Common Gallinule Abaco | ROLLING HARBOUR ABACO

STICKING TOGETHER: BIRDS OF A FEATHER

In times of trouble, of grief and of despair, humans have an instinct to rally round for the greater good. Right now, I am very conscious that on Abaco – and indeed Grand Bahama – there is little or no time or mental space for overmuch concern about the wildlife. I am safely distanced from the tragedies and dire misfortunes of the countless individuals, families and communities affected by Hurricane Dorian. In this post I simply offer some images of birds – all photographed on Abaco – that are bonded together as adults or adult and chick, as symbolic of the huge combined human efforts on Abaco to comfort, restore, and rebuild a shattered island.

Northern Bobwhite pair, Abaco Bahamas (Tom Sheley)

Northern Bobwhites, Abaco backcountry – Tom Sheley

Piping Plovers, Delphi Beach, Abaco Bahamas (Keith Salvesen / Rolling Harbour)

Piping Plover, Delphi Beach Abaco – Keith Salvesen

Abaco (Bahama) Parrots, Bahamas - Peter Mantle

Abaco Parrots – Peter Mantle

Neotropic Cormorants, Treasure Cay, Abaco Bahamas - Bruce Hallett

Neotropic Cormorants, Treasure Cay, Abaco – Bruce Hallett

Common Gallinule Adult & Chick, Abaco Bahamas - Tom Sheley

Common Gallinule adult & chick, Abaco – Tom Sheley

Wilson’s Plover adult & chick, Abaco Bahamas – Sandy Walker

American Oystercatcher pair, Abaco Bahamas - Tom Sheley

American Oystercatchers, Abaco Bahamas – Tom Sheley

CREDITS: Gerlinde Taurer (1); Tom Sheley (2, 6, 8); Keith Salvesen (3, 8); Peter Mantle (4); Bruce Hallett (5); Sandy Walker (7)

Sanderlings, Delphi Beach, Abaco Bahamas – Keith Salvesen

AMERICAN COOTS feat. “WHAT’S AFOOT?”

The American Coot Fulica americana is similar in many respects to the COMMON GALLINULE (MOORHEN). Except for the beak colour, of course. And as you will see below, the feet.

American Coot.Abaco Bahamas (Tom Sheley)

Most people would give an off-the-cuff description of a coot as ‘a black duck with a white beak’. They might add ‘…and a red eye’. Or ‘…and a dark band at the tip of the beak’. Or even ‘…I think there’s a white bit at the back end’. The header image pretty much sums up the classic coot.

American Coot 2 (Keith Salvesen)

However, coots seem to take up or reflect other colours at times. The eyes remain a piercing red and the beak is white, but the body can range from black through slate-grey to pale grey, depending on the light. There may even be a tinge of brown or even orange.

American Coot - Bahamas - Great Abaco - Gerlinde Taurer

I always enjoy seeing coots and moorhens somewhere where the water ‘works’ with them and creates a dramatic image. I took the first photo below recently on the JKO reservoir in Central Park, New York, where the water looked weirdly like molten metal and some trick of the light made the bird seem as if is was in a shallow depression in the water.

American Coot (Keith Salvesen)

Tom Sheley took the photo below on a ‘green water’ day at the pond on Treasure Cay Golf Course. I have recommended it before as an excellent birding site for waterbirds – coots, moorhens, Bahama pintails, northern pintails, neotropic cormorants, blue-winged teal, least grebes, pied-billed grebes, green herons – I’ve even seen a reclusive least bittern there. There are plenty of ‘land’ birds on the course too.

American Coot.Treasure Cay, Abaco Bahamas.6.13.Tom Sheley copy 2

If you go to TCGC for the birding, you just need to clock in at the clubhouse in case it’s a match day; and so they know who is out and about on the course. And, as I wrote elsewhere, if you hear a loud yell of “Fore”, it probably won’t be someone counting the coots. Time to… er… duck.

Q: “WHAT’S AFOOT?” *

I mentioned that one of the differences between coots and moorhens is their feet. Gerlinde Taurer’s photo of a coot taking off suggests that something powerful is happening below the water to assist the wings to propel the bird into flight. American Coot - Bahamas - Great Abaco - Gerlinde Taurer

A coot’s feet are quite unlike the pedal extremities of any other bird Coot, showing feet (Keith Salvesen)

Moorhen’s feet for comparison – completely different structurally moorhen_feet-mehmet-kartuk-wikijpg-copy * A: “A funny-shaped thing on the end of your leg”. How we laughed (aged 7)