with a large white patch that wraps around the back of the head. Females and first-year males are gray-brown overall with an oval, white cheek patch. In flight adult males have a large white patch on the upperwing; females and first-year males have a smaller white wing patch.

Behavior: Bufflehead dive underwater to catch aquatic invertebrates. When courting females, male Buffleheads swim in front of them, rapidly bobbing their heads up and down. In flight, you can identify Bufflehead by noting their small size, fast wingbeats, and pattern of rocking side-to side as they fly.

Habitat; Bufflehead are most widespread in migration and winter, when they move south to coasts and large bodies of water, particularly shallow saltwater bays. They breed near lakes in northern forests where conifers mix with poplars or aspens. Bufflehead nest in tree cavities, especially old Northern Flicker holes. In winter, an inveterate wanderer: accidental in Kamchatka, the Kurile Is., Japan, Greenland, Iceland, the British Isles, Belgium, France, Finland, Czechoslovakia, Spain and Portugal

Cool Facts

• The Bufflehead nests almost exclusively in holes excavated by Northern Flickers and, on occasion, by Pileated Woodpeckers
• Unlike most ducks, the Bufflehead is mostly monogamous, often remaining with the same mate for several years.
• Bufflehead normally live only in North America, but in winter they occasionally show up elsewhere, including Kamchatka, Japan, Greenland, Iceland, the British Isles, Belgium, France, Finland, and Czechoslovakia. In some of these cases, the birds may have escaped from captivity.
• Bufflehead fossils from the late Pleistocene (about 500,000 years ago) have been found in Alaska, California, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Texas, and Washington. One California fossil that resembles a modern Bufflehead dates to the late Pliocene, two million years ago.
• The oldest Bufflehead on record was at least 18 years and 8 months old. It was caught and rereleased by a bird bander in New York in 1993.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Bufflehead

Cape Barren geese are large birds found in Australia. They are one of the rarest of the world's geese. They are bulky birds and their almost uniformly grey plumage, bearing rounded black spots, is unique. The tail and flight feathers are blackish and the legs are pink with black feet. The short, decurved black bill and green cere gives it a very peculiar expression. Males of this species are somewhat larger than females.

Size & Shape: 75–100 cm; male 3170–5100 g, female 3180 g (1). Unmistakablephoto . Juvenile averages slightly lighter with heavier spotting on wings and scapulars; cere and legs also paler (the latter greenish or blackish), and iris dull brown (1); cere becomes lime-green at day 70 and moult body feathers to adult plumage at c. 6 months (1).

Behavior: Cape Barren geese are diurnal birds and spend most of their days grazing. They can drink salty and brackish water, due to which they are able to live on separated offshore islands throughout the year. Cape Barren geese don’t tend to swim and will enter the water only in order to protect their chicks. They are gregarious outside the breeding season, when they wander more widely, forming small flocks. At the breeding season, they congregate into loosely organized colonies, where nests are at a distance from each other. Pairs are very territorial and fiercely defend their nesting site against any intruders. When threatened, the goose starts lifting its folded wings again and again while stretching out and pumping its neck and speeds up the movements as the level of aggression increases. Cape Barren geese attack, either rushing forward and keeping their head low and stretched out or running upright with spread wings. Usually, during the mating season, mated pairs imitate these movements, performing them as a "triumph ceremony".

Habitat; Cape Barren geese are distributed in offshore islands near South Australia and Tasmania. After the nesting when goslings have fledged, some populations usually leave the islands and migrate to the adjacent mainland, while other birds remain there throughout the year. Cape Barren geese are usually found in grassy areas, tussock grass, or bushes. They can also be seen on beaches, coastal pastures, in brackish lagoons, and along the shores of freshwater lakes.

Cool Facts

• Once the Cape Barren goose was considered to be an immature phase of the Black swan.
• The call of the Cape Barren goose is quite similar to the grunt of a pig.
• Within 24 hours after hatching, parents introduce the newly hatched goslings to open water.
• Once a year, Cape Barren geese undergo molting, shedding flight and tail feathers to make way for new growth. New feathers grow back in about six weeks. During this period, the birds keep close to the water in order to find protection from predators.
• During the nesting period the male Cape Barren goose looks after the nest from a distance to make sure that predators haven't found its location. On the other hand, leaving the nest, the female covers the eggs with sticks in order to protect them and make them feel comfortable..

https://animalia.bio/cape-barren-goose
https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/cabgoo1/cur/introduction

Common Wood-Pigeon is a burly pigeon with a low, growling song to match. Adorned mostly in subtle shades of lilac and gray, adults also have flashy white (or tan) neck patches trimmed with green iridescence. In flight, all ages are instantly recognizable by their broad white bands in the wing. Common Wood-Pigeons have been very successful in modern-day Europe, nesting in woodlots or city parks and foraging in fields and other open spaces. Millions of these pigeons pass through the Pyrenees and other migratory bottlenecks, and during the winter, they often form huge roosting flocks.

Identification
Distinctive, large bulky gray pigeon with a pale neck patch (lacking on juvenile in late summer–autumn). Neck patch is large and white throughout majority of range, but birds in Azores, Madeira, and much of western Asia have smaller, tan-colored patches. Bold white wing band striking in flight; tail broadly tipped black. Inhabits wooded and semiopen habitats, including towns and gardens. Forms flocks, especially in winter. Often rather unaware, and frequently crashes noisily and clumsily out of hedges and bushes. Display flight consists of a flap-flap-flap climb followed by a descending glide. Gives a low, throaty series of coos: “hrrruu-hoo-who-who.”

Regional Differences
Common Wood-Pigeons are divided into two subspecies groups: “White-necked” and “Cinnamon-necked.” Birds breeding from Ireland to Iran are part of the “White-necked” group, and fittingly, have white neck patches. Birds on the Azores and Madeira are also in the “White-necked” group, even though their neck patches are tan. The “Cinnamon-necked” group breeds in central Asia, with some birds present there year-round and others wintering in northern India and Nepal.

Habitat
Typically a species of the ecotone in deciduous or coniferous woodland. It occurs at 1500–1600 m, and even up to the tree-line in the Alps. The original breeding habitat in central Europe was the edges of old mixed pine and oak forests.

Movement
Northern and Eastern European birds are mostly migratory, as are West Siberian populations. The species is partially migratory or resident in Western, Central & Southern Europe. Large numbers of northern birds winter in the northern Mediterranean countries.

Breeding
Season Aug–Feb or later (Aug–Jan in race flaveolus, Sept–Dec in race adelaidae). Monogamous and territorial, with pair-bonds surviving several years and possibly life-long (1). Nest in hollow limb or trunk of tree (site selected and prepared by female), usually a live or dead eucalypt (also Acmena smithii), lined with dead wood chips (5) and up to 23 m above ground (sometimes < 1 m from it), with minimum spacing between nests of c. 30–40 m

Cool Facts

• Some Common Wood-Pigeons live dangerously, choosing to nest close to Eurasian Hobby nests. These pigeons run a small chance of being eaten by their raptor neighbors, but the benefits— gaining a measure of safety from the falcons' aggressive defense against intruders—seem to outweigh the risks.
• Common Wood-Pigeons build simple stick nests that can look flimsy—sometimes it’s even possible to look up through a nest and see the eggs inside. But these nests prove sturdy, with some used for up to four broods in a single year, and others used in successive years.
• Pigeons and doves feed their young chicks a nutritious substance called crop milk, made by both parents from cells lining their crop (lower esophagus). Crop milk is not related to actual milk, but it’s the main food for nestlings up to a week old, after which the adults gradually feed the chicks more solid food.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Wood-Pigeon

Colorful rosella with blue cheek patches and highly variable plumage, occuring in crimson, yellow, and orange forms. Note diagnostic blue cheek regardless of form (the Green Rosella of Tasmania also has blue cheeks but the two species’ ranges do not normally overlap). Juvenile much greener than adult, attaining a blotched mixed plumage as they transition to adult. Found in a wide range of habitats in southeastern Australia. In many locations it is accustomed to humans and can be quite tame. Contact call is a familiar two-toned whistle.

Identification
30–37 cm; 99–170 g (nominate), 75–140 g (flaveolus), 107–160 g (adelaidae); wingspan 44–53 cm (1). Plumage predominantly red; bill whitish; dark red frontal band through eye, with broad grey-blue lower cheek; feathers of mantle , back and scapulars black edged red, giving scaled effect; lesser wing-coverts black , median and outer secondary coverts and outer secondaries pale grey-blue, flight-feathers blackish; tail above deep blue, lateral feathers tipped white, below pale grey-blue.

Habitat
Coastal and adjacent mountain forests and clearings from sea-level to alpine woodlands at 1900 m (but is mainly found at 600–1500 m in N of range) (5), also penetrating outer suburbs of cities ; most numerous in wet forests and wet woodlands, where annual rainfall exceeds 500 mm.

Movement
Nomadic movements reported in winter at edges of range, but generally sedentary (of 1741 ringed, 146 recoveries, of which only six were away from ringing site) (1). However, some movements observed, with presence or changes in numbers in some areas appear seasonal, though movements may only be local.

Breeding
Season Aug–Feb or later (Aug–Jan in race flaveolus, Sept–Dec in race adelaidae). Monogamous and territorial, with pair-bonds surviving several years and possibly life-long (1). Nest in hollow limb or trunk of tree (site selected and prepared by female), usually a live or dead eucalypt (also Acmena smithii), lined with dead wood chips (5) and up to 23 m above ground (sometimes < 1 m from it), with minimum spacing between nests of c. 30–40 m

https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/criros2/cur/introduction?login
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimson_rosella

Dark waterhen with white edges to the under tail. Bill and forehead shield are primarily red with a yellow tip. Juvenile and non-breeding adult may be confused with other species due to their less colorful bills, which may appear primarily dark. Occurs in a wide variety of wetland habitats and is a common sight in urban parks. Typically fairly vocal, produces a wide array of shrieking sounds.

Identification
35–40 cm (New Guinea birds 25–32 cm); nominate 336–720 (525) g, neumanni 290–370 (333) g; wingspan 55–65 cm. Darker and more uniform in plumage than Eurasian G. c. chloropus, but differs from marginally sympatric G. c. orientalis only in absence of prominent white line along top of flanks, only infrequently showing narrow or broken line; orange to red legs and feet with dark soles and joints. Separated from other sympatric congeners by dark plumage , white outer rectrices and lateral undertail-coverts, and bare part colours. Sexes similar.

Habitat
Inhabits permanent or ephemeral wetlands, usually freshwater but sometimes brackish or saline: swamps, creeks, rivers, lagoons and estuaries. Also occupies artificial wetlands such as reservoirs, farm dams, and ornamental ponds and lakes in parks and gardens. Requires open water, which usually has fringing cover such as reeds, rushes and grass, and often has floating , emergent or aquatic vegetation; however, waters choked with water hyacinth (Eichhornia) are avoided.

Movement
In Australia sedentary, nomadic or dispersive, possibly partly migratory. Apparently occurs seasonally in some areas, and also shows seasonal fluctuations in numbers, but atlas reporting rates do not suggest large-scale seasonal pattern of movement. Appears at intermittent inland waters and isolated wetlands, and immatures disperse either in autumn or after wintering in flocks.

Breeding
Sulawesi, possibly Apr, downy young Mar; Seram, juvenile, May; New Guinea, small young May–Jun; Australia, Aug–Mar. Territorial when breeding. Simultaneously promiscuous, forming breeding groups of 2–7 apparently unrelated birds; individuals sometimes switch groups between seasons. Within group, all males copulate with all females. All group members defend territory, build nests , incubate , and care for young ; older siblings sometimes help to care for young. Nest usually built up to 180 cm above water (occasionally on ground) in grass tussocks, reeds (especially Typha, Phragmites), rushes, bushes or trees; also on water-lilies, floating in clear water, and in stumps or hollow logs; recorded building inside metal drum and wire netting.

The Egyptian goose (Alopochen aegyptiaca) is a member of the duck, goose, and swan family Anatidae. It is native to Africa and named for its place of origin. Egyptian geese were considered sacred by the Ancient Egyptians and appeared in much of their artwork. Because of their popularity chiefly as an ornamental bird, escapees are common and feral populations have become established in Western Europe, the United States, and New Zealand.

Field Identification
The Egyptian goose is a large, very distinctive waterbird with conspicuous eye patches of dark chocolate-brown. The female resembles the male, though is smaller, often with darker markings on her beak. The genders can also be told apart by their calls, as the male makes a strong, hoarse hissing noise, while the female produces a harsh, trumpeting quack. Young Egyptian geese have a duller color and have a gray tinge on their forewings, and their crown and neck are darker, with yellowish legs and beak.

Distribution
Egyptian geese are widespread throughout Africa except in deserts and dense forests. They are found mostly in the Nile Valley and south of the Sahara. While not breeding, it disperses somewhat, sometimes making longer migrations northwards into the arid regions of the Sahel. These birds inhabit a range of open country wetland habitats, including rivers, dams, marshes, lakes, reservoirs, estuaries, offshore islands, and sewage works. They prefer bodies of water with open shorelines which are close to agricultural land or grasslands where they can graze.

Habits and Lifestyle
Egyptian geese remain together in small flocks during the year, primarily for protection. During the breeding season, they pair up but otherwise stay with their flocks. They are good swimmers but most of their time is spent on land. During the day they may wander away from the water in search of food in grasslands or agricultural fields but at night always return to the water. Both, males and females of this species are aggressively territorial with their own species during breeding and often pursue intruders in flight, attacking them in "dogfights" in the air. The voices and vocalisations of the males and females differ; the male having a hoarse, subdued duck-like quack which seldom sounds unless it is aroused. The male Egyptian goose attracts its mate with an elaborate, noisy courtship display that includes honking, neck stretching, and feather displays. The female has a far noisier raucous quack that frequently sounds in aggression and almost incessantly at the slightest disturbance when tending her young..

Diet and Foraging
Egyptian geese are primarily herbivores, feeding on grass, seeds, stems, and leaves from various plants, as well as grains, potatoes, and other types of vegetables. They also eat worms and locusts.

Conservation Status (Least Concern)
The Egyptian goose is a relatively common and widespread species and currently is not considered to be under threat of extinction. However, in parts of its range, being regarded as agricultural pests, they are shot or poisoned, and sometimes they are hunted for sport.

Cool Facts

• Egyptian geese were domesticated in the time of the ancient Egyptians, who viewed them as sacred, depicting them often in their artwork.
• The Greeks and Romans also had Egyptian Geese in their domestic flocks.
• The Egyptian Goose is not actually a goose, but a shelduck: a cross between a duck and a goose. It has many characteristics of a duck, but also some external traits of a goose. It is the most widely spread of all African waterfowl.
• Egyptian geese usually get away from danger by walking, seldom flying, except when they are surprised. Flying looks goose-like and heavy, with slow wing beats. The geese may fly together, forming an irregular V-shape, or they may fly in a long line.
• Chicks, born in very up-high nests, must draw on their courage to jump out into the void when leaving the nest. Their parents do not help but call from the ground with encouragement to make this sometimes vertiginous fall.

https://animalia.bio/egyptian-goose

Eurasian Blackbird
Turdus merula
ORDER: Passeriformes
FAMILY: Turdidae

Adult male distinctive: glossy black overall with bright yellow bill and eyering. Female dark brown overall; slightly paler throat and breast often have faint darker spots and streaks. Juvenile in summer brown overall with pale spots on back, spotted breast; first-year male duller black than adult, with duller yellowish bill. Can be found in wooded habitats, parks, gardens, and farmland with hedges; often feeds in fields and on lawns. Rich caroling song often heard in urban and suburban neighborhoods with trees and hedges. A native of Eurasia and North Africa, introduced to southeastern Australia, New Zealand, and a few surrounding islands.

Field Identification
24–27 cm; mainly 85–105 g. Male nominate race is entirely black, with yellow or orange-yellow bill and eyering, blackish legs. Female is dull dark (slightly rufous) brown , paler and vaguely brown-mottled below, with buff-brown submoustachial stripe and throat divided by indistinct malar; bill brownish with some dull yellow basally. Juvenile is dark brown with extensive buff streaking above , double buff-spotted wingbars , buff with extensive dark mottling and streaking below ; first-summer male differs from adult in dusky bill and eyering, browner wings. Races differ mainly in size and in tone of plumage, especially of female: azorensis is smallest, short-winged, female blackish-brown with dark-streaked greyish throat, yellow bill; cabrerae is small, female blackish-brown with limited grey throat, yellow bill; mauritanicus is small, male glossier, female darker with yellow bill; aterrimus is slightly smaller and smaller-billed, male dull black, female paler above and greyer below; syriacusphoto male is more slaty-toned, female greyer; intermedius is large, with largest bill, male sooty black, female blackish-brown.

Habitat
Very broad range, from remote mountainous areas to busy city centres. Main and original habitat relatively open broadleaf, coniferous, mixed and deciduous forests (forest presumed original habitat, although high densities in suburban gardens strongly suggest that species adapted to woodland-edge areas, where greatest abundance of berries and variety of terrestrial foraging micro-habitats exist); also tree plantations, orchards including guava, mango, citrus and olive groves, oases, farmland, gardens and parks, commonly in open grassy areas so long as vegetation cover within short distance.

Movement
Sedentary, partially migratory and fully migratory, depending mainly on latitude. In N Europe , nominate race partly migratory, leaving breeding grounds late Sept, main passage Oct and early Nov (similar dates for birds on same latitudes in Russia), estimated minimum migrant fractions 16% (Denmark), 61% (Norway), 76% (Sweden) and 89% (Finland), with respectively 47%, 75%, 40% and 25% of migrants from these countries moving to Britain and Ireland (others in more S direction to Netherlands, Belgium, NW France); most such migrants female, and probably many young.

Diet and Foraging
Invertebrates, mainly earthworms and insects and their larvae , also fruits and seeds and, occasionally, small vertebrates; highly flexible and adaptive, but cannot survive exclusively on fruit for very long.

Breeding
Mid-Mar to early Sept in Europe, usually from end Apr in both Finland and former Czechoslovakia; Mar–Jun in Canary Is, Mar–Jul in most of N Africa, but Apr–Sept in Tunisia; end Feb to end Jul in Israel; Apr–Jul in Afghanistan; Aug–Feb in Australia (introduced); up to three broods per year. Monogamous pair-bond, but divorce rate in one study 19% between seasons and 5% within season; divorce observed in 32% of 183 cases where birds survived from previous season, and most frequent in low-quality nesting habitat. Solitary, but nests sometimes as close as 10 m where population density very high; territorial.

Conservation Status (Least Concern)
Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Generally common to abundant.

https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/eurbla/cur/introduction?login

The Eurasian coot (Fulica atra), also known as coot, is a member of the rail and crake bird family, the Rallidae. It is found in Europe, Asia, Australia and parts of Africa. The Australian subspecies is known as the Australian coot

The coot breeds across much of the Old World on freshwater lakes and ponds. It occurs and breeds in Europe, Asia, Australia, and Africa. The species has recently expanded its range into New Zealand. It is resident in the milder parts of its range, but migrates further south and west from much of Asia in winter as the waters freeze

The Eurasian coot is 32–42 cm (13–17 in) long and weighs 585–1,100 g (1.290–2.425 lb), and is largely black except for the white frontal shield (which gave rise to the phrase "as bald as a coot", which the Oxford English Dictionary cites in use as early as 1430).[3] As a swimming species, the coot has partial webbing on its long strong toes.

The juvenile is paler than the adult, has a whitish breast, and lacks the facial shield; the adult black plumage develops when about 3–4 months old, but the white shield is only fully developed at about one year old.

This is a noisy bird with a wide repertoire of crackling, explosive, or trumpeting calls, often given at night.

The Eurasian coot is much less secretive than most of the rail family, and can be seen swimming on open water or walking across waterside grasslands. It is an aggressive species, and strongly territorial during the breeding season, and both parents are involved in territorial defence.[4] During the non-breeding season they may form large flocks, possibly related to predator avoidance.[5]

It is reluctant to fly and when taking off runs across the water surface with much splashing. They do the same, but without actually flying, when travelling a short distance at speed in territorial disputes. As with many rails, its weak flight does not inspire confidence, but on migration, usually at night, it can cover surprisingly large distances. It bobs its head as it swims, and makes short dives from a little jump.

The coot is an omnivore, and will take a variety of small live prey including the eggs of other water birds, as well as algae, vegetation, seeds and fruit.[7] It shows considerable variation in its feeding techniques, grazing on land or in the water. In the water it may upend in the fashion of a mallard or dive in search of food.

Sourced:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurasian_coot

The Eurasian jay (Garrulus glandarius) is a species of passerine bird in the crow family Corvidae. It is a woodland bird that occurs over a vast region from western Europe and northwest Africa to the Indian subcontinent and further to the eastern seaboard of Asia and down into southeast Asia. Across this vast range, several distinct racial forms have evolved which look different from each other, especially when comparing forms at the extremes of its range.

Identification
The Eurasian jay is a small passerine bird with pinkish brown plumage. The whitish throat is bordered on each side by a prominent black mustache stripe. The forehead and crown are whitish with black stripes. The rump is white. The complex coloring on the upper surface of the wing includes black and white bars and a prominent bright blue patch with fine black bars. The tail of this bird is mainly black.

Distribution
Eurasian jays can be found from western Europe and northwest Africa to the Indian subcontinent and further to the eastern seaboard of Asia and down into Southeast Asia. These birds inhabit mixed woodland, particularly with oaks, and often frequent parks, orchards, and large gardens. Northern birds can be found in conifers and birch forests.

Habitat
Eurasian jays are shy secretive birds that are often heard rather than seen. They are generally solitary but may sometimes spend time in small family groups and during cold periods of the year, they gather in large communal roosts. Eurasian jays are active during the day and feed in both trees and on the ground. They often cache their food, especially oak acorns, and beechnuts for winter and spring. Caching usually occurs throughout the year, but it is most intense in the autumn. Their usual call is the alarm call which is a harsh, rasping screech and is used upon sighting various predatory animals. Eurasian jays are also well known for their mimicry, often sounding so like a different species that it is virtually impossible to distinguish their true identity unless jays are seen. They will even imitate the sound of the bird they are attacking, such as a Tawny owl, which they do if attacking during the day.

Breeding
Eurasian jays are monogamous and form long-lasting pair bonds. Their breeding season occurs in spring. Pairs nest solitarily in trees or large shrubs laying usually 4-6 eggs that hatch after 16-19 days. The chicks are blind and naked when they hatch and fledge generally after 21-23 days. Both parents typically feed the young for another 7-8 weeks, before they become completely independent. Reproductive maturity is attained at 1-2 years of age.

Population threats
Eurasian jays are not considered threatened or endangered at present, however, in the past, they were collected for their bright wing feathers and were also heavily persecuted by farmers.

Cool Facts

• The Eurasian jay is called simply as 'jay', without any epithets, by English speakers in Great Britain and Ireland.
• In order to keep their plumage free from parasites, Eurasian jays lie on top of anthills with spread wings and let their feathers be sprayed with formic acid.
• Similar to other corvids, Eurasian jays are intelligent birds and have been reported to plan for future needs. Males also take into account the desires of their partner when sharing food with her as a courtship ritual and when protecting food items from stealing conspecifics.

https://animalia.bio/eurasian-jay
https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/eurjay1/cur/introduction

The Common moorhen (Gallinula chloropus) is a bird species in the rail family (Rallidae) found across many parts of the Old World. These birds live around well-vegetated marshes, ponds, canals, and other wetlands. The word 'moor' as a part of their name is an old sense meaning marsh.

Identification
Common moorhens have predominantly black and brown plumage, with the exception of a white under-tail, white streaks on the flanks, yellow legs, and a red frontal shield. The bill is red with a yellow tip. The young are browner and lack the red shield. The frontal shield of the adult has a rounded top and fairly parallel sides; the tailward margin of the red unfeathered area is a smooth waving line.

Distribution
Сommon moorhens are widespread across Europe, Asia, and Africa. Populations in areas where the waters freeze, such as eastern Europe, will migrate to more temperate climates. In China, Common moorhens are largely resident south of the Yangtze River, whilst northern populations migrate in the winter. These birds live around well-vegetated marshes, ponds, canals, and other wetlands. They can even be found in city parks and urban areas.

Habitat
Сommon moorhens are diurnal birds that spend their time swimming or walking along the shore. They forage beside or in the water, sometimes walking on lilypads or upending in the water to feed. They are often secretive but can become tame in some areas. Outside of the breeding season, Common moorhens prefer to spend their time alone; however, during the winter they may gather in groups to feed on sheltered lakes and ponds. To communicate with each other, these birds will give a wide range of gargling calls and will emit loud hisses when threatened.

Breeding
Сommon moorhens are monogamous and territorial. They form pair-bonds that may last for several years. Pairs nest solitarily usually on top of thick mats of aquatic plants but may also nest in trees, shrubs, or on the ground in dense vegetation. Their nest is a wide shallow cup made with dead vegetation and lined with grass and leaves. Laying starts in spring, between mid-March and mid-May in Northern Hemisphere temperate regions. About 8 eggs are usually laid per female early in the season. Incubation lasts about three weeks. The chicks are precocial; they are hatched with eyes open and are covered in blackish down. Both parents incubate and feed the young. They fledge after 40-50 days, become independent usually a few weeks thereafter, and may raise their first brood the next spring.

Population threats
Сommon moorhens are widespread across their wide range. However, in some areas populations of this species suffer from severe weather, habitat loss, pollution, and hunting. These birds are also sensitive to avian influenza disease and avian botulism which outbreaks can be a threat in the future.

Cool Facts

• The name 'mor-hen' has been recorded in English since the 13th century. The word 'moor' here is an old sense meaning marsh, however, these birds are not usually found in moorland.
• Common moorhens are known to swallow sand and gravels in order to help digest the vegetal food.
• During the breeding season, Common moorhens build several nests; once the chicks leave the main nest, they will use the rest nests for sleeping at night.
• When threatened, Common moorhen chicks may cling to the parents' body, after which the adult birds fly away to safety and carry their offspring with them.

https://animalia.bio/common-moorhen
https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/commoo3/cur/introduction

The European Robin brightens backyard gardens with its vibrant orange breast and frequent song, making it one of Ireland and the United Kingdom’s most familiar and beloved birds. Across the rest of Europe, this small songbird is less tied to people, inhabiting dense undergrowth in damp, shady woodlands and tucking its cup nest into banks, crevices, and natural cavities. European Robins eat seeds and berries during the winter. In summer they feed mostly on ground-dwelling invertebrates, even accompanying gardeners to grab insects and worms exposed by freshly turned soil.

Identification
Distinctive and charismatic little bird with a bright orangey face and breast (easily hidden when facing away). Juvenile is very different, with bold pale buffy spotting on the back and breast. Found in a wide range of wooded habitats, including forests, gardens, hedges in farmland, and heathland, usually fairly near cover. Hops perkily on the ground, pausing to look around, often flicking its wings and cocking its tail. Also feeds by dropping to the ground from low perches, snatching up prey and flying back up to a shady perch. High-pitched song is highly variable, and incorporates a range of warbles and trills. Subsong is a rambling warbling series often incorporating odd fizzing and twittering notes. Calls include a dry “tic”, often given in bursts, as well as a thin, high-pitched, descending alarm call.

Distribution
European robins occur in Eurasia east to Western Siberia, south to Algeria, and on the Atlantic islands as far west as the Central Group of the Azores and Madeira. Irish and British robins are largely resident but a small minority, usually female, migrate to southern Europe during winter, a few as far as Spain. Scandinavian and Russian robins migrate to Britain and western Europe to escape the harsher winters. European robins prefer spruce woods in northern Europe, contrasting with their preference for parks and gardens in Ireland and Great Britain. These may also be found in grasslands, shrubby vegetation, hedgerows with some tall trees, orchards, and farmlands.

Habitat
European robins are active during the day, however, they may also hunt insects on moonlit nights or near artificial light at night. These are generally solitary and territorial birds, and males are noted for their highly aggressive territorial behavior. They will fiercely attack other males and competitors that stray into their territories and may even attack other small birds without apparent provocation. European robins communicate using a variety of calls, including a ticking note that usually indicates anxiety or mild alarm. During the breeding season, robins produce a fluting, warbling song. Both the male and female sing during the winter, when they hold separate territories; the song then sounds more plaintive than the summer version. The female typically moves a short distance from the summer nesting territory to a nearby area that is more suitable for winter feeding. The male keeps the same territory throughout the year. During the breeding season, males usually initiate their morning song an hour before civil sunrise and usually terminate their daily singing around thirty minutes after sunset. They may also sing at night, especially in urban areas that are artificially lit during the night.

Breeding
European robins start to breed in late March. They may choose a wide variety of sites for building a nest. This can be a depression or hole, as well as the usual crevices, or sheltered banks, pieces of machinery, barbecues, bicycle handlebars, bristles on upturned brooms, discarded kettles, watering cans, flower pots, and even hats. The nest itself is composed of moss, leaves, and grass, with fine grass, hair, and feathers for the lining. The female lays 2 or 3 clutches of 5-6 eggs which are cream, buff, or white speckled or blotched with a reddish-brown color. Incubation lasts about 12-14 days, performed by the female alone. Newly hatched chicks are cared for by both parents for around 14-16 days until they are ready to fly from the nest.

Population threats
European robins are widespread throughout their native range and don't face any major threats at present. However, in some areas, they suffer from illegal hunting, the use of pesticides, and severe winters

Cool Facts

• European Robins are well known for following gardeners to capture invertebrates stirred up by their digging. Similarly, when freezing weather drives insects underground, robins follow larger birds such as Ring-necked Pheasants that scratch through the frost layer and turn up insects.
• American Robin received its name due to its superficial similarity to European Robin—both have an orange breast—but the two species are not closely related. European Robins are in the Old World Flycatcher family (Muscicapidae) while American Robins are thrushes (Turdidae)—in fact, they are in the same genus (Turdus) as Eurasian Blackbirds.
• Well known to British and Irish gardeners, European robins are relatively unafraid of people and drawn to human activities involving the digging of soil, in order to look out for earthworms and other food freshly turned up. The robin is considered to be a gardener's friend and for various folklore reasons, this bird would never be harmed. In continental Europe on the other hand, robins were hunted and killed as with most other small birds.
• Robins often approach large wild animals, such as wild boar and other animals that disturb the ground, to look for any food that might be brought to the surface.
• Robins may attack their own reflection, especially during the spring and early summer when they especially territory.
• More recently, the robin has become strongly associated with Christmas, taking a starring role on many Christmas cards since the mid-19th century.
• According to an old British folk tale that seeks to explain the robin's distinctive breast when Jesus was dying on the cross, the robin, then simply brown in color, flew to his side and sang into his ear in order to comfort him in his pain. The blood from his wounds stained the robin's breast, and thereafter all robins got the mark of Christ's blood upon them.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/European_Robin/
https://animalia.bio/european-robin

Medium-sized ambush-hunter with a long gray bill with a dark, hooked tip. Black head and face with a white nape and throat. Upperparts dark gray, with white rump, mostly black wings (limited white), and black tail with narrow white tip. Rollicking, chuckling song.

Identification
27–30 cm; 68–99 g, 112 g (male cinereus). Medium-sized butcherbird having strong bill with sharp terminal hook. Male nominate race has top and sides of head black, sharply separated from bright white chin and throat, broad white half-collar on each side from throat towards middle of hindneck (the two sides not meeting), conspicuous white spot on lores; upperparts dark grey with some streaking and mottling, narrow white band across rump (prominent in flight); uppertail black with narrow white tip (usually abraded); upperwing mostly black, narrow white stripe through innermost secondaries, white patch in secondary-coverts (visible in flight); underparts off-white, grey shading over breast, flanks and belly; underwing whitish, merging into brown on flight-feathers, undertail black or silver-grey with broader white tip; iris dark brown; bill pale blue-grey at base, sharp transition to black distal third to half; legs dark grey.

Habitat
Range of open habitats, mainly eucalypt (Eucalyptus) open forests and woodlands, including mallee woodlands and Acacia shrublands and woodlands, preferring open ground layer of grass or scattered shrubs; also on farms, in rural towns and in parts of larger cities with well-grown trees in parks and gardens.

Movement
Sedentary. Many anecdotal reports of seasonal movements probably refer to post-breeding dispersal of immatures, but no detailed studies.

Breeding
Laying generally from early Aug to Jan (mostly Sept–Oct), but breeding recorded in all months, probably in response to rain in arid and semi-arid areas. Nests usually in simple pairs, sometimes with a helper, usually immature from previous year. Territorial; present in territory all year. Nest built by both sexes (reportedly lined only by female), a shallow, open untidy bowl c. 20 cm in diameter, external depth c. 10 cm, constructed mostly with thin twigs, neat internal cup c. 5 cm deep and lined with grass, rootlets, hair and other fine pliable materials, usually placed 2–12 m (mostly c. 5–6 m) above ground in horizontal or vertical fork in tree, usually living, most in eucalypt, some in Acacia, Banksia, cypress-pine (Callitris) or other native or introduced tree, often sapling used.

https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/grybut1/cur/introduction

With its long legs and elegant neck the Gray Heron strikes a regal pose as it stands motionless in shallow water, waiting to strike at unsuspecting fish. During the breeding season, these large herons join treetop breeding colonies where they showcase their exquisite breeding plumes in courtship displays and work tirelessly to feed a nest full of chattering, insatiable chicks. Gray Heron, found in Europe, Asia, and Africa, is one of three very similar herons worldwide, together with Great Blue Heron of North America and Cocoi Heron of South America.

Identification
Generally quite common and conspicuous in wetland habitats from marshes and tidal flats to small ponds, ditches, and wet fields; nests colonially in tall trees. Mainly seen as singles or in small groups, standing quietly in or at the edge of water, less often hunting in fields. Plumage mostly gray overall, with paler neck; adult has white crown, black eyebrows, and black shoulder patch. Like other herons and egrets, flies with neck pulled in to form a bulge.

Regional Differences
Ornithologists recognize three distinctive groups within the Gray Heron species: "Gray,” "Mauritanian," and "Madagascar." The “Gray” group is the most common, widespread group, found across most of this species’ range in Europe, Africa, and Asia. The “Mauritanian” Gray Heron, confined to coastal Mauritania and Senegal in West Africa, is much paler than birds in the “Gray” group. The “Madagascar” Gray Heron is typically larger than individuals in the “Gray” group, with a larger bill, longer legs, and brighter bare skin colors during courtship.

Habitat
Grey herons are social birds; they may feed alone or in groups and at night they roost in trees or on cliffs and tend to be gregarious. During the breeding season, they nest in big colonies. Grey herons usually hunt around dawn and dusk but they may also be active at other times of the day. They often perch in trees, but spend much time on the ground, striding about or standing still for long periods with an upright stance, often on a single leg. The main call of Grey herons is a loud croaking "fraaank", but a variety of guttural and raucous noises is heard at the breeding colony. A loud, harsh "schaah" is used by the male in driving other birds from the vicinity of the nest, and a soft "gogogo" expresses anxiety, as when a predator is nearby or a human walks past the colony. The chicks utter loud chattering or ticking noises.

Breeding
Grey herons are serially monogamous; they form pairs and remain together for only one breeding season, which extends from early February until May or early June. These birds breed in colonies known as heronries, usually in high trees close to lakes, the seashore, or other wetlands. Courtship involves the male calling from his chosen nesting site and on the arrival of the female, both birds participate in stretching and snapping ceremonies. Females lay 3 to 5 eggs and both parents incubate them for 25-26 days. Chicks hatch altricial and are fed by both parents, who look after them attentively; one of the adult birds stays at the nest for the first 20 days. The young can fly at about 50 days old, remaining for 10 to 20 more days more at the nest.

Population threats
Grey herons are hunted and trapped by people. They are threatened by changes in their habitat, including deforestation and the drainage of wetlands.

Cool Facts

• Raising a nest full of baby herons is hard wor! During the breeding season, some Gray Herons spend up to 23 hours per day foraging and some travel up to 38 km (24 miles) from their nest in search of food.
• Gray Herons usually feed on smaller fish, 10–25 cm (4–10 inches) long, but some ambitious individuals take fish weighing up to 500 grams (1.1 pounds) and eels that are up to 60 cm (24 inches) long.
• Gray Herons live in Eurasia and Africa, but rare individuals stray from their normal range to places like the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean Sea. Despite the Gray Heron's similarity to Great Blue Heron, some observers have also documented this species from the Atlantic Coast of mainland North America, from Newfoundland to Virginia, and also from Alaska’s Aleutian Islands.
• In medieval times the Grey heron was a popular quarry of falconers who admired its great flying skills in evading the falcon.
• In Ancient Rome, the heron was a bird of divination that gave an augury (a sign of a coming event) by its call, like the raven, stork, and owl.
• "Heron" comes from French. The Old English name was "hragra". Other names from past times include harn, hernshaw and hernser.
• Heronries with multiple nests can become huge. One in Great Snowden's Wood, near Brede in Sussex, in 1866 had around 400 nests.
• Herons suffer much in cold winters when streams and ponds remain frozen for a long time. Recent mild weather has seen an increase in population.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Gray_Heron/id
https://animalia.bio/grey-heron

Small snow-white heron with slender dark bill, blackish legs, and yellowish feet ("golden slippers"). Breeding adult has 2 long wispy head plumes and a spray of white plumes ("aigrettes") on the lower back. Inhabits a wide variety of wetlands: lakes, rivers, marshes, estuaries—almost anywhere with small fish. Occurs as singles or small loose groups; nests and roosts communally. Distinctive within its range, but compare with larger Great and Intermediate Egrets, stockier Cattle Egret, and white morph reef herons.

Classification
Order: Pelecaniformes
Family: Ardeidae
Genus: Egretta
Species: E. garzetta

Description
The adult little egret is 55–65 cm (22–26 in) long with an 88–106 cm (35–42 in) wingspan, and weighs 350–550 g (12–19 oz). Its plumage is normally entirely white, although there are dark forms with largely bluish-grey plumage.[8] In the breeding season, the adult has two long plumes on the nape that form a crest. These plumes are about 150 mm (6 in) and are pointed and very narrow. There are similar feathers on the breast, but the barbs are more widely spread. There are also several elongated scapular feathers that have long loose barbs and may be 200 mm (8 in) long. During the winter the plumage is similar but the scapulars are shorter and more normal in appearance. The bill is long and slender and it and the lores are black. There is an area of greenish-grey bare skin at the base of the lower mandible and around the eye which has a yellow iris. The legs are black and the feet yellow. Juveniles are similar to non-breeding adults but have greenish-black legs and duller yellow feet,[9] and may have a certain proportion of greyish or brownish feathers. The subspecies nigripes differs in having yellow skin between the bill and eye, and blackish feet. During the height of courtship, the lores turn red and the feet of the yellow-footed races turn red.

Behaviour
Little egrets are sociable birds and are often seen in small flocks. Nevertheless, individual birds do not tolerate others coming too close to their chosen feeding site, though this depends on the abundance of prey.

Food & Feeding
They use a variety of methods to procure their food; they stalk their prey in shallow water, often running with raised wings or shuffling their feet to disturb small fish, or may stand still and wait to ambush prey. They make use of opportunities provided by cormorants disturbing fish or humans attracting fish by throwing bread into water. On land they walk or run while chasing their prey, feed on creatures disturbed by grazing livestock and ticks on the livestock, and even scavenge. Their diet is mainly fish, but amphibians, small reptiles, mammals and birds are also eaten, as well as crustaceans, molluscs, insects, spiders and worms.[8]

https://ebird.org/species/litegr
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_egret

If someone at a park is feeding bread to ducks, chances are there are Mallards in the fray. Perhaps the most familiar of all ducks, Mallards occur throughout North America and Eurasia in ponds and parks as well as wilder wetlands and estuaries. The male’s gleaming green head, gray flanks, and black tail-curl arguably make it the most easily identified duck. Mallards have long been hunted for the table, and almost all domestic ducks come from this species.

Size & Shape
Mallards are large ducks with hefty bodies, rounded heads, and wide, flat bills. Like many “dabbling ducks” the body is long and the tail rides high out of the water, giving a blunt shape. In flight their wings are broad and set back toward the rear.
Color Pattern
Male Mallards have a dark, iridescent-green head and bright yellow bill. The gray body is sandwiched between a brown breast and black rear. Females and juveniles are mottled brown with orange-and-brown bills. Both sexes have a white-bordered, blue “speculum” patch in the wing.
Behavior
Mallards are “dabbling ducks”—they feed in the water by tipping forward and grazing on underwater plants. They almost never dive. They can be very tame ducks especially in city ponds, and often group together with other Mallards and other species of dabbling ducks.
Habitat
Mallards can live in almost any wetland habitat, natural or artificial. Look for them on lakes, ponds, marshes, rivers, and coastal habitats, as well as city and suburban parks and residential backyards

Cool Facts

• The Mallard is the ancestor of nearly all domestic duck breeds (everything except the Muscovy Duck). Domestic ducks can be common in city ponds and can be confusing to identify—they may lack the white neck ring, show white on the chest, be all dark, or show oddly shaped crests on the head.
• The widespread Mallard has given rise to a number of populations around the world that have changed enough that they could be considered separate species. The "Mexican Duck" of central Mexico and the extreme southwestern United States and the Hawaiian Duck both are closely related to the Mallard, and in both forms the male is dull like the female. The Mexican Duck currently is considered a subspecies of the Mallard, while the Hawaiian Duck is still given full species status.
• Mallard pairs are generally monogamous, but paired males pursue females other than their mates. So-called “extra-pair copulations” are common among birds and in many species are consensual, but male Mallards often force these copulations, with several males chasing a single female and then mating with her.
• Mallard pairs form long before the spring breeding season. Pairing takes place in the fall, but courtship can be seen all winter. Only the female incubates the eggs and takes care of the ducklings.
• Ducks are strong fliers; migrating flocks of Mallards have been estimated traveling at 55 miles per hour.
• The standard duck’s quack is the sound of a female Mallard. Males don’t quack; they make a quieter, rasping sound.
• Mallards, like other ducks, shed all their flight feathers at the end of the breeding season and are flightless for 3–4 weeks. They are secretive during this vulnerable time, and their body feathers molt into a concealing “eclipse” plumage that can make them hard to identify.
• Many species of waterfowl form hybrids, and Mallards are particularly known for this, hybridizing with American Black Duck, Mottled Duck, Gadwall, Northern Pintail, Cinnamon Teal, Green-winged Teal, and Canvasback, as well as Hawaiian Ducks, the Grey Duck of New Zealand, and the Pacific Black Duck of Australia.
• The oldest known Mallard lived to be at least 27 years 7 months old.

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/mallard/id

Noisy lapwing with a large yellow wattle across forehead and hanging over the bill. Two subspecies: southern “Black-shouldered” subspecies has a black shoulder band (not meeting in middle as on Banded Lapwing) and a larger black cap. Northern subspecies lacks black shoulder band and has a larger yellow wattle. Only “Black-shouldered” subspecies occurs in New Zealand. Abundant in most open country, being a common feature of urban parks, sporting fields, paddocks, riverbeds, wetlands, and coastal habitats.

Identification
30–37 cm; 296–412 g; wingspan 75–85 cm. Large lapwing. Crown and nape black continuing over central hindneck to join narrow black collar extending around lower hindneck and onto sides of breast; rest of feathered parts of head and neck white. Mantle , back , scapulars, tertials, inner wing-coverts and alula pale grey-brown, with silver-grey wingbar on greater wing-coverts; outerwing and secondaries black. Rump , longest uppertail-coverts and base of tail white, rest of tail mostly black with thin white tip. Underparts mostly white. Bill yellow, paler at tip (sometimes greenish); wattles bright yellow, covering only forehead and reaching only to eye; iris yellow with bright yellow orbital ring; legs and feet dull red, grey on front of tarsi in some; and wing-spur long and sharp, yellow, with blackish tip. Sexes alike (though male averages larger) and no seasonal variation.

Habitat
Wide range of natural and modified open habitats, usually near water, including short-grass areas especially around shallow, fresh or saline terrestrial wetlands, permanent or temporary swamps, marshes, billabongs, lakes, reservoirs, farm dams, saltmarshes, billabongs, lagoons, waterlogged fields and occasionally riverbeds, or even open woodland at high altitudes. Also sheltered coastal areas. Recorded to at least 1800 m.

Migration Overview
Resident and dispersive, responding to new food sources in recently constructed and temporary wetlands, leaving as soon as they dry out. An altitudinal migrant in some regions, e.g. Snow Mts of SE New South Wales, where visits alpine and subalpine regions (above 1500 m) only in summer.

Diet and Foraging
Diet includes molluscs, worms , millepedes, centipedes, insects, crustaceans, and occasionally seeds, leaves and frogs. Walk or run, then lunge and stab at prey; also employs foot-trembling; foraging rate higher in adults than young, with juveniles reliant on earthworms brought to surface by rainfall. Usually forages in short grass , sometimes in gravel and mud. Possibly also feeds at night.

A native of northern and central Eurasia, the Mute Swan was introduced into North America to grace the ponds of parks and estates. Escaped individuals have established breeding populations in several areas, where their aggressive behavior threatens native waterfowl.

Size & Shape
Mute Swans are very large waterfowl. They have heavy bodies, short legs, and a long, slender neck habitually held in a graceful S. The large, flat bill has a bulging knob at the base.
Color Pattern
Mute Swans are entirely white with a bill that is orange with a black base. Young swans (cygnets) may be dusky brown-gray all over, with a gray-black bill.
Behavior
Mute Swans spend most of their time floating on the water. They feed by grazing on underwater vegetation in shallow water, tipping up their bodies if necessary. These aggressive birds often hold their wings half-raised in a display as they swim toward an intruder.
Habitat
Look for Mute Swans in city-park ponds, as well as rivers, lakes, and estuaries.

Cool Facts

• All of the Mute Swans in North America descended from swans imported from Europe from the mid 1800s through early 1900s to adorn large estates, city parks, and zoos. Escapees established breeding populations and are now established in the Northeast, Midatlantic, Great Lakes, and Pacific Northwest of the U.S.
• Mute Swans form long-lasting pair bonds. Their reputation for monogamy along with their elegant white plumage has helped establish them as a symbol of love in many cultures.
• The Mute Swan is reported to mate for life. However, changing of mates does occur infrequently, and swans will remate if their partner dies. If a male loses his mate and pairs with a young female, she joins him on his territory. If he mates with an older female, they go to hers. If a female loses her mate, she remates quickly and usually chooses a younger male.
• The black knob at the base of the male Mute Swan's bill swells during the breeding season and becomes noticeably larger than the female's. The rest of the year the difference between the sexes is not obvious.
• Downy young Mute Swans (called cygnets) come in two color morphs: a gray form and a white form. The gray (or "Royal") chicks start off with gray down and grow in gray-brown and white feathers, giving them a mottled look. White (or "Polish") chicks have all white down and juvenal feathers. Adults of the white morph may have pink or gray legs and feet instead of black, but otherwise the adults look alike.
• Mute Swans have enormous appetites. A Maryland study found they ate up to 8 pounds a day of submerged aquatic vegetation, removing food and habitat for other species faster than the grasses could recover.
• Give plenty of space to nesting Mute Swans. They can be extremely aggressive and frequently attack canoeists, kayakers, and pedestrians who wander too close to a nest or chicks.
• Hans Christian Andersen’s fairly tale The Ugly Duckling chronicles the woes and triumphs of a young, Mute Swan that hatches in a clutch of duck eggs but goes on to become a beautiful swan. Some speculate that the book was based on Andersen’s own less-than-handsome looks as a youngster.
• Mute Swans can adapt to degraded habitat and actually benefit from the spread of the invasive common reed Phragmites australis, which flourishes in disturbed sites. As the reeds spread into lakes and ponds, the swans can build nests farther offshore in the reed beds, where they’re safer from egg predators.
• Based on banding records, the oldest known Mute Swan in North America was a male and at least 26 years, 9 months old when he was found in Rhode Island, the same state where he had been banded.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Mute_Swan/id

Familiar, large lorikeet. Very colorful, with a bright red breast, blue/black belly and head, as well as a red bill. Very conspicuous, often observed calling loudly while flying overhead or feeding. Note the much longer tail than Scaly-breasted Lorikeet. No range overlap with Red-collared Lorikeet, which has an orange breast and neck. Found in a wide range of habitats, including urban areas. In the evening and early morning can be seen roosting in very large, noisy flocks.

Identification
25–30 cm; 70–169 g; wingspan 46 cm (1). Bill orange to red; head blue to deep brown lightly flecked pale violet; nuchal collar yellow ; rest of upperparts and tail green, latter dusky yellow below; nominate has breast barring variable from slight to non-existent; belly dark green; thighs and undertail-coverts yellow barred dark green; underwing-coverts orange with broad yellow underwing bar. Sexes alike. Immature duller, bill brownish. Superficially resembles T. rubritorquis , but lacks orange-red hindcollar .

Habitat
Most types of lowland and lower montane wooded country, including primary rain forest, secondary growth, scrubby monsoon forest, savanna, riparian woodland, mallee, coconut and other plantations, gardens and suburban areas; tends to favour edges and disturbed vegetation rather than interior of closed-canopy formations.

Movement
Considered to be nomadic, presence or absence, or at least quantities, being governed by flowering events; this is particularly pronounced in S of range. Daily movements to offshore islands to and from feeding/roosting areas occur.

Breeding
Season Aug–Jan in SE Australia, may be almost year-round in Queensland. Monogamous. Nest in deep unlined hole in limb or trunk of large tree, e.g. Melaleuca and Angophora, and in suburban Perth, in cotton palm (Washingtonia fillfera) and date palm (Phoenix canariensis); once in a building, typically 3–30 m above ground, lined with wood chips and occasionally dry grasses (1). Eggs 1–3 (usually two in wild), white, size 25·4–31·8 mm × 21·3–24·1 mm; incubation lasts c. 22–25 days, by female alone, commences with first egg in captivity; nestling period 49–52 days (captivity) or 57–54 days (wild) and young become independent 7–16 days (captivity) or 14–21 days later. Success unknown. Natural predators include Powerful Owls (Ninox strenua) (8).

https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/railor5/cur/introduction

Small and stocky rare goose with a small bill. From a distance, appears dark and dull, and often blends into flocks of other geese. When seen well, note the rich rusty breast and striking rusty and black-and-white head pattern. Mantle is dark and finely barred. White flank stripe is prominent on land and in flight. Also note the all dark underwings in flight. Breeds on the high arctic tundra, on islands, and coastal habitats. Winters mainly by the Black Sea.

Appearance
All the species of the genus Branta are distinguished by their dark sooty colour, relieved by white, and as a distinction from the grey geese of the genus Anser. Among the species from these two genera, the red-breasted goose is the smallest at 53–56 cm (21–22 in) in length. This brightly marked species is unmistakable, but can be surprisingly difficult to find amongst brant geese. At long distances, the red of the breast tends to look dark.

Distribution
The red-breasted goose breeds in Arctic Siberia, mainly on the Taymyr Peninsula, with smaller populations in the Gyda and Yamal peninsulas. Most winter along the northwestern shores of the Black Sea in Bulgaria, Romania and Ukraine (occasionally moving further southwest to Greece), but some winter in Azerbaijan. It is a rare vagrant to Great Britain and other western European areas, where it is sometimes found with flocks of Brent or barnacle geese. However, since it is common in captive wildfowl collections, escapees outside its usual range are fairly frequent.

Habits and Lifestyle
The red-breasted goose often nests close to nests of birds of prey, such as snowy owls, peregrine falcons and rough-legged buzzards, which helps to protect this small goose from mammalian predators such as the Arctic fox. The closer the goose's nest to the eyrie (bird of prey nest), the safer it is from predation. Based on the size and how timid the geese are, they rely on the bird of prey for defense. It is extremely unusual for the bird of prey to attack, but is still possible. Additionally, the larger the colony the safer it is. This in turn positively influences the survival and reproductive success of the red-breasted goose. Aside from nesting close to birds of prey, red-breasted geese nest on islands on rivers which also protects them from land-based predators.

Population
In autumn of 1997 the population was estimated to be around 88,000 individuals. In the winter these numbers can shrink to around 70,000. The red-breasted goose is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies. The red-breasted goose is legally protected in many states, however hunting is still continued.

https://animalia.bio/red-breasted-goose
https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/rebgoo1/cur/introduction#hab
https://ebird.org/species/rebgoo1

The Grey Crowned Crane (Balearica regulorum) is a bird in the crane family Gruidae. It occurs in dry savannah in Africa south of the Sahara, although it nests in somewhat wetter habitats.

There are two subspecies. The East African B. r. gibbericeps (Crested Crane) occurs from eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo through Uganda, of which it is the national bird, and Kenya to eastern South Africa. It has a larger area of bare red facial skin above the white patch than the smaller Balearica regulorum regulorum (South African Crowned Crane) which breeds from Angola south to South Africa.

This species and the closely related Black Crowned Crane are the only cranes that can roost in trees, because of a long hind toe that can grasp branches. This habit, amongst other things, is a reason why the relatively small Balearica cranes are believed to closely resemble the ancestral members of the Gruidae

The Grey Crowned Crane has a breeding display involving dancing, bowing, and jumping. It has a booming call which involves inflation of the red gular sac. It also makes a honking sound quite different from the trumpeting of other crane species.

The nest is a platform of grass and other plants in tall wetland vegetation. The Grey Crowned Crane lays a clutch of 2-5 eggs. Incubation is performed by both sexes and lasts 28-31 days. Chicks fledge at 56-100 days.

Description

• About 1 m (3.3 ft) tall and weighs 3.5 kg (7.7 lbs)
• Body plumageis mainly grey
• Wings are also predominantly white, but contain feathers with a range of colours
• Head has a crown of stiff golden feathers
• Sides of the face are white, and there is a bright red inflatable throat pouch
• Bill is relatively short and grey, and the legs are black
• Sexes are similar, although males tend to be slightly larger
• Young birds are grayer than adults, with a feathered buff face
• Like all cranes, it feeds on insects, reptiles and small mammals.

Although the Grey Crowned Crane remains common over much of its range, it faces threats to its habitat due to drainage, overgrazing, and pesticide pollution.

The Grey Crowned Crane eats grass seeds and insects, along with other invertebrates.

The Grey Crowned Crane is the national bird of Uganda and features in the country's flag and coat of arms

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grey_Crowned_Crane

The sulphur-crested cockatoo (Cacatua galerita) is a relatively large white cockatoo found in wooded habitats in Australia, and New Guinea and some of the islands of Indonesia. They can be locally very numerous, leading to them sometimes being considered pests. A highly intelligent bird, they are well known in aviculture, although they can be demanding pets.

Identification
45–55 cm; 815–975 g. White cockatoo with yellow ear-coverts and 14 cm long, erectile bright yellow crest ; underside of wings and tail washed yellow; bill black; feet dark grey; periophthalmic skin white; eye dark brown in male, red-brown in female. Juvenile like adult but eye pale brown. Race fitzroyi has little yellow on ear-coverts and periophthalmic skin is pale blue; triton smaller than fitzroyi, with broader crest feathers; eleonora similar to triton, but bill smaller.

Habitat
In New Guinea, occurs in lowland forest, up to 1400 m. In Australia, inhabits forest , woodland and cultivated cropland.

Movement
Strong flier, often foraging several kilometres from traditional roost or nest.

Diet and Foraging
Wide range of seeds , fruits and buds gathered from the ground and in trees . Species considered a pest of cultivated crops, digging up recently sown seeds, eating ripening heads and grain fed to stock; long-renowned for flocks of foraging birds responding to alarm given by a sentinel individual (see Family Text ); also damages stored hay and grain, opening sacks and plastic-covered bales, and will sometimes also chew the wooden window frames of houses. Nominate race often feeds in large flocks of several hundred birds; the other races seldom seen in groups of more than 20.

Sounds and Vocal Behavior
Commonest call, both in flight and when perched, is a very harsh grating note with a slightly upslurred (somewhat variable) terminus, “rreh-ah”. When perched, vocabulary more diverse, with most notes having similar tonal quality to flight call, combined with nasal squeals and squawks.

Breeding
Season Aug–Jan in S Australia, May–Sept in N Australia; few records from New Guinea. Nest is bed of woodchips in a tree-hollow. Pairs tend to be territorial during breeding season and to nest far apart. Clutch 2–3 eggs, size (in captivity) 43·2 mm × 31·1 mm (race fitzroyi) (1); incubation 25–27 days, by both adults; chick has sparse yellow down; nestlings remain in hollow for 9–12 weeks, where they are fed by both parents. Fledglings remain with parents for several months, foraging together in a locally nomadic flock.

https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/succoc/cur/introduction
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sulphur-crested_cockatoo

Large, mostly white stork with black flight-feathers and conical red bill. Breeds in open farmland and wetlands, with bulky stick nests conspicuous in trees and often on buildings. In nonbreeding season forages in open areas such as grasslands and agricultural areas. Flies with neck and legs outstretched, and strong, deep wingbeats interspersed with glides. Also soars on thermals; flocks migrate during daytime, often high overhead.

Identification
White storks are long-legged wading birds. The sexes are identical in appearance, except that males are larger than females on average. The plumage is mainly white with black flight feathers and wing coverts; the black is caused by the pigment melanin. The breast feathers are long and shaggy forming a ruff which is used in some courtship displays. The irises are dull brown or grey, and the peri-orbital skin is black. The adult has a bright red beak and red legs, the colouration of which is derived from carotenoids in the diet. As with other storks, the wings are long and broad enabling the bird to soar. In flapping flight its wingbeats are slow and regular. It flies with its neck stretched forward and with its long legs extended well beyond the end of its short tail. It walks at a slow and steady pace with its neck upstretched. In contrast, it often hunches its head between its shoulders when resting. Upon hatching, the young White stork is partly covered with short, sparse, whitish down feathers. This early down is replaced about a week later with a denser coat of woolly white down. By three weeks, the young bird acquires black scapulars and flight feathers. On hatching the chick has pinkish legs, which turn to greyish-black as it ages. Its beak is black with a brownish tip. By the time it fledges, the juvenile bird's plumage is similar to that of the adult, though its black feathers are often tinged with brown, and its beak and legs are a duller brownish-red or orange. The beak is typically orange or red with a darker tip. The bills gain the adults' red colour the following summer, although the black tips persist in some individuals. Young storks adopt adult plumage by their second summer.

Distribution
White storks are found across Europe, Asia Minor, the northern part of Africa, and the Middle East. By the winter months, they migrate into tropical regions of Africa, some parts of the Middle East, and the Indian subcontinent. White storks prefer to feed in grassy meadows, agricultural fields, pastures, steppes, savannas, and shallow wetlands avoiding areas overgrown with tall grass and shrubs. Breeding grounds include open grasslands, particularly grassy areas which are wet or periodically flooded, and less in areas with taller vegetation cover such as forest and shrubland.

Habitat
White storks are gregarious and non-territorial birds. They typically gather into loosely structured groups. During the breeding season, they nest in small colonies, constructing the nests far from each other. Non-breeding birds form groups of 40-50 individuals. During their annual migration and in their winter range, the birds gather into large flocks of hundreds or thousands of storks. White storks prefer to forage in meadows that are within roughly 5 km (3 mi) of their nest and sites where the vegetation is shorter so that their prey is more accessible. They hunt mainly during the day, swallowing small prey whole, but killing and breaking apart larger prey before swallowing. In order to communicate with each other, White storks use various calls. Their main sound is noisy bill-clattering, which has been likened to distant machine gun fire. The only vocal sound adult birds generate is a weak barely audible hiss; however, young birds can generate a harsh hiss, various cheeping sounds, and a cat-like mew they use to beg for food. Like the adults, young also clatter their beaks.

Diet and Nutrition
Bing carnivores, White storks consume various animal species, found in shallow water and on the ground. They eat fish, frogs, snakes, rodents, lizards, crustaceans, toads, tadpoles, spiders, scorpions as well as small mammals. They will also eat chicks and eggs of bird species, nesting on the ground.

Breeding
These birds have a monogamous system, mating once in a lifetime. The mating season takes place in spring, typically from March to April. White storks return to the breeding grounds a few days prior to females, enlarging the nests, left from the previous season. Courtship rituals include soft cooing calls as well as loud warnings to scare away intruders. After mating, the female lays 2-5 eggs with intervals of 2 days. Both parents take part in the incubation process, which lasts 33-34 days. When the chicks hatch out, both the male and the female feed the young by rotation. The chicks fledge, reaching the age of 58-64 days. Then, around 7-20 days after fledging, they become independent. White storks start breeding at the age of 3-5 years.

Cool Facts

• The White stork has had a notable impact on human culture. According to a myth, the white stork brings babies. The bird is also a symbol of fertility and luck.
• In Hebrew, the species is called "chasidah", which means "merciful" or "kind".
• The White stork appears in two fables of the ancient Greek story-teller Aesop - ‘The Fox and the Stork’ and ‘The Farmer and the Stork’.
• Normally, White storks are not afraid of humans. In Europe, these birds usually construct their nests on top of buildings. In Germany, a stork nest in a building was considered to bring good luck, protecting from fires. According to another belief, these birds possess human souls. For these reasons, White storks were protected throughout human settlements.
• White storks have an interesting ‘up-down’ display used for a number of interactions with other members of the species. Here a stork quickly throws its head backward so that its crown rests on its back before slowly bringing its head and neck forwards again, and this is repeated several times. The display is used as a greeting between birds, after mating, and also as a threat display. Breeding pairs use this display, as well as crouching forward with the tails cocked and wings extended.
• The White stork features more than 120 postage stamps of around 60 stamp-issuing organizations.

https://animalia.bio/white-stork
https://ebird.org/species/whisto1
https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/whisto1/cur/introduction