[aslyfox]

what gives

it's a pigeon toed Canada Goose

who woulda thought ?

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[WPRESTO]

Two things meerkats love to do: dig and watch the sky.

[noelcmn]

Dabchick, from yesterday's visit to Kloofendal Nature Reserve

[aslyfox]

Drake Mallard with a curly tail

I have read several sources which state that most domestic duck breeds came from Mallards

of course, my knowledge is only as good as my sources

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[WPRESTO]

Think this is the red-billed wood hoopoe again (thanks to noelcmn for the id)

[noelcmn]

Cape White Eye

[WPRESTO]

Tiger tiger shining bright....

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[noelcmn]

The beautiful Dabchick

[WPRESTO]

Noelcmn - do you have an id for this duck?

[noelcmn]

From my book, a Pintail, or more accurately, Northern Pintail, though exactly why it is listed in Birds of Southern Africa is baffling. Distribution, according the Roberts Birds of Southern Africa " Breeds Holarctic region, Palaearctic breeders migrate to N, W and E Africa (except Sahara); straggler to Zimbabwe and Transvaal". (Transvaal no longer exists as a province of SA, but would have included Gauteng, Parts of NorthWest, Limpopo and Mpumalanga Provinces as they are known today.)
Would have to have a peek at the bill to confirm that ID.

Darter

[WPRESTO]

Northern Pintail - males in breeding plumage - should have black up the back of the neck & onto the back of the head, with a conspicuous white streak separating it from the tawny coloration on the face, and of course the long tail feathers. I would think that in this view at least the white up the rear/side of the neck & head should show, and I had rejected pintail because tail doesn't look right. However, I'm only a casual birder, nothing like reliable at identifications.
This was one of three whitetail deer that came down into the wildflower garden area while we were having dinner last night. The late hour and heavy overcast (it was still raining) made for dismal lighting and necessitated a very high ISO. But even in the poor light I was able to positively identify these as WHITETAIL deer. Of course, the only other deer in this area are moose.

[noelcmn]

Is that description not for the Breeding plumage? Non breeding plumage does not have the white stripe. From what I can see, not all have the white streak? Had thought of the Wigeon, but that is a smaller bird, and some of the ID markers does not match. Otherwise, a hybrid, which is entirely possible, especially with ducks.

Lesser Striped Swallow

[aslyfox]

American Coot Fulica americana

http://www.arkive.org/american-coot/fulica-americana/

( not sure if it is an old coot or not but I know it is not a duck )

visiting one of the ponds at the Topeka Zoo and Conservation Center

has a bit of a weed in its beak

[WPRESTO]

Finch.
Yes, the description I was using is for male pintail in breeding plumage. I'll have to look in Sibley for non-breeding, juveniles, color variants.

[noelcmn]

Yellow Billed Kite