Click above for a vocabulary lesson of questionable value, brought to you by the Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) and his lesser known relative, the Ocellated Turkey (Meleagris ocellata).
“But... I still don't know what ocellated means,” you say. Well, if this turkey fanned his tail, you'd see concentric semicircles of eye-like spots, a.k.a. ocelli. Maybe I should have illustrated that.
Nickel Creek, California
Last time I drew a crow in snowy Maine. Today, a pair of ravens in fog-filled northern California.
Fall, snow, fall.
Brunswick, Maine
East End Beach, Portland, Maine
Mostly ring-billed gulls and common terns, with a cameo by the tap-dancing herring gull (see Happy Feet, below).
Before I started recording, the herring gull was actually getting a meal out of this little tap dancing routine. I was kind of far away, but every now and then I could see a silvery flash of something he grabbed out of the wet sand. Maybe performance anxiety doomed his success after that. My favorite part is 0:27 when the ring-billed gull on the left starts half-heartedly imitating him, and then they both look embarrassed.
Before I started recording, the herring gull was legitimately scaring up a meal via this little tap dancing routine (I was kind of far away, but I could see an occasional silvery flash of something he grabbed out of the wet sand). Maybe performance anxiety doomed his success after that.
My favorite part is 0:27 when the ring-billed gull on the left starts halfheartedly imitating him, and then they both look embarrassed.
Abby McBride
SKETCH BIOLOGIST
Contact: abbymcb@alum.mit.edu
© Abby McBride 2014-2024
