tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9025651162254792506.post2877327377301970807..comments2024-03-06T00:01:31.536+11:00Comments on Ian Fraser, talking naturally: Bird BathsIan Fraserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01023900823785041354noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9025651162254792506.post-38149202677026747742014-01-20T18:21:20.775+11:002014-01-20T18:21:20.775+11:00Hello Megan, and thank you for taking the trouble ...Hello Megan, and thank you for taking the trouble to comment. I fully agree with our need to 'pay compensation', to local animals and plants, albeit minuscule relative to the damage we've caused. <br />I love your miner sun-bathing photo; I think we've all had that 'uh oh' moment when we see a bird lying on the ground and fear the worst for it, only to have it fly away quite happily (apart from being disturbed!). There is a difference however between that trance-like state of just lying in the sun (almost certainly to divest themselves of parasites) and active dust-bathing. I think your miners were doing the former, hence your pertinent observation of the different posture.<br />I look forward to further observations from you. Ian Fraserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01023900823785041354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9025651162254792506.post-44486577189971885952014-01-20T18:14:39.705+11:002014-01-20T18:14:39.705+11:00HI Susan - I think you were lucky in your arrival ...HI Susan - I think you were lucky in your arrival timing. It was pretty mild here yesterday.<br />Swifts do preen on the wing, but at least in Australia it seems that they may roost more often than previously supposed; there are accounts of them spending the night inside clumps of hanging foliage, and it is quite likely that they preen while there too. They are known to allopreen (ie each other) while nesting too. Finally, they will swoop onto the surface of water to bathe.Having said all that, swifts are known to carry unusually high parasite loads, so these preening strategies are obviously less effective than for other birds. Ian Fraserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01023900823785041354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9025651162254792506.post-30084294342045054152014-01-20T09:18:20.737+11:002014-01-20T09:18:20.737+11:00Thanks for this terrific post Ian. Even though I&#...Thanks for this terrific post Ian. Even though I've loved birds a long time I have to admit I did not realise the full value of bird baths till reading this. I often find myself wondering about 'sharing the planet' issues, as we people cause so much destruction to habitats. It's great to give something back, even if only to the birds in our immediate vicinity. You might be interested in my dust bathing photo from about a week ago. http://www.flickr.com/photos/majurabirds/11897538124/<br />What is interesting is how low the miner is on the sand. I have looked at similar photos, such as your sparrow and birds often have head up, but not in this case. All the best to you and thanks for your great blog, MeganSwan Pondhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14753221018632333066noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9025651162254792506.post-29194706020616260352014-01-17T19:34:35.454+11:002014-01-17T19:34:35.454+11:00The other day I was asked by someone how swifts pr...The other day I was asked by someone how swifts preen, given that they are on the wing for years at a time. Any ideas? The person who asked says she woke up in the middle of the night with this thought! Mind you, she is active in a campaign here to encourage people to be swift aware and not fill in nesting holes when renovating buildings and to erect nest boxes where possible.<br /><br />And thanks for the reminder of the heat - not! I'm about to leave 11C max and arrive to 38C on Sunday I believe. Bleuh!Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06472449597146519943noreply@blogger.com