It’s Sunday, and that means it’s time for a group of photos from biologist John Avise. John’s text and IDs are indented, and you can enlarge the photos by clicking on them.
Luxembourg Birds
In 2007, I visited the tiny central European country of Luxembourg to attend a conference on evolutionary genetics. This week’s post shows several avian species I photographed there during breaks from the formal conference venue.
Black Redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros):
Common Blackbird (Turdus merula), male:
Commmon Blackbird, female:
Eurasian Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus):
Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo):
Common Buzzard flying:
Carrion Crow (Corvus corone):
Carrion Crow flying:
Eurasian Nuthatch (Sitta europaea):
Eurasian Magpie (Pica pica) flying:
Great Tit (Parus major):
Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea):
Marsh Tit (Poecile palustris):
Mute Swan (Cygnus olor):
European Robin (Erithacus rubecula):
Rook (Corvus frugilegus), flying:
Luxembirds. Thanks.
Ah …
Magpie might be my favorite.
Gotta love the Great Tit, if just for the name. Seeing more than one in the wild is also an excuse for shouting “Great Tits!”
Very nice
Lovely bird photos, thank you.
Marsh Tit is notoriously difficult to separate visually from its close relative the Willow Tit (Poecile montanus) – although their calls are quite different. This photograph rather nicely shows one of the characters that does allow identification of Marsh Tit, namely the pale grey spot/smudge at the base of the upper mandible – a feature that Willow Tit lacks.
It’s a rare occurrence that European me knows all (or even any) of the birds John posts!
Lovely birds! It’s striking how many of them look like only a few DNA mutations separate them from a North American close relative. Hey, someone ought to study that! 😊
Very nice. I am usually in awe of the wonderful species that often feature in these threads. Even many of the common American birds are impossibly exotic for us over here.
So it is pleasant to note that I have seen all those birds, except the Marsh Tit and the Mute Swan, in or over our ordinary suburban garden within the past three months.
With all the birds you photographed, I’m surprised you had time to attend the conference. 🙂
Great photos, thanks.
I always thought a buzzard was a carrion feeder, not a raptor.
In Europe, the word “buzzard” officially refers to this common diurnal raptor. In North America, the word “buzzard” is often used colloquially in reference to vultures, which are indeed carrion eaters.
Aha. Thanks for the clarification.
The european common buzzard is quite opportunistic and will readily feed on carrion as well as hunting and catching its own prey. They are also quite partial to earthworms.