I
stood on the lakeshore, one summer day, the water rippling endlessly. The only
sounds were the ceaseless lap, lapping of waves on the pebbly sand, the shouts
and laughter of children wading in the shallows and some men on the wharf
readying their motor boat for a fishing outing. Yards out on the bobbing water
was a family of grebes, their auburn necks clear in the sunshine, and other
birds could be seen out in the middle of the lake, too far away to be anything
but little black specks.
Suddenly,
a dark figure swooped over top of me and glided toward the water. The bird
landed on its feet in very shallow water only a few feet from the shore and not
too many yards from the children and boaters. Neither seemed to notice the
other.
But
I noticed. This was unlike any bird I’d ever seen. He was a larger bird, close
to his knees in the lake on very long, spindly straw-thin legs, and yet,
seemingly, completely unaffected by the wind or the force of the flow of the
water beneath him. His body was fluffy white with large black patches across
his back and wings and his neck and head were a startling orangey-red
auburn. But what really caught my eye
and kept me staring through my binoculars, was the extraordinarily long,
sharply pointed black beak. It was so narrow, like a needle, and it seemed to
curve up a bit at the end. I stared for several long moments trying to memorize
as much as I could, and snapped several photos, so I could check this in my
bird guide, later.
This
was an American Avocet. He’s known, but not overly-common in the area where
this I was visiting. I was really lucky to spy him. Would you like to know a
little more about this beautiful bird?
·
The avocet is quite capable of
self-defense, sometimes getting quite physical with other bird species. This
occurs particularly during nesting.
·
These clever birds also defend
themselves with a neat trick. It emits a series of call notes that alter as the
cry goes on. It causes the call to sound like the Avocet is approaching faster
than it actually is, spooking the predator. Now how did the Avocet learn to do
that?
·
One of the most fascinating
facts about Avocets is that the females will not only take over the nests of
other species to lay their eggs, but sometimes they’ll actually borrow another
bird’s eggs! Avocets have been known to raise other species’ chicks as their
very own!
· They seek out food by sweeping
those long, skinny beaks back and forth with the curved tip under the water. It
eats insects and small fish.
·
It can live to be 15 years old.
·
They are hardy birds right from
their hatching. Within 24 hours of emerging from their eggs, the chicks leave
the nest. And why not? By this time they can already walk swim and dive.
So, if you find yourself out by the lake, sometime this summer have
your binoculars, camera and identification guide handy. Then, keep your eyes
wide open. You never know what Mother Nature might want to show you.
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