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Saturday 31 October 2015

18-10-2015 MALDON, ESSEX - BLACK HEADED GULL (Chroicocephalus ridibundus)


The Black-headed gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus) is a small and one of the most abundant gulls in much of Europe and Asia, and also in eastern Canada. It displays a variety of compelling behaviors and adaptations. Some of these include removing eggshells from one's nest after hatching, begging co-ordination between siblings, differences between sexes, conspecific brood parasitism, and extra-pair paternity.

The summer adult has a chocolate-brown head (not black, although does look black from a distance), a pale grey body, black tips to the primary wing feathers, and a red bill and legs. The hood is lost in winter, leaving just two dark spots. Immature birds have a mottled pattern of brown spots over most of the body and a black band on the tail. There is no difference in plumage between the sexes. In flight, the white leading edge to the wing is a good field mark. First-year birds have a black terminal tail band, more dark areas in the wings, and, in summer, a less fully developed dark hood.


Black-headed gulls breed in much of Europe, Asia, and in coastal eastern Canada. Most of their populations are migratory and winter further south, but some birds reside in the milder westernmost areas of Europe. Some Black-headed gulls also spend the winter in northeastern North America. They breed in large reed beds or marshes, or on islands in lakes, rivers, lagoons, deltas, and estuaries. They may also occur in ponds, canals, and flood lands, nesting on the heather moors, sand dunes, or beaches. During the winter these birds are found in estuaries with sandy or muddy beaches, ploughed fields, moist grasslands, reservoirs, urban parks, farmland, and gardens.


Black-headed gulls are highly gregarious birds, both when feeding or in evening roosts; they also breed in colonies. They are rarely seen at sea far from coasts. Black-headed gulls are active during the day and feed mainly by taking prey from the surface while swimming, or by dipping the head under the surface. They also walk along the coasts and probe for aquatic prey or catch flying insects on the wings. Black-headed birds are noisy, especially in colonies, with a familiar "kree-ar" call. When feeding they utter a sharp “kek-kek”.


Black-headed gulls are monogamous breeders. This means that males will mate with only one female and females will mate with only one male. The breeding season usually starts in late March; during this time pairs become very territorial and defend their nests vigorously. Black-headed gulls nest in big colonies and build their nests on the ground in low vegetation close to each other. Females lay 1 to 3 eggs and both parents incubate them within 22-26 days. The chicks are precocial; they are hatched with eyes open and are covered in down. They are able to stand within a day, but usually stay in the nest for a week and are fed by both parents. The chicks fledge about 35 days after hatching and become reproductively mature when they are 2 years old.

18-10-2015 MALDON, ESSEX - MALLARD (FEMALE) (Anas platyrhynchos)



Mallards are found across the Northern and Mallards are diurnal birds that spend most of their time feeding. They usually feed by dabbling for plant food or grazing. They are highly gregarious outside of the breeding season and form large flocks, which are known as "sordes". However, during the breeding season, both male and female mallards can become aggressive, driving off competitors to themselves or their mate by charging at them. Males typically fight more than females and attack each other by repeatedly pecking at their rival's chest, ripping out feathers and even skin on rare occasions. Females may also carry out 'inciting displays', which encourage other ducks in the flock to begin fighting. In general, mallards are noisy birds. Females have the deep ‘quack’ stereotypically associated with ducks. Males make a sound phonetically similar to that of the female, a typical ‘quack’, but it is deeper and quieter compared to that of the female. When incubating a nest, or when offspring are present, females vocalize differently, making a call that sounds like a truncated version of the usual ‘quack’. In addition, females hiss if the nest or offspring are threatened or interfered with. When taking off, the wings of a mallard produce a characteristic faint whistling noise.


Mallards have a monogamous mating system. However, they widely practice so-called “extra-pair copulation”, and paired males are known to chase females that are not their mates. Nesting starts in April, reaching its peak in May. During this period, mated pairs are seen circling in the evenings low over the habitat and looking for a suitable nesting site. When the site is chosen, the female constructs the nest on the ground, near a water body, laying 9-13 eggs, which are incubated for 26-28 days. Chicks of this species are precocial; once born, they are able to swim, being introduced to water within 12 hours after hatching. Right after mating, male mallards usually leave, gathering into male flocks for molting in early June, while the females stay with the offspring, caring for the chicks for 42-60 days. Both males and females reach reproductive maturity at 1 year of age.

28-10-2015 MASSANASA, VALENCIA - CABBAGE WHITE BUTTERFLY (Pieris rapae)


Pieris rapae is a small- to medium-sized butterfly species of the whites-and-yellows family Pieridae. It is known in Europe as the small white, in North America as the cabbage white or cabbage butterfly, on several continents as the small cabbage white, and in New Zealand as the white butterfly. The butterfly is recognizable by its white color with small black dots on its wings, and it can be distinguished from P. brassicae by its larger size and the black band at the tip of its forewings.

The caterpillar of this species, often referred to as the "imported cabbageworm", is a pest to crucifer crops such as cabbage, kale, bok choy and broccoli. Pieris rapae is widespread in Europe and Asia; it is believed to have originated in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Europe, and to have spread across Eurasia thanks to the diversification of brassicaceous crops and the development of human trade routes. Over the past two centuries, it spread to North Africa, North America, New Zealand, and Australia, as a result of accidental introductions.


In appearance it looks like a smaller version of the large white (Pieris brassicae). The upperside is creamy white with black tips on the forewings. Females also have two black spots in the center of the forewings. Its underwings are yellowish with black speckles. It is sometimes mistaken for a moth due to its plain appearance. The wingspan of adults is roughly 32–47 mm (1.3–1.9 in).

Pieris rapae has a wingbeat frequency averaging 12.8 flaps per second.

The species has a natural range across Europe, Asia, and North Africa. It was accidentally introduced to Quebec, Canada, around 1860 and spread rapidly throughout North America. The species has spread to all North American life zones from Lower Austral/Lower Sonoran to Canada. Estimates show that a single female of this species might be the progenitor in a few generations of millions. It is absent or scarce in desert and semidesert regions (except for irrigated areas). It is not found north of Canadian life zone, nor on Channel Islands off the coast of southern California. By 1898, the small white had spread to Hawaii; by 1929, it had reached New Zealand[11] and the area around Melbourne, Australia, and found its way to Perth as early as 1943. It does not seem to have made it to South America.

In Britain, it has two flight periods, April–May and July–August, but is continuously brooded in North America, being one of the first butterflies to emerge from the chrysalis in the spring and flying until hard freeze in the fall.

The species can be found in any open area with diverse plant association. It can be seen usually in towns, but also in natural habitats, mostly in valley bottoms. Although an affinity towards open areas is shown, the small white is found to have entered even small forest clearings in recent years.

The nominate subspecies P. r. rapae is found in Europe, while Asian populations are placed in the subspecies P. r. crucivora. Other subspecies include atomaria, eumorpha, leucosoma, mauretanica, napi, novangliae, and orientalis.

14-10-2015 VALENCIA BIOPARC - RED RIVER HOG (Potamochoerus porcus


The red river hog (Potamochoerus porcus) or bushpig (a name also used for Potamochoerus larvatus) is a wild member of the pig family living in Africa, with most of its distribution in the Guinean and Congolian forests. It is rarely seen away from rainforests, and generally prefers areas near rivers or swamps.

The red river hog has striking orange to reddish-brown fur, with black legs and a tufted white stripe along the spine. Adults have white markings around the eyes and on the cheeks and jaws; the rest of the muzzle and face are a contrasting black. The fur on the jaw and the flanks is longer than that on the body, with the males having especially prominent facial whiskers. Unlike other species of pig native to tropical Africa, the entire body is covered in hair, with no bare skin visible.

Adults weigh 45 to 115 kg (99 to 254 lb) and stand 55 to 80 cm (22 to 31 in) tall, with a length of 100 to 145 cm (39 to 57 in).[2] The thin tail is 30 to 45 cm (12 to 18 in) long and ends in a tuft of black hair. The ears are also long and thin, ending in tufts of white or black hair that may each 12 cm (4.7 in) in length. Boars are somewhat larger than sows, and have distinct conical protuberances on either side of the snout and rather small, sharp tusks. The facial protuberances are bony and probably protect the boar's facial tendons during head-to-head combat with other males.

Red river hogs have a dental formula of 
3.1.3–4.3
3.1.3–4.3
, similar to that of wild boar. Both sexes have scent glands close to the eyes and on the feet; males have additional glands near the tusks on the upper jaw and on the penis. There is also a distinctive glandular structure about 2 cm (0.79 in) in diameter on the chin, which probably has a tactile function. Females have six teats.


The red river hog lives in rainforests, wet dense savannas, and forested valleys, and near rivers, lakes and marshes. The species' distribution ranges from the Congo area and Gambia to the eastern Congo, southwards to the Kasai and the Congo River. The exact delineation of its range versus that of the bushpig is unclear; but in broad terms, the red river hog occupies western and central Africa, and the bushpig occupies eastern and southern Africa. Where the two meet, they are sometimes said to interbreed, although other authorities dispute this. Although numerous subspecies have been identified in the past, none are currently recognised.

18-10-2015 MALDON, ESSEX - EUROPEAN MOORHEN (JUVENILE) (Gallinula chloropus)





18-10-2015 MALDON, ESSEX - EURASIAN TEAL (MALE) (Anas crecca ssp. crecca)

18-10-2015 MALDON, ESSEX - EUROPEAN STARLING (Sturnus vulgaris)




28-10-2015 ULLAL DE BOLDOVI, ALBUFERA- SCARLET DARTER DRAGONFLY (Crocothemis erythraea)




28-10-2015 ULLAL DE BOLDOVI, ALBUFERA - LITTLE GREBE (Tachybaptus ruficollis)

28-10-2015 ULLAL DE BOLDOVI, ALBUFERA - GREY HERON (Ardea cinerea)




28-10-2015 ULLAL DE BOLDOVI, ALBUFERA - EURASIAN COOT (Fulica atra)




28-10-2015 ULLAL DE BOLDOVI, ALBUFERA - EUROPEAN STARLING (Sturnus vulgaris)





28-10-2015 ULLAL DE BOLDOVI, ALBUFERA - CATTLE EGRET (Bubulcus ibis)





28-10-2015 ULLAL DE BOLDOVI, ALBUFERA - CABBAGE WHITE BUTTERFLY (Pieris rapae)





28-10-2015 RACO DE L'OLLA, ALBUFERA - COMMON DARTER DRAGONFLY (MALE) (Sympetrum striolatum)





28-10-2015 RACO DE L'OLLA, ALBUFERA - MALLARD (MALE) (Anas platyrhynchos)





28-10-2015 MASSANASA, VALENCIA - RED VEINED DARTER DRAGONFLY (FEMALE) (Sympetrum fonscolombii)





28-10-2015 - MASSANASA, VALENCIA - BLACK REDSTART (FEMALE) (Phoenicurus ochruros)




30-10-2015 VILLALONGA RESERVOIR, VALENCIA - LITTLE EGRET (Egretta garzetta)






30-10-2015 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - TREE BUG (AROCATUS ROSELII)





31-10-2015 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - SARDINIAN WARBLER (MALE) (Sylvia melanocephala)




30-10-2015 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - BLACK REDSTART (MALE) (Phoenicurus ochruros)







Friday 30 October 2015

3-9-2015 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - EUROPEAN MANTIS (FEMALE) (Mantis religiosa)


The European mantis (Mantis religiosa) is a large hemimetabolic insect in the family of the Mantidae ('mantids'), which is the largest family of the order Mantodea (mantises).the distinctive posture of the first pair of legs that can be observed in animals in repose. It resembles a praying attitude. Both males and females have elongated bodies with two pairs of wings. The most striking features that all Mantodea share are a very mobile, triangular head with large compound eyes and their first pair of legs (the 'raptorial legs'), which is highly modified for the efficient capture and restraint of fast-moving or flying prey.

30-10-2015 VILLALONGA RESERVOIR, VALENCIA - GREEN SANDPIPER (Tringa ochropus)





3-11-2015 VILLALONGA RESERVOIR, VALENCIA - RED ADMIRAL BUTTERFLY (Vanessa atalanta)




Wednesday 28 October 2015

4-10-2015 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - VINE HAWKMOTH (Hippotion celerio) (CHRYSALIS)



Hippotion celerio, the vine hawk-moth or silver-striped hawk-moth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. It was described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.

It is found in Africa and central and southern Asia of India, Sri Lanka and, as a migrant in southern Europe and Australia.

Larvae may be green, yellowish green or even brown. They have a dark broken mid-dorsal line and a creamy dorso-lateral line from the fifth segment to the horn. The head is round, and usually a dull green colour. The larva has a horn which is usually long and straight. There is a large yellow and green eyespot on the third segment and a smaller one on the fourth segment.

Larvae typically feed on the leaves of plants such as the grape vine, Cissus, Impatiens and the Arum lily.

28-10-2015 ULLAL DE BOLDOVI, ALBUFERA - GREAT WHITE EGRET (Ardea alba ssp. alba)