#oriental plover

[fastman27]

Aptrill Day 26: Oriental Plover.

[smallerdelusions]

Excerpt from Observations on the Order Draconia in Europe, with Notes on the Oriental Breeds by Edward Howe

As a lifelong birder, I couldn't stop thinking about a comment from an earlier post about the possibility of dragon-spotters in England. So I (naturally) mocked up a page based on my bird field guides to show differences in size, weight and wing shape between the common british dragons. These are all the undersides of wings as they would be seen from the ground. The book title/author is stolen directly from His Majesty's Dragon.

I'm still basing the shape/silhouette/function off of birds, listed below if you were curious:

Jade: Common Swift Greyling: Albatross Winchester: Sparrow Grey Copper: Pheasant Anglewing: Plover Reapers: Duck Parnassian: Crow Regal Copper: Goose Celestial: Fish Hawk Chequered Nettle: Hawk Longwing: Crane

Thanks for reading!

[juustozzi]

Your winged people AU is so cool, and the concept of anyone having certain bird's wings sounds kinda cute; and tbh I just love whenever Tenma is associated with birds or wings in general, it fits him a lot n.n

I saw you made Kirino and Shindou as winged people too, and was wondering what birds you think would fit the other members of Raimon, out of curiosity

hello, thank you so much!! shoutout to the person who dropped the first ask about Tenma with wings that caused this to snowball, haha!

this au has separated into two in my head; the one where the plot-ish drawings are set in, where only people with bird association have wings, and then there's the side where picking and designing wings is fun and anyone could have a pair! but the line is blurry because this is all just for the funsies c:

here's my personal favourite picks - oriental stork and malabar parakeet! some characters were harder to find a match for, and please share if you have opinions about these or your own ideas! full team list under cut 👇 (also let me know if you want me to draw someone else from the list!)

Sangoku: oriental stork

Kurumada: greater roadrunner

Amagi: shoebill

Shinsuke: tree swallow

Hamano: black-headed gull

Hayami: manx shearwater

Kurama: jackdaw

Aoyama: eurasian coot

Ichino: piping plover

Nishiki: great blue heron

Kariya: malabar parakeet

Hikaru: little blue penguin

Tsurugi: taiwan blue magpie

and the ones I've done before:

Tenma: bar-tailed godwit

Shindou: peacock

Kirino: anna's hummingbird

[marcobodtlives]

AoT peeps as fellow students I saw at orientation for my masters degree today:

Mikasa: the girl with really pretty hair and fashionable gothic attire despite the fact that it’s summer

Eren: the boy getting attacked by a spur-winged plover (aggressive swampy bird) because he cut across the field to get to class

Armin & Historia: the pair of short, enthusiastic, blonde orientation staff waving signs and helping everyone find their classes (they’re godsends)

Annie: the girl who missed half of the welcoming ceremony because student jiu jitsu club ran over time

Bertholdt: the really, really tall kid who the camera operator had to manoeuvre around to actually capture the stage

Reiner: the guy convincing everyone to join sport club teams, not wearing student staff uniform, wearing his gym gear instead

Ymir: the girl who drove in the ‘exit only’ because she couldn’t be assed doing a U-turn to find the main entrance

Jean: the art kid who isn’t invested because they’re only taking one filler paper here, and all the rest at the art-based, city campus

Marco: the really friendly boy making friends with everyone he talks to and somehow managing to relieve everyone’s anxiety with an encouraging smile and thumbs up during awkward ice-breakers

Connie: the kid who forgot to take his hat off during the religious welcoming ceremony then almost tripped over a chair because he was trying to find himself on the wide-screen shot of the crowd

Sasha: the girl eating three cough drops a minute because ‘they don’t count as food so the no eating in the assembly hall rule doesn’t apply’

Erwin: the principal who’s speech went 20 minutes over time and spanned three different languages somehow

Hange: the lab tech who brought a box of jars for new students to see as a show-and-tell session instead of an actual introduction to the course

Levi: the admin person who doesn’t actually have a clear job role but decided to ditch his session as an orientation because he hates new students wandering around like lost sheep

(+ bonus) Floch: the kid who threw a rock at an automatic sprinkler and accidentally sprayed a line of construction workers on lunch break and then yelled “this is where our tax money goes!”

[anonsally]

Day 10 in Australia

We had a fab (though exhausting) day today visiting Wadjemup/Rottnest Island!

We had to get up early, but "luckily" the jetlag worked in my favor and I was awake before my 6am alarm. Wife was feeling almost entirely better. We managed to leave the flat just past 8am to walk to the ferry. It was very hot and humid, even at that hour, so we arrived at the harbor already very sweaty.

We took the 9am ferry out to the island. Wife and her sister sat inside the ferry. However, I wanted to be outside on the ferry, even though I was too late to get an outdoor seat. So I stood up for the entire half-hour ride, enjoying the cool wind (fucken wimdy) and the ocean views and air.

When we got off the ferry, we got our bikes and helmets. To my surprise, my bike was actually a good fit; I could sit on it with good posture, and changing gears was easy. The brakes were very squeaky, but it was otherwise perfectly rideable. We spent a little while getting oriented before picking up a snack. But on our way to the bakery for the snack, we saw a few quokkas! Two adults and a youngster who kept hopping pouncily onto its mother! They were just as cute as advertised!

So at that point, I already felt the visit was a success. But actually, the whole day was great.

What's great about visiting Wadjemup is that there are no cars allowed on the island, only bicycles and buses. So cycling is actually pretty safe. We cycled a total of nearly 12km, including some rolling hills; that's the most exercise we've had since we left home. We made lots of stops, of course. We looked at views, spotted a king's skink, took various photos, and rejected a few beaches before settling on Parakeet Bay. It was gorgeous, with lovely dunes, luxurious white sand, and clear turquoise water. But I hadn't brought a swimsuit, so I just rolled up my trouser legs and waded in up to my knees. Wife and her sister did more of a swim, but I returned to my bike and backtracked a bit to the shore of a lake we had passed, where I'd seen some birds.

I had a good concentrated half hour or so of birdwatching and identified Australian shelducks, banded stilts, pied stilts, a red-capped plover, something I think was a buff-banded rail, great crested terns, and a few things I need to check the photos of to see if I can figure out what they are. Several of those birds are new to me!

Then I met up with Wife and her sister, who were done at the beach. While waiting for them, I spotted a snake near the road! We looked it up later and I believe it was a dugite, which is of course (since this is Australia) very venomous! We continued our bike ride, passing some salt lakes (including one that was pink), a colony of huge numbers of great crested terns, and a "train" (more like an old-fashioned tram) on tracks.

Back near the Settlement, we spent a little while admiring the quokkas foraging in the leaf litter next to a mini-golf course, and finally went for a late lunch and a drink before returning our bikes and getting on the 4pm ferry back to Fremantle. Again, I stood outside. It was more crowded than the morning ferry had been, but there were also more waves.

We got home and showered and were horrified to discover we had all gotten sunburned! I had failed to reapply sunscreen and had missed some spots, but luckily most of my body was clothed. Wife did pretty well but the backs of her hands were badly burned, despite her having used sunscreen. Wife's sister was splotchily sunburned in many places!

We walked a bit of a ways to a "fish pub" for dinner. The food was great, and we were seated on a patio adjacent to a playground and large grassy area with a few trees around the edges, in which I spotted several interesting birds: galahs, a red wattlebird, ravens, magpies, and I'm pretty sure a pair of rainbow lorikeets flew past.

We walked home. The little kitty from yesterday was out front and Wife petted it, but then it followed us to our door! shit! It has a collar and a bell, so I assume it has a home. I felt terrible closing the door to prevent it from coming in!

[officialweezerelections]

THE FULL FUCKED UP BIRD BRACKET

All birds have been randomized, the seeds mean nothing. Yes pitohui is spelled incorrectly in the bracket image.

GROUP A

Andean Condor VS Loggerhead Shrike

Superb Lyrebird VS Emu

Greater Sage-Grouse VS Common Ostrich

Yellow-Billed Oxpecker VS American Woodcock

Bare-Throated Bellbird VS Giant Petrel

Greater Sooty Owl VS Vampire Ground Finch

Great Eared Nightjar VS Spur-Winged Goose

Common Cuckoo VS Tawny Frogmouth

GROUP B

Great Potoo VS Killdeer

Domestic Chicken VS Oilbird

Tufted Puffin VS Dalmatian Pelican

King Vulture VS Twelve-Wired Bird Of Paradise

Greater Superb Bird Of Paradise VS Perrito

Barn Owl VS Purple Gallinule

Bearded Vulture VS Secretary Bird

Long Wattled Umbrellabird VS Horned Screamer

GROUP C

Oriental Bay Owl VS Anhinga

Pennant Winged Nightjar VS Snowy Sheathbill

Red-Legged Seriema VS Marabou Stork

Argentavis VS Common Loon

Black Skimmer VS Luzon Bleeding-Heart

Southern Cassowary VS Flamingo (all species)

Green Heron VS Great Hornbill

African Jacana VS California Condor

GROUP D

Hamerkop VS Capuchinbird

Shoebill Stork VS American White Pelican

Roseate Spoonbill VS Hoatzin

Terror Bird VS Elephant Bird

Great Egret VS Magnificent Frigatebird

Guinean Cock-Of-The-Rock VS Hooded Pitohui

White-Throated Rail VS Spur-Winged Plover

White Bellbird VS Kiwi

Polls will be tagged with their BRACKET (example: #bracket a) and #tournament poll

MAY THE WORST BIRD WIN

[feliniakattus]

Character Card: Vera

Name: Vera

Role: Legionaire/Craftskat of the Coalition

Family: Syringa, Acacia (fathers), Plover, Coucal, Sandgrouse (grandparents), Jackal, Motopi, Marula, Cinnamon, Senna (cousins)

Description: A pale brown tabby with darker patches and pale green eyes. He wears a leather belt and an embroidered leather pelt. He carries a brush and green thorns on his tail.

Age: 7 cycles, roughly 35 human years.

Orientation/Gender: gay, trans male (they/he)

Personality: Introverted, Socially aware, Fussy

[chitteringbeast]

@monstarousmythos

Lark was well accustomed to life on his own. His remaining family was spread far and wide, but it wasn't like croctaurs were very family oriented after a certain age.

Still, it was lonely.

The only real company that he had was a small plover bird he had named Rover. A creature that had attached itself to him in a symbiotic relationship. Lark kept him safe and he cleaned the gunk out of his teeth after big meals.

Usually he knew when people were coming close to his island and his stretch of territory. He was diligent in its protection, but he wasn't expecting someone to appear practically out of thin air and faceplant directly into the sand.

He grumbled and dropped his bundle of driftwood, keeping the longest in his hand to poke at the being.

"Either speak up or I ain't gonna let ya go to waste."

[soleminisanction]

You seem like youre frustrated with her character the same way I get with her too.

I think see the potential of the character she could be and should be with the correct writing and stories.

I really didnt like her Batgirl run either. There are bits and parts of it I do like and concepts of things there I love but I really dont care for it.

I also wish she wasnt used as a marketing tactic during "run" as Robin. If they were actually serious about it, they wouldve written her run differently and hopefully better.

Thats also the problem with all comic book characters, they have so many different writers with different ideas of what to do with these characters. Unfortunately some of them dont like the characters they write for. I know that Dan Didio hates Steph and never wrote her well because of that. (He also hated Dick Grayson and wanted to kill him off too)

Characters like Steph really are up to interpretation how they are supposes to be personality wise. Recently i havent been liking how shes been written for certain comics (Batgirls, Wayne Family Adventures)

You and I similar to seeing a character we want to be better. I see that she has all this potential to be a great character and love her despite all the garbage writing shes had over her 30+ years of existence

The lack of good stories is a part of it, yeah.

It's also the fact that, while she's hanging around not telling any stories of her own, her ability to do so often comes at the expense of other characters. Like a few months back, they randomly shoved her into a Titans line-up when she's never been a Titan, not once in her entire career, while the actual Batgirl who joined the Titans, Betty/Bette Kane, was nowhere to be seen. And she's part of what ruined YJ 2019, getting forced in awkwardly purely because a bunch of her stans spent months harassing the creators on Twitter, spewing racist epitaphs at the new black characters and demanding that she be included in a team she wasn't solicited for and, again, had never been a part of, purely because Tim was there and they decided he wasn't allowed to have a life without her.

And speaking of that last bit, don't even get me started on the Tim Drake Pride Special again or we'll be here all day. It is genuinely offensive how many people demanded that Tim's coming out be oriented entirely around the feelings of his straight ex-girlfriend.

That's why I can't read Batgirls, either. I can't stand the way they write the relationship between Steph and Cass, it's got no teeth, and perpetually reduces Cass to Steph's "Kato," the hyper-competent Asian sidekick who does all the actual work for an inept white person. Even the issue where they tried to make a big deal out of, "Ooo, this is a special CASS CENTRIC ADVENTURE, we're doing it COMPLETELY SILENT with NO WORDS!" turned out to be all about her running around trying to find Stephanie, and then they copped out with the gimmick and made it so the only words in the book were Stephanie's, talking mostly about -- surprise! -- herself, how great she is and how much she loves being a Batgirl.

Ugh. Spirit World can't come fast enough.

Honestly, when it comes to her run as Robin, I think the story itself could've been just fine if they'd left it as it was and just, hadn't made a big freakin' marketing deal about "OoOoOooOooOoo, the GIRL WONDER, how SPECIAL!!!" They didn't do that with Carrie. Or Tris Plover. Hell, at the time a few people pointed out how silly it was for them to make such a big deal out of her being a girl when Carrie Kelly is the most well known alt-Robin period and the co-star of one of the defining texts of the age.

But, y'know, Carrie was a short-haired butch tomboy with thick glasses who fought with a sling-shot, while Steph is the single most gender-conforming Bat-femme since Betty Kane and is consistently drawn to show off her child-bearing hips so. Yeah.

The part that honestly needs fixing is War Games, which I honestly think is still something that Steph needed to happen, because it did lead her to a moment of growth that she desperately needed (even if Chuck Dixon and Bryan Miller later ruined it.) I think you could fix that story up with just a few adjustments. But, hindsight is 20/20 and all.

I do have to caution a little against attributing malice where ignorance or incompetence is more likely, though. I've never seen any evidence that Dan Didio "hated" either Steph or Dick; rather, what he saw them as was expendable. By all accounts I've ever heard, when he was editorially mandating Dick's death in Infinite Crisis, he legitimately didn't know that Dick used to be the original Robin, he just knew that Nightwing wasn't Batman or Robin and thought that made him expendable enough to kill off for shock value. It took Geoff Johns talking him out of it at literally the last minute to get him to see sense.

(Seriously, you can tell that the page was drawn off a script where Dick got full-on murdered, and the original floppy release didn't have the hilariously awkward page they inserted into the collected editions where Dr. Mid-night promises to save him. It's kinda funny in retrospect.)

Stephanie was the same way, it wasn't that he "hated" her, he just didn't care about any character introduced after the silver age and thought that killing her off would be more ~shocking~ than letting her live and learn a lesson. Didio wasn't evil, he was just bad at his job. Your standard incompetent white guy failing up.

[eukaryotesrool]

Northern Lapwing

Or in Bigwordese Vanellus vanellus (Ah, I love species names that just repeat the generic name) AKA peewit or pewit, tuit or tewit, or even pyewipe,(all onomatopoeic of the birds song(s)) or green plover.

Their name 'lapwing' comes from the lapping sound their large wings make in flight, they are also known to make strange tottering motions in flight, but are capable of flying more regularly.

V. vanellus songs (catchy)

V. vanellus tottering example (majestic)

(A juvenile Northern Lapwing)

These shorebirds (or waders, for you Europeans) live/travel across much of the palearctic and oriental biogeographical regions, from Russia to North Africa and China, they mate in solitary pairs, the mother taking the head in incubating, and the father in protecting, though, these roles may be swapped out from individual pair to pair.

They are precocial, meaning that they're capable of moving and eating (mostly Earth worms and leatherjackets) on their own from the moment they hatch, parents and even unrelated Northern lapwings will participate in mobbing (where a prey species essentially gangs up on and bullies one of their predators) and deception to protect endangered chicks.

Adults eat grains, small fish, and invertebrates.

Rated near threatened by the IUCN their population has been on decline for several reasons including, but not limited to, newly introduced predators, hunting by humans, egg stealing by humans, new agricultural methods as they make good use of arable and otherwise agricultural land, and wetland drainage, which they also made use of.

Various actions are being taken by the EU and other groups to keep their situation from getting worse, lets hope it works out for these lovely feathered fellows.

LOOK AT THE LIL CHICK!!!!

[dansnaturepictures]

Round up of our long weekend in Norfolk 17th-19th February 2023

I used two days of leave either side of this weekend and we headed to Norfolk for a couple of nights; a wild flat land of Marsh Harriers, pretty churches and windmills, and euphoric birding thrills. The three days visiting various reserves and spots did not disappoint; on it we saw so much getting eight bird year ticks to take my year list to 145 well ahead of where any of my others were on this date in past years which is fantastic, two of them life ticks (both seen on Friday, the first time I’ve seen more than one new bird in a day for five years and all but one of my five visits to Norfolk at different times of year since 2013 has produced at least one bird life tick for me and on the one that didn’t we saw something new in Suffolk before getting there which underlines the quality of this part of the world for birdwatching), seeing marvellous mammals, beautiful views in great weather and oh so many Red Kites, Lapwings and Wigeons among many other birds the latter two a real splendid taste of winter.

It started with a bang on Friday as we called into the Cley Spy shop in Glandford where the famous Long-eared Owl seen there this winter had been sighted. It was an honour to get stunning views of this mesmerising bird on our first stop of the time away, what a phenomenal species. It was the first I’ve ever seen notching me up to five owl species seen in my life I’ve seen three this year now and this one I had wanted to see for years. What a great job the Cley Spy team are doing letting people see it in return for donations to the Oriental Bird Club and making it so accessible to all. Then it was onto Blakeney where as hoped we saw some Twite, also my first ever a charming little bird I was buzzing to see. My first Skylark of the year, wonderful Kestrel and Marsh Harrier views and Wigeon and Lapwing were other highlights here.

The Cley Spy Long-eared Owl

Holkham was the first port of call of Saturday with what was up until us seeing the one at Milford in Hampshire late last month the main target of the trip in mind, Shore lark. We were spoiled to see five or six, what an honour to watch this flamboyant coloured adorable bird picking about in the fenced off area. It was lark delight with Skylark seen here too, perhaps the first time I’ve seen two lark species in a day and we were looking at both at once at one point. Snow Bunting became a main Holkham target after seeing Hampshire’s Shore lark and I was over the moon that we spotted one or two at Holkham, a powerful moment watching one flying and settle down whilst watching the Shore larks another year tick and a crucial one being a bird I love so much. Amazing views of Grey Partridge and Red Kite were also great to see at Holkham. Cley was the next stop on Saturday where we got astonishing views of the striking and graceful Long-billed Dowitcher. Another golden bird of the trip getting our best ever view of the species only the fourth time we’ve ever seen one and third individual bird we’ve ever seen. There was also an exhilarating surprise moment when from the cafe at the centre when having a cup of tea we saw the Whooper Swan, one we don’t see too often and one I love seeing a massive year tick. Ruff, great views of Spoonbill and Marsh Harrier were nice to see at Cley too.

One of the Holkham Shore larks 

After checking out of the hotel yesterday before heading home visits to RSPB reserves Titchwell and Lakenheath Fen (on the border with Suffolk) produced more swashbuckling moments of natural splendour. My first Bar-tailed Godwits of the year a very useful one to pick up, Sanderlings, Goldeneye, Shoveler, Teal, Avocet, Lapwings, Golden Plovers, Spoonbill, a lovely group of Linnets, Treecreeper and a raptor fest of acrobatic Red Kites and multiple majestic Marsh Harriers were key Titchwell sightings. The last year tick of the trip awaited at Lakenheath Fen as despite it looking like they might have flown off we managed to see the three Bean Geese that had been here flying over. Such a great moment, only the second I’ve ever seen and a key bird seen this year so far. Here also we got breathtaking views of and also possibly heard a lone angelic Whooper Swan on the Little Ouse River joining two Mute Swans which was nice to see and for comparison later on. A stunning intimate experience. Lots of Gadwalls, Great White Egret, Little Egret and raucous Rooks and Jackdaws flying to roost I believe completed the highlights here.

Whooper Swan at Lakenheath Fen

Away from birds it was a wonderful weekend of mammals. This mostly down to two species, Muntjac Deer and Brown Hare. The Muntjacs were an absolute revelation of the trip, we saw so many. Many more than we’d ever seen before and getting better views than we ever had of these elusive mammals that we had seen a handful of times before. From the quirky image of seeing one cross a road and go into someone’s hedge on day one our first of the year, to the pinnacle seeing four of these petite, charming and exotic deers at Holkham in fields which was amazing it was an honour to see them. We saw some in the woods and on the washlands at Lakenheath Fen seeing them so much on journeys across the days too. Getting towards their amorous time of year we got cracking views of the Hares a quintessential part of this landscape.  

One of the Muntjac Deers at Holkham 

In the way of flora and fungi snowdrop covered verges and the woods at Titchwell were a sight to behold with daffodils and crocuses seen from the car too and red deadnettle I saw a lot too. At Titchwell also in the woods we enjoyed some succulent looking ruby red scarlet elf cups too one of the mushrooms I like most. In terms of insects a few flowers being out and the sunny and quite warm weather allowed my recent pleasing run of seeing bees to continue whilst away. It was a weekend of taking in brilliant landscapes too in lots of sunny weather with the reedbeds, marshes, river, shiny beaches, sand dunes, fields and trees looking so lovely. There were nice dramatic sky scenes too and fantastic scenes towards and at sunset. Something photographically I was looking forward to having never been to Norfolk in February (April the first time we went the closest to this time of year), was how that gorgeous winter light would look in the mostly flat landscape and it did look so stunning and special. Ten years on from us first ever visiting to Norfolk I am happy we managed to do this trip, and I felt sharply why I love this extraordinary and wild place. It was good to get away generally and have some great relaxation. 

Scarlet elf cup at Titchwell

View at Blakeney

[killoraptor]

From Decay Births New Life

Day 1 - Rotting

Several days late but I'm going to ignore that. I found some cool new brushes and had some fun with them. I based the veloci's patterns off of a modern day bird found in Mongolia, the Oriental Plover.

[jdenvs3000w24]

Nature blog week 2

For this week's topic, we were asked to reflect on our ideal role of environmental interpreter. This is something I've actually put quite a bit of thought into as it is pretty relevant to the job I hope to get after I'm done with my university degree. If you’ve read any of my previous posts you’ll probably be familiar with the fact that I'm from Nova Scotia. My ideal plan would be to return to my home and work for either Parks Nova Scotia or Parks Canada. In an ideal world, I would be doing tours for a specific park, such as Kejimkujik, showing kids or adults a targeted view of the world to pique their particular interest. Such as showing off all the birds to the birders, doing some herping for the reptile and amphibian enthusiasts, or a generalized walk-through for any first-time parkgoers or people who just want to learn more about the land.

(piping plover, photo by Parks Canada, from Kejimkujik Seaside Park)

 (Blandings turtle, photo by T. Herman, from Kejimkujik National Park)

I want to essentially be the voice of the forest. A person who gives the next generation the spark of interest to protect their natural world. Not only would I want to show off the wildlife of a park, I'd also want to show off cool outcrops that help to aid a story I'd tell about the area's geologic history. I want to be a storyteller with the land as my pages. 

To be in this sort of role I would need to develop better public speaking skills than I have now, working on the podcast will help with that. Especially because we have to tailor one for kids and one for adults. Being able to switch how to convey the same information to different age groups will be a great asset for what I hope to do. As discussed in the course material, there are also different ways people learn, regardless of age. I found myself to be almost equal across the board but leaning slightly toward an auditory learner. I want to be able to pivot to different learning/teaching styles depending on the group/ individual I'm trying to reach. While I think I have a decent approach to that already having been in some leadership roles before, I hope to hone those skills further throughout this course and my academic career as a whole. 

As for the knowledge base I would most definitely need, I've tailored my university degree in environmental sciences in a way that provides me with the greatest understanding of our physical world. I've taken and will continue to take ecosystem-oriented courses like ecosystem science and biodiversity along with this semester’s terrestrial ecosystem ecology, I've taken environmental geology along with sedimentary environments. I'm currently taking Aquatic Systems and Biogeochemistry. And of course, I'm taking nature interpretation. Each one of these courses has and will give me the background knowledge needed not only to understand the land of which I want to show off, but also to be able to explain it in ways others who may not have the same education as me can understand. 

[squawkoverflow]

A new variant has been added!

Oriental Plover (Charadrius veredus) © John Gerrard Keulemans

It hatches from black, bright, brown, brownish, dark, large, legged, long, loud, male, much, orange, oriental, pale, separate, similar, slender, thick, and white eggs.

squawkoverflow - the ultimate bird collecting game          🥚 hatch    ❤️ collect     🤝 connect

[birdstudies]

January 31, 2017 - Oriental Plover, Asiatic Dotterel, Asiatic Sandplover, Eastern Dotterel, Eastern Long-legged Sand Plover, Eastern Sand Plover, Greater Oriental Plover, or Oriental Dotterel (Charadrius veredus)

These plovers breed in Asia and winter in Australia, migrating through eastern China, Hong Kong, Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia. Foraging in large flocks with other shorebirds, their diet is mostly insects, such as beetles, termites, and grasshoppers, and possibly also includes some snails and seeds. Though not much is known about their breeding habits, they are thought to breed in solitary pairs with females caring for the chicks alone.

[thiswasinevitableid]

for the meet uglies, 55 indruck sfw? sorry apollo

Here you go! For those wondering, Apollo originates in my Amnesty Super Hero AU

“Okay sir, I’m gonna say this as nice as I can.”

Indrid looks up from his drawing of some mushrooms. The ranger, a man about his age whose little bronze name tag reads “D. Newton”, has the look of someone choosing his words very, very carefully.

“You are this close to me writin you up. And I mean this. Close.” He puts his thumb against his finger.

“I, is this not allowed?” The log he’s sitting on is technically on the trail, just next to it.

“This ain’t the problem. It’s everythin you done since this morning that’s the problem.”

“I-”

“First there was leavin your breakfast trash on the picnic table by the visitor center so chipmunks got into it--it’s real bad for them y’know, makes ‘em too bold--then there was the selfies on off-limits spots, then you had the fu, uh, freakin nerve to be rude to Juno when she asked you to stay in safe areas, you littered left and right, then you left a beer can in the reeds by the plover nestin’ grounds. I don’t even know where to start with that one; you know we don’t allow alcohol in the park. Campgrounds sure, but we don’t want fellas like you gettin drunk and then fallin off a rock. How can you be so careless, or not give a shit for a place people put time into protectin?

The smile that’s been spreading across Indrid’s face since the word “selfie” is wide enough that the ranger spots it.

“Man, if you think this is funny, you won’t when you’re too drunk to swim or run from a bear. Then I’m gonna have to bail your ass out, which I will, and you’re gonna eat a slice of humble pie big as that overinflated ego of yours.”

Indrid snickers. The ranger glares. Slowly, Indrid pulls back the hood of his sweatshirt and retrieves his glasses from the front of his shirt (he doesn’t wear them when drawing in color due to their red lenses). The other mans expression slides off confusion and tumbles into horror.

“Aw hell, I’m sorry sir. Thought you were your, uh, well, guessin you got a twin runnin around this park.” He pulls the brim of his hat down in a charming attempt to hide his face.

“I do, and this is far from the first time I’ve been scolded in his place. Less so since I dyed my hair” he indicates the artificial silver framing his face, “I’m mostly amused by how accurately you captured his orientation towards the world. It’s also bitterly funny to discover he made someone else's day as unpleasant as he made mine.”

The ranger studies him, seems to notice the creases by his eyes and mouth, “Seem a little old to be gettin forced into family time. Not that you look old. Just, uh, I mean, you might be younger than me, hard to tell with the hair, uh, yeah.”

Indrid points in the direction of the beachside campsites, “The Cold Family Reunion can only be begged off so long.” His phone dings, the reminder that it’s his turn to help his aunt with dinner, “speaking of which, I should pack up.” He quickly gathers his supplies, sends the other man a final smile, “thank you for the laugh, Ranger Newton.”

“You’re uh, you’re welcome. And tell your twin to throw his damn trash away.” He smiles as he says this, suggesting a joke, but Indrid resolves to remind Apollo of his manners anyway.

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The fog caresses the coastline, hiding the dawn entirely. Indrid pulls his hood up against the chill, the wooden bench and viewing deck damp from the weather. He’s not going back to camp until he’s captured the sight before him; dozens of fishing boats on the dark water, their lights beautiful and soft against the grey world.

Sandy gravel crunches to his right, and then Ranger Newton appears. He keeps glancing at Indrid as he writes something indecipherable on a clipboard.

“I’m the nice one.” Indrid says in response to the quick, searching, looks.

“Thank fuck.” He turns so they’re actually looking at each other, “guess we’re both on the early shift.”

“Normally I wouldn’t be, but the cold and quiet is preferable to my twin snoring. I brought my own one person tent, but then my aunt and uncle had their monthly argument and she needed a new place to sleep.”

“That was mighty kind of you.”

Indrid shrugs, “Not really. I just want to get through this reunion with as little conflict as possible.”

“How’d you end up on this thing? Said you couldn’t get out of it but-”

“I just moved to town a month ago. Turns out this is a place my parents have always wanted to visit. Not enough to see me, mind you, or refrain from criticizing my choice of towns, but enough to host the reunion here so I had no escape. And if I want to eat with the family, I have to spend the night in the camp and not at home. And since money is tight after moving, well..."

The ranger whistles, “Damn, that’s rough. But uh, since you live in town you’ll actually get to see this place in nice weather.”

“I’m looking forward to it.” He shivers, “though I enjoy the cold when I can be in my nice little apartment. In a tent, not so much.”

“If you get a good sleepin bag or good company, gets a lot better.” The ranger smiles, then looks at his notes, “sorry, that ain’t appropriate talk around a visitor.”

Indrid meets his green eyes, “If you have recommendations for either, I’m all ears.”

A gust of wind carries salt spray all the way to the platform, Indrid shivering as it mists his glasses.

“Here” the ranger holds out his hnd, “I gotta go open the visitor center; nice and warm in there.”

“...Could you possibly come back in ten minutes? I’d like to finish my sketch.”

“Sure, won’t kill me to check on the tide measures while I’m out here.” He tips his hat and soon Indrid sees him winding down a path to the beach. Eleven minutes later he’s back, telling Indrid about a huge starfish he saw.

On the walk to the visitor center, he learns the “D” on his nametag is for “Duck,” that he’s a transplant from West Virginia, and that they’re actually the same age. When Indrid explains that he’s a tattoo artist who sells his drawings on the side.

“You’ll appreciate this, then” Duck bends down to roll up his pant leg. Indrid appreciates the view and the well executed geometric tree tattoo on his ankle.

“Juno and I got ‘em together. Had to go with the ankle because I already got some on my arms. Can’t show those off right now though.”

“My, my, Ranger Newton, you’ll flash a scandalous ankle at a guest but not take him to the gun show?”

Duck laughs, the sound like the mating call of a strange tropical bird; absurd and enchanting.

“Glad you’re in town to stay, Indrid. Think you’re the kind of fella I’d like to get to know.”

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Maybe he’s being childish. It’s not wrong for Apollo to say he’s making their father proud, that he’s successful, that he’s a golden boy of his field.

It’s just obnoxious for him to do this the one time their extended family expressed Indrid’s professional accomplishments. With that smile, the one Indrid knows for a damn fact he had fixed, that tone, that, that….

That voice sounds familiar.

He reverses course, takes the path he passed by that points towards the amphitheater. What he gets is more a firepit with a small stage, but standing at the center and addressing fascinated families is Duck.

Indrid sits on the rickety bench furthest from the stage, lets Ducks explanations of night blooming plants and the creatures that pollinate them drown out the echoes of family dinner. When the program ends and the parents shepherd their children off with instructions for bedtime and brushing teeth Indrid stays, not ready to leave but not intending to attract Duck’s attention.

He gets it anyway.

“Enjoy the talk?” Duck stays two steps down from him, rests a foot up on the bench, “this one is always real popular; when it gets warm, the little animal rehab place south of town brings education animals in. Y’know, bats and owls, stuff like that.”

“I’ll have to come back to see them.” The thought of seeing bats up close excites him, but he’s too tired to sell the emotion.

Duck frowns, “You okay?”

Indrid shakes his head, tells him about the constant comments, the threat of living forever as the family disappointment, a threat he can deal with until he’s around them all. Then he’s right back to being seventeen and afraid of failing them.

“....Apollo’s always been the golden boy, ruthless and goal focused like our father. He always knows just what to say to get under my skin and dig out the scar tissue,” Indrid sighs, “All I wanted tonight was to roast marshmallows and go to bed early.”

The ranger moved from the steps to the bench beside him as he told his story. Now, Duck looks at him, smile more soothing than the thrum of the distant waves, “I got an idea. Guessin’ you don’t gotta tell your family where you’re goin, right?”

“No, most of them will assume I’m off sulking and Apollo will hope I’ve fallen off a cliff.”

“Then leave ‘em to be their shitty selves and come home with me. Uh, not, not-not like that, fuck, like what you’re thinkin, uh. Fuck. What I mean is; I got a fireplace and some marshmallows. You want in?”

Indrid watches the dying fire flicker of the curves of his face, thinks back on the last week. The ranger has been a frequent companion, brings him hot cocoa from the little cafe and tells him where he’ll be for chunks of the day in case Indrid needs a break from his family. Last night, all Indrid could think about was wanting Duck to be in the tent beside him.

“Absolutely.”

On the drive over, Indrid points out his apartment complex and Duck points out the best places to eat and the cheapest laundromats. His house is tiny, looks like it was built when the town was a logging hub and not a tourist destination.

“Make yourself at home, it’ll take me a sec to get the fire goin’--uhuh, Taco, stop tryin’ to open that cabinet.” He hoists a yowling, blonde ball of fur on the couch. The cat directs a suspicious look Indrid’s way and then settles on top of the pile of blankets.

“You a s’more man?” Duck calls from the kitchen.

“No, thank you. I prefer my sugar in a single bite.”

“You eat marshmallows in one bite? I’m always worried I’ll choke.”

“I have an accommodating mouth.” Indrid smirks when Duck audibly drops the bag. He’s not always the best with social cues, but if the way Duck kept brushing their hands together on the center armrest in his car is any indication, the ranger is trying to pick him up.

Once the fire is going Duck sits on the rug, patting the spot to his left. Indrid joins him. Caramelizing sugar and increasingly sleepy laughter soon fills the air. Neither of them keep their knees from touching, and Duck keeps dropping his head to Indrid’s shoulder when he giggles. The whole scene is so heavenly Indrid isn’t paying attention to their marshmellow consumption. He reaches into the empty bag and makes a disappointed noise.

“Damn, we really went through ‘em.” He catches Indrid’s eye with a playful grin, “you still cravin’ sugar?”

Indrid licks his lips, “Yes.”

Duck cups his cheek, guiding him into a sleepy, close-mouthed kiss, brushing their noses together when he pulls back to murmur, “That do the trick?”

“Hmmmmm?” Indrid cocks his head, “no.”

The other man guffaws as Indrid pulls him down on top of him, kissing him happily and wiggling his hips when Duck digs his fingers into his hair. His own hands migrate under Duck’s shirts, finding his body just as warm and wonderful as he hoped.

He nips Duck’s lower lip. The ranger growls and Indrid is no longer tired.

“Care to see just how accommodating my mouth can be?”

Duck rolls them twice so they’re a safe distance from the fire, “Hell yeah.”

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Indrid saunters into camp late in the morning, some of the Colds already packing up to depart. His twin is stuck on dish duty, grins like a barracuda when he spots Indrid.

“I don’t know why you’re here. You missed breakfast, and you weren’t in camp last night, so you don’t get lunch or dinner either. May as well skulk back into the shadows.”

“Mmm, yes, I was rather undutiful.” Indrid spots a figure checking campsite permits, who stealthily blows him a kiss, “but at this moment in time, I don’t particularly care.”