Friend service by Foto Martien A Ruff (on the right) seeks parasites and insects between the feathers of a Pied Avocet (on the left) Een kemphaan (rechts) zoekt parasieten en insecten tussen de veren van een kluut (links) The Pied Avocet (Recurvirostra avosetta) is a large wader in the avocet and stilt family (Recurvirostridae). The 40 to 45 cm avocets are easy to identify. Adults have white plumage except for a black cap and black patches in the wings and on the back. They have long, upturned beaks and long, bluish legs. They breed in temperate Europe and western and Central Asia. This species is migratory and most winter in Africa or southern Asia. Some remain to winter in the mildest parts of their range, for example in southern Spain, the Netherlands and southern England. These birds forage in shallow brackish water or on mud flats, often scything their bills from side to side in water (a feeding technique that is unique to the avocets. They mainly eat crustaceans and insects. This species gets its English and scientific names from its black cap, as once worn by European advocates or lawyers. The call of the Avocet is a loud “klute-klute-klute”. The Dutch name is therefore “Kluut”. The Ruff (Philomachus pugnax) is a medium-sized wader; a long-necked with a small head, pot-bellied bird. This species shows marked sexual dimorphism; the male is much larger than the female and has a breeding plumage. The female on the picture and the non-breeding male have grey-brown upperparts and mainly white underparts. He is 29–32 cm long with a 54–60 cm wingspan, weighs about 180 gr. The female is 22–26 cm long with a 46–49 cm wingspan, and weighs about 110 gr. The ruff is a migratory species, breeding in wetlands in colder regions of northern Eurasia, and spends the northern winter in the tropics, mainly in Africa. Some Siberian breeders undertake an annual round trip of up to 30,000 km to the West African wintering grounds. There is a limited overlap in western Europe. In parts of coastal western Europe, where the breeding and wintering ranges overlap, birds may be present throughout the year. The ruff forages in wet grassland and soft mud, probing or searching by sight for edible items. It primarily feeds on insects, especially in the breeding season, but it will consume plant material, including rice and maize, on migration and in winter. _____________________________ All rights reserved. Copyright © Martien Uiterweerd. All my images are protected under international authors copyright laws and may not be downloaded, reproduced, copied, transmitted or manipulated without my written explicit permission. _____________________________ . . https://flic.kr/p/2mdPj39
