Nuggets Plus – Herons – Patiently Waiting ~ by Lee
Nuggets Plus
The Heron family
Has very patient members.
They wait very still with
Their head and neck
Poised for action.
Then at the right time,
They grab their opportunity..
Are we as patient
As the Herons
Or do we run ahead of the Lord?
Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.
(Psalms 27:14 KJV)
I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine. (Psalms 50:11 ESV)
Today, Dan and I went to the Lowry Park Zoo again. The birds were quite active and the visitors were few which made birdwatching even more fun. We spent most of our time in the Aviary just inside the entry. The weather was very comfortable, for a change. The summer heat is finally breaking and the humidity has started dropping also.
Boat-billed Heron (Cochlearius cochlearius) by Lee at LPZoo
We were greeting by one of my favorite birds there, the Boat-billed Heron. This time I was able to get a photo up under that neat boat-shaped bill of his (or hers). The picture of the bird is not good, but the bill came out okay. There are two that hang out together most of the time. There are others in the aviary, but these two sweethearts always grab my attention. This next photo shows the pair and also the top of those beaks. My flash gave them the “red-eye.”
Boat-billed Heron (Cochlearius cochlearius) by Lee at LPZoo
Another bird that is hard to get a decent photo of is the Crested Oropendola. They like to stay up in the trees, but this one is a fair shot. (This one is for you, Pastor Pete)
Crested Oropendola (Psarocolius decumanus) at LPZ by Lee
Then as we walked over into the second section, we were greeted by the Red-Legged Seriemas. You could hear them well outside the aviary. As you watch the video, you will see and hear them carrying on. Actually after checking with Wikipedia, this is their “singing.” Here is what they have to say about this:
“The song has a quality described as “a cross between ‘the serrated bark of a young dog and the clucking of turkeys'”.[3] At the loudest part of the song, the bird has its neck bent so its head is touching its back. Both members of a pair as well as young down to the age of two weeks sing; often one member of a family starts a song just as another finishes, or two sing simultaneously. The song can be heard several kilometres away; in Emas National Park, Brazil, in 1981–1982, observers often heard four Red-legged Seriemas or groups singing at once.[4]
The full song consists of three sections:
Repeated single notes at constant pitch (1,200 to 1,300 Hz) and duration but increasing tempo
Repeated two- or three-note subphrases of slightly higher pitch with increasing tempo
Subphrases of up to 10 notes, shorter ones rising in pitch and longer ones falling, two-subphrase combinations increasing in number of notes and tempo and then decreasing in tempo.”
Check it out for yourself:
We also stopped by the African Penguins and I took this Foot shot of a Penguin. Thought it was interesting.
Penguin with cool feet
It was a nice enjoyable visit and we needed a break. God’s creative work was on display through all of these neat birds.
ten primary feathers to the wings of the birds to produce thrust… Likewise, God has given us Ten Commandments, not just for keeps, but, to give us thrust to do the impossible…
And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth (Deuteronomy 28:1)
Yellow-throated Scrubwren (Sericornis citreogularis) by Ian
I have been searching through my e-Sword Bible program for God’s Commands and Promises that relate to birds. Here are some of my findings. I have used not only the Bible, but also like to use the Topical Bibles, like Naves and Torrey’s, which are in the Dictionary section. Recently more Bible versions, Dictionaries, Commentaries and other information was added to my program. The Bible Support, which I recently discovered, is loaded with additions to add to the e-Sword program. Just like the program, these are free also. (You can buy special versions and commentaries, etc.)
Blue-gray Gnacatcher by Dan at Circle B Bar Reserve
And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth. (Genesis 1:22 NKJV)
Starting in Genesis, we see God, through the LORD, creating the birds and then giving them a command. Be fruitful and multiply. This was not a do it if you want command, it was a direct command from God. Have the birds done so? Look around you and answer that for yourself.
Rainbow Bee-eater (Merops ornatus) by Ian
God also told Adam and Eve the same thing; to multiply, but He also gave them dominion over the birds.
Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth. (Genesis 1:28 NKJV)
You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, All sheep and oxen— Even the beasts of the field, The birds of the air, And the fish of the sea That pass through the paths of the seas.
(Psalms 8:6-8 NKJV)
When the Flood came, God told Noah that the birds and other critters would come to him that they may be kept alive. Dominion here means to be responsible for them. Adam was told to provide food for his family and the animals.
Of the birds after their kind, of animals after their kind, and of every creeping thing of the earth after its kind, two of every kind will come to you to keep them alive. (Genesis 6:20 NKJV)
also seven each of birds of the air, male and female, to keep the species alive on the face of all the earth. (Genesis 7:3 NKJV)
So He destroyed all living things which were on the face of the ground: both man and cattle, creeping thing and bird of the air. They were destroyed from the earth. Only Noah and those who were with him in the ark remained alive. (Genesis 7:23 NKJV)
Bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you: birds and cattle and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, so that they may abound on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth. (Genesis 8:17 NKJV)
Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) by Ray
The above verses give not only God’s commands to the birds, but He also promised to keep them alive during the Flood. God did not fail to keep those promises. It is said of Abraham in Romans chapter 4:
No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. (Romans 4:20-21 ESV)
We will cover more of the commands and promises of God to the birds (and us) in future Parts. God loves the birds and especially us.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16 ESV)
Tropical Scrubwren (Sericornis beccarii) Female by Ian
Ian’s Bird of the Week – Tropical Scrubwren ~ by Ian Montgomery
Newsletter – 9/30/11
Here’s another of my target species on the Cape York trip. It comes from the less spectacular end of the spectrum, far away from the Birds of Paradise, but I’m fond of Scrubwrens in general. They are plucky, vocal little birds with lots of character, so colourful plumage isn’t everything.
The one in the first photo is a female, distinguishable from the male by a plainer face pattern with lores – the bit between the eye and the bill – much the same colour as the rest of the head. The second photo shows a male and you can see the patterning on the face with dark lores with pale highlights above and below them.
Tropical Scrubwren (Sericornis beccarii) Male by Ian
The Tropical Scrubwren look like a cross between the Large-billed Scrubwren and the White-browed. It has a long, slightly-upwards pointing bill like the Large-billed but the wing pattern with dark, white-tipped wing-coverts look much more like those of the White-browed (the Large-billed has very plain plumage overall including the wings). In fact, there has been some doubt whether it’s a separate species from the Large-billed, but most authorities now accept that it is.
In Australia it occurs only on Cape York Peninsula from Cooktown northwards. Within its restricted range, it’s quite common and I found several pairs without much difficulty as they are quite vocal. The birds do, however, flit incessantly and almost invisibly through the dense undergrowth and foliage of the rainforest and are not easy to see well or photograph. They have reddish irises, but in the poor light of the rainforest, their pupils are very dilated and look black in most of the photos that I took. This species is widespread in PNG, where it is called Beccari’s Scrubwren.
There are 13 Scrubwrens that make up the Sericornis Genus of the Acanthizidae – Australasian Warblers Family. The Passeriformes Order has the perching birds, of which this family belongs. I think they are cute, even if they are not very colorful. The video at the bottom of the Family link is of a very active Atherton Scrubwren (Sericornis keri) by Keith Blomerley. Those birds sound like the ones that give photographers the fits trying to take their picture.
The birds of the air have their resting-places by them, and make their song among the branches. (Psalms 104:12 BBE)
To see all of the Ian’s Bird of the Week – Click Here
We are introducing “Nuggets Plus” to our articles by ajmithra. We were chatting the other day, via Yahoo, and decided to use some of aj’s short little Nuggets of Truth that he has already written. He said that they were not all about birds and I reminded him that the Last Word of this blog’s name is “PLUS.” It was named that way so that other articles of interest could be added like creation or other animals, flowers, sunsets, etc.
A J Mithra, ajmithra as he prefers, lives in India and has been a regular contributor for several years. He has about 150 of these already written and will start posting them regularly. They are short, but have a “nugget of God’s Truth” tucked away in each of them. We may have our other writers add to them. Who knows the future, other than our Lord?
American Robin (Turdus migratorius) by S Slayton
American Robin – Singing Slayer..
American Robin
is the first among birds
to sing at dawn
and
the last in the evening
and
they band together
to drive the predator away!
Wanna drive the devil?
Worship at dawn
and at dusk
and together in trouble…
Worship the LORD your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you, (Exodus 23:25)
The Egyptian Plover is a localised resident in tropical sub-Saharan Africa. It breeds on sandbars in large rivers. Its two or three eggs are not incubated, but are buried in warm sand, temperature control being achieved by the adult sitting on the eggs with a water-soaked belly to cool them.
If the adult leaves the nest, it smoothes sand over the eggs, though if it is frightened the job may be hasty…
The adults cool the chicks in the same way as with the eggs.
When I read this, the three young men inside the furnace came to my mind..
When Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were thrown into the furnace for no fault of theirs, down came the Pillar of cloud to stroll with them..
Is it to cool them from the heat?
When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. (Isaiah 43:2)
Ian’s Bird of the Week – White-streaked Honeyeater ~ by Ian Montgomery (Australia)
Newsletter ~ 09/23/11
Of the 4 species at the top of my wanted list on the trip to Iron Range, this one, the White-streaked Honeyeater, took the most effort to find and I found it only at the last possible location on the way home. Many Honeyeaters, including this one, are nomadic in search of flowering shrubs and trees so visiting a known site is no guarantee of success.
The White-streaked Honeyeater occurs only on Cape York Peninsula, north of about Cooktown. So, when I left Daintree village, rather than go the usual route via Julatten, I headed north through Cape Tribulation to Cooktown along the 4WD Bloomfield track, spent a couple of nights near Cooktown and then drove to Laura along Battlecamp Road to join the main Peninsula Development Road. Apart from the attraction of of a route I hadn’t travelled on before, both White-streaked Honeyeaters and Tropical Scrubwrens had been seen in July at a couple of river crossings along the way. Near Cooktown, I did a glimpse and an unflattering rear-view shot of the southern race (dubius) of the Tropical Scrubwren, but the Honeyeaters seemed to have moved on.
Their preferred habitats are heathland, open woodland and riverine forest so they don’t occur in the rainforest at Iron Range. A usually reliable site for them is the heathland at Tozer’s Gap on the way in but this time an orange grevillea was flowering everywhere in abundance, so the birds could have been anywhere. Happily, I caught up with some friends of mine who had just seen the honeyeater in paperbarks and bottlebrushes at the Wenlock River crossing on the same road. This is a 4 or 5 hour round trip from Iron Range, so I decided to risk waiting until my final departure and then I stopped for lunch at the crossing.
When I got there, the paperbarks had finished flowering but the bottlebrushes were still putting on a fine display. Even so, it took some diligent searching before I finally found a couple of White-streaked among the commoner Honeyeaters, mainly Dusky and Graceful. They seemed shy and preferred to remain hidden in the foliage, so I sat on a sandy bank in the river until they showed themselves. They are unusual honeyeaters with no close relatives and the sole member of the genus Trichodere (a ‘monotypic’ genus). ‘Trich’ comes from the Greek word for ‘hair’ and refers, as does ‘white-streaked’ to the bristle-like feathers on the breast (cf Trichoglossus – ‘hairy tongue’ – referring to the brush-like, nectar-licking tongues of Rainbow Lorikeets). Adults have yellow lines below the eye, a yellow ear tuft and a blue gape (photos 1 and 2). They also have yellow wings and tail: easier to see in the third photo of a juvenile which lacks the blue gape and has only a single yellow feather on the head but is beginning to develop the bristle-like breast feathers, also characteristic of adults.
In the second photo, the nest-like material below the bird is flood debris – a clear reminder that this part of the Cape York Peninsula is accessible by road only in the dry-season. The photo below shows the crossing at Wenlock River.
Crossing at Wenlock River by Ian #4
Misión completa, as my guide told me when we found the Resplendent Quetzals in Costa Rica.
My son, eat thou honey, because it is good; and the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste: (Proverbs 24:13 KJV)
Ian sure has persistence and patience. Ian, thanks again for sharing your birding trips with us.
As Ian mentioned, the Honeyeater is in a genus, Trichodere of the Meliphagidae – Honeyeaters Family. That family has 183 members at present. The family has not only Honeyeaters, but also Friarbirds, Wattlebirds, Bellbirds, Melidectes, Myzas, Myzomela, Straighbills, Spinebills, Chats, and a Gibberbird and others. Roughly half of the family live in Australia.
All 170 species of honeyeaters have a unique adaptation: a long tongue with a brush-like tip that they use to get nectar from flowers. The tongue can be extended into the nectar about 10 times per second!
Just received an interesting article from the Birdwatching Magazine Newsletter. Research has been going on about how the Hummingbird produces sound by the way they spread their tail. The vibrations send out sounds that they use for courtship. “As a diving bird spreads its tail, the motion exposes the tail feathers to air, causing it to flutter like a flag in the breeze and generate sound. This so-called aerodynamic flutter can be hazardous to airplanes, but in hummingbirds it produces a species-specific sound essential to courtship.”
Dan and I finally found a little time to go birdwatching, and since I was sore from a fall, decided to just go to Lake Hollingsworth and Lake Morton in Lakeland, Florida. Neither require a lot of walking, but we can always find something worth looking at. Both lakes had some great finds.
Lake Hollingsworth had the usually Mallards, White Ibises, Boat-tailed Grackles, Common Moorhens, “Aflac” Ducks being fed by a couple of ladies. We heard several Blue Jays, Red-bellied Woodpecker, and a Red-shouldered Hawk. A flock of about 50 Fish Crows made their noisy flight over and around for several minutes. We also saw a Great Egret, Osprey, Wood Storks, Great Blue Herons, Cormorant, Limpkin and a Purple Gallinule.
The best find was to watch an Anhinga trying to stay cool. I video taped the bird vibrating its throat. Birds do not have sweat glands, so this is one of the ways they cool down. It actually wasn’t too hot, 79°, but the humidity was at 85%. We all were warm. Below is some of that video.
And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. (Luke 16:24 KJV)
After that we drove about a mile north to Lake Morton. Again, the birds were gathered around a family feeding them. (These are the only two places we go locally where they feed wildlife.) This time the Mallards, White Ibises, and Boat-tailed Grackles were joined by 8 Wood Storks, Gulls, and Common Grackles. Also spotted were Mute Swans, a Black Swan, Wood Ducks, Red-bellied Woodpecker, some sort of Tern and a Snowy Egret showing off his yellow feet.
The prize here was finding a family of Limpkins. The mom, dad, and 5 juveniles were in the tall grass by the lake. Tried to get photos through the grass, but as you know, that can be a challenge. I turned my camera on to video and took the following:
All in all, the Lord provided a great day for birdwatching and let His creation of birds be seen. What would life be like without the neat things the Lord has provided to make our journey so enjoyable. All we have to do is look around us and observe.
I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant…” (Genesis 32:10a)
How would you like to be a dental hygienist for a crocodile? That’s how the crocodile bird makes his living.
Of course, you do need to know that the crocodile bird doesn’t show up to do his work with any drills or needles. He and the crocodile are on good terms with each other. After eating, the crocodile climbs the river bank and relaxes with his mouth open. The little crocodile bird enters the crocodile’s mouth to clean up the scraps that are left. While the crocodile bird makes most of his living as sort of a crocodile dental hygienist, he also helps keep the crocodile free of pesky insects that lodge in his skin.
The crocodile also receives one other service from the crocodile bird. Whenever the bird senses approaching danger, he gives his sharp warning call and flies off. The crocodile, now warned, can quickly roll over into the water where virtually no animal can get the best of him.
This is but one of many unlikely cooperative arrangements that we find in the plant and animal kingdoms. Every one of these relationships speaks for a Creator and against the idea that either these creatures, or their cooperation, evolved naturally. Evolutionists have written whole books on the subject. Yet they don’t seem satisfied that they have explained how these relationships could develop through evolution. We agree that they have no explanation. Nor are they likely to find one as long as they deny a Creator who cares for His creation.
Prayer:
Father, because of the innocent suffering and death of Your Son, Jesus Christ, I know that Your love for me is certain and sure. I thank You for this. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
The “Crocodile Bird” is actually the “Egyptian Plover, Pluvianus aegyptius, is a wader, the only member of the genus Pluvianus. Formerly placed in the pratincole and courser family, Glareolidae, it is now regarded as the sole member of its own monotypic family”, Pluvianidae – Egyptian Plover. This Plover is in the Charadriiformes – Shorebirds & Allies Order that has 19 families including other Plovers, Painted Snipes, Jacanas, Oystercatchers, Sanderpiper, Snipes and related birds.
It is also sometimes referred to as the Crocodile Bird because it is famous for its symbiotic relationship with crocodiles (National Geographic 1986). According to a story dating to Herodotus, the crocodiles lie on the shore with their mouths open, and the plovers fly into the crocodiles’ mouths so as to feed on bits of decaying meat that are lodged between the crocodiles’ teeth. This is questioned by some. One from Harvard talks about Symbiosis as a fact.
The Egyptian Plover is a localised resident in tropical sub-Saharan Africa. It breeds on sandbars in large rivers. Its two or three eggs are not incubated, but are buried in warm sand, temperature control being achieved by the adult sitting on the eggs with a water-soaked belly to cool them. If the adult leaves the nest, it smooths sand over the eggs, though if it is frightened the job may be hasty.
The chicks are precocial, and can run as soon as they are hatched and feed themselves shortly afterwards. The adults cool the chicks in the same way as with the eggs. The chicks may drink water from the adult’s belly feathers. The adults bury the chicks in the sand temporarily if danger threatens.
Egyptian Plover is a striking and unmistakable species. The 19-21 cm long adult has a black crown, back, eye-mask and breast band. The rest of the head is white. The remaining upperpart plumage is blue-grey, and the underparts are orange. The longish legs are blue-grey.
In flight, it is even more spectacular, with the black crown and back contrasting with the grey of the upperparts and wings. The flight feathers are brilliant white crossed by a black bar. From below, the flying bird is entirely white, apart from the orange belly and black wing bar. After landing, members of a pair greet each other by raising their wings in an elaborate ceremony that shows off the black and white markings. The sexes are similar, but juveniles are duller and the black marking are intermixed with brown.
Just for fun, watch these two videos about the “crocodile bird.”
The video below was to me as a link in an e-mail. It was posted by vurtrunner in Full HD High Speed. It is worth showing again here and especially since it is a Bird of the Bible. What an awesome shot. The way the feet open up at the last seconds amazed me. Another interesting thing is the way he is so steadfast and aims right for his target. Thanks, Pastor Pete, for sending the link.
Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. (1 Corinthians 15:58 KJV)
There are actually 15 Eagle-Owl in the world and the video did not say which one this one is. Looking at the photos I can find, most likely this is an Eurasian Eagle-Owl. The Eagle-Owls are the Eurasian Eagle-Owl, Indian, Pharaoh, Cape, Spotted, Greyish, Fraser’s, Usambara, Spot-bellied, Barred, Shelley’s, Verreaux’s, Dusky, Akun, and Philippine Eagle-Owl. They are in the Stringidae Family of the Strigiformes Order. Also, the Eagle-Owls are in the genus Bubo, which also included the horned owls (Snowy Owl, Great Horned Owl, Lesser Horned Owl) and one fish owl (Blakiston’s Fish Owl). “This genus, depending on definition, contains about one or two dozen species of typical owls (family Strigidae) and is found in many parts of the world. Some of the largest living Strigiformes are in Bubo. Traditionally, only owls with ear-tufts were included here, but that is no longer the case.” (Wikipedia)
The beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons and the owls: because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen. (Isaiah 43:20 KJV)
How would you like to be a dental hygienist for a crocodile? That’s how the crocodile bird makes his living.
Lee's Birdwatching Adventures Plus 
