Snake surprise! (21-10)

 

Apparently the dog shares its territory with a yet unidentified 1.5 meter long snake. Today we found the snake’s summer jacket quite close to our house…

 

Update: according to Antonio Gutierrez this most likely is a Malpolon monspessulanus, commonly known as the Montpellier snake

Variation on the egg-theme.

When searching for bird nests, occasionally one can find an egg that does not look like one at all. Deformation of an egg can occur for a variety of reasons (which I will not discuss here) and can result in some strange shapes. The weirdest egg I ever observed had been laid by a Black-legged Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla in its nest on the large former radar tower on Middleton Island during the summer of 2010. I have no idea what would be the cause of its remarkable shape. 

Deformed Black-legged Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla egg found on Middleton Island in the summer of 2010 (T. van Nus)

Unfortunately, I only have these two photos to show and can’t retrieve any background information about the bird that laid it, though it possibly had been a bird that was included in some physiological study… 

Middleton for the masses

All video footage (about 75 minutes of raw material) of a 2005 visit to Middleton Island, Gulf of Alaska, can now be found online! (update: from now on Middleton Island related subjects will be posted on a different blog: http://www.middletonisland.blogspot.com)

Raptor Working group Zwolle, The Netherlands. June 2, 2012

Assisted banding of 3 Eurasian Goshawk Accipiter gentilis -, 3 broods with 5-6 Eurasian Kestrel Falco tinnunculus -, 3 Barn Owl Tyto alba- and 3 Little Owl Athene noctua chicks, all in good condition. Too busy for photography...

Yaco climbing the Goshawk's nest...

Three Goshawk sisters on Jan van Dijk's lap.

May 19, 2012: Danger! High voltage (and many White Storks Ciconia ciconia)

Just west of Coimbra (Portugal) we ran into a remarkable White Stork colony. As far as we could see from our location there were about 10 of these pylons being completely overtaken by nesting storks. (Thanks to Toni!)