#striated caracara

[rulers-of-the-sky]

Striated Caracara

[ridiculousbirdfaces]

Carra-carra, Saunders Island, Falklands by Gail Baird1 Forster's Caracara (Phalcoboenus australis)

[tenth-sentence]

They readily attack wounded birds: a cormorant in this state having taken to the shore, was immediately seized on by several, and its death hastened by their blows.

"Journal of Researches into the Natural History and Geology of the Countries Visited During the Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle Round the World, 1832-36" - Charles Darwin

[kasarasun]

Vultur is actually a genus name- it contains exactly one species, vultur gryphus, better known as the andean condor. However, I like to think the best contender for 'alhaitham bird' would be the striated caracara. They're very smart, very pretty, and uhhh

Ummmm

Haikavetham birds preach

[evenstevenh]

A caracara-inspired griffin for xgwTyLo! 🪶

[fowlblue]

Artemis Fowl Winged AU:

—————

For obvious reasons, the Fowls are Corvidae- intelligence, curiosity, strong family bonds… and a proclivity for extreme mischief.

Artemis Fowl II- Western Jackdaw:

An underappreciated little corvid with glossy black feathers and bright blue eyes, perfect for Artemis! I've already mentioned corvid intelligence, but let me note in particular they are incredible problem solvers... and sometimes a little silly.

Artemis Fowl I (Fowl Senior)- Common Raven:

Clever? Check! Iconic? Check! Believed to be unfortunate to come across? Unfortunately, check! And finally, appropriately scruffy? Check!

Angeline Fowl- Barn Owl:

Well, some member of the family deserved to be an owl, and Barn Owls have the perfect mix of elegance, beauty and intellect to suit Angeline- they’re also quite cute, and can be very silly (spoken from experience!)

Myles and Beckett Fowl- Stellars’ Jay and Blue Jay:

Look at these birds and tell me it’s not the twins. Jays are known for mischief-making, extreme intellect (despite often being underestimated) and colorful, loud personalities- perfect for them!

Domovoi Butler- Golden Eagle:

A classic! While I was originally thinking ‘owl’, eagles have a certain reputation of nobility and power- they’ve also historically been used in falconry. They are fierce, protective, and incredibly strong birds.

Juliet Butler- Black and Chestnut Eagle:

While I was this close to going with a Crested Caracara or some form of kite, Juliet deserves ‘eagle’ status alongside her brother. Further research led me to various ‘hawk-eagles’, smaller than their more famous cousins and built just a little bit different- this bird is colorful and quick and still quite powerful. Though, in all truth, I imagine Juliet would dye her feathers green no matter what wings she’d have.

Holly Short- Common Kestrel:

A small bird for a small fairy! While a kestrel is one of the smallest raptors, they are nonetheless incredibly fierce and capable of some pretty fancy flying, including the unique ability to ‘hover’ in midair!

Mulch- Burrowing Owl

I don’t think I really have to explain myself here, lol.

(now… onto the villains! Be warned for some blood ahead!)

Opal Koboi- Little Brown Bat

Now, I know what you’re thinking. “Why not a vampire bat? She’s a villain!” And A. It feels too easy, and B. Vampire bats are highly social (which, granted, most bats are), and more importantly, known to take care of older or sick members of their swarm! That is too compassionate for Opal. So instead, I chose something known for being small, fairly ‘cute’, and, most importantly-

Absolutely full of rage.

Jon Spiro- Peregrine Falcon

A cosmopolitan bird, the peregrine falcon is a bird perfectly at home in the big city-in fact, peregrine falcons have been observed to fly faster and hunt more successfully when among the skyscrapered skyline! Primarily preying on other birds, the peregrine falcon is a serious threat, even if it's not particularly big or strong, and its urban lifestyle makes it well-suited to one Jon Spiro.

Britva- Giant Petrel

A relatively underrated villain in the series, but in my opinion the most grounded in reality and particularly intimidating. Given the Bay of Kola is his territory, a seabird felt appropriate, and these birds are big, bad, and brutal. A true scourge on other creatures, that's for sure.

Damon Kronski- Blood Pheasant

Finally, some Galliforme representation! These birds are relatively uncommon in the world of public knowledge, but very flashy- just look at it! The males are brightly-colored, but sharply-spurred, and can be quite fierce when disturbed.

Teddy Bleedham-Drye- Cape Vulture

I don't really think I need to elaborate here, lol.

[hellwolfwyvern]

this is an individual bipedal man to me

[mitanni]

Striated Caracara launching a special move

[hurrraaid]

Random falconry question that just struck me: do you ever handle any type of corvids/crows? With how smart they are it makes me wonder if it would make easier to train, or if they're not really included in falconry stuff cause they're not birds of prey?

I don't personally work with any. But there are many people that train and work with corvids. It can't technically come under falconry because falconry by definition is only with birds of prey, but the training methods seem to be very similar (especially with ravens).

However the intelligence is a double edged sword because it creates an insane need for not only physical but mental stimulation. They are very resource demanding and I'd classify them as insanely high maintenance birds.

I work with Striated Caracaras which are considered to be the most intelligent birds of prey, no where close as the corvids but I can say from personal experience that their needs for stimulation and interaction are higher than anything else I've ever worked with. So to imagine a corvid which would be that but X100 I don't think I'm ready for one.

[science-selected-yura15cbx]

Long-term memory in wild falcons: Current Biology

Caracaras remembered the solutions to puzzles a year later. And they solved them four times faster.

Ornithologists asked caracaras from the Falkland Islands to solve puzzles again that they had already solved a year ago. In almost 70 percent of cases, the caracaras solved the puzzles in the same ways as the previous year, and, what’s more, they solved them much faster than naive individuals. Scientists came to the conclusion that the long-term memory of these birds allows them to retain skills for at least a year without training.

So the birds remember me when I feed them.

Каракары вспомнили решения головоломок спустя год. И решили их в четыре раза быстрее.

Орнитологи предложили каракарам с Фолклендских островов снова решить головоломки, которые они уже решали год назад. Почти в 70 процентах случаев каракары решали головоломки теми же способами, что и в прошлом году, и, ко всему прочему, справлялись куда быстрее наивных особей. Ученые пришли к выводу, что долговременная память этих птиц позволяет им сохранять навыки по крайней мере на протяжении года без тренировок.

Значит и меня птицы помнят, когда я их кормлю.

[keplercryptids]

[image description copied from alt text: a digital drawing of a striated caracara, a bird of prey with black feathers, patterned with lighter gray feathers down its chest. Its face is sparsely-feathered. It's looking off to the side. The background is light green.]

i read a book about caracaras and spoiler alert: i love them so much. so i just had to draw this little friend.

[cleanskies]

Got to love a striated caracara. Island hawks with no fear, only curiosity

[gungieblog]

©Fabio Saltarelli/Courtesy TNC Photo Contest 2022

This elephant seal had to fight off a striated caracara that was trying to attack her calf.

[dsandrvk]

Saturday, February 24 - West Point and Carcass Islands, Falkland Islands

Yesterday was a sea day and it was fairly quiet, as the new folks were mostly making sure their jackets fit, and getting boots assigned, etc. We did have a mandatory briefing on South Georgia which included incredible pictures of the wildlife there, and got us all excited.

Today, however, we had two landings in the western part of the Falkland Islands. The first was West Point Island, and is owned by one family who have decided that making a piece of their island into a nature reserve can be more lucrative than running a sheep farm. Yes, there are sheep, but only 200 rather than the over 2,000 that used to be here, and a couple of cows, but much of the rest is left for the birds and wildlife.

There is a large Black-browed Albatross rookery here on the west side of the island, along with a small colony of Southern Rock Hopper Penguins. We took Zodiacs to shore, and then had about a mile and a half walk over the ridge and to the bird colonies. We were able to get off on a pier by the farm that is still here. They have installed a lot of solar and a small wind turbine to augment the diesel generator for power, but they still have an old Land Rover, which was used to ferry folks who couldn't make the walk.

The Albatross had lots of fluffy chicks who were just starting to stretch their wings, although it will be quite a while before they lose their down and grow into their adult form. In most cases, the chicks are still sitting in the nests, which are strange constructions of organic material, guano and mud. We were told by one of our bird guides that they will only get fed by their parents if they are on the nest. The nests get added onto every year, so they get higher and taller until they eventually topple over. Albatross lay one egg per year, and it then takes that chick at least 7-10 years to return here and start to breed. This small group of islands is home to around 70% of the world's population of Black-browed. They require two things to build a colony - a spot where mud is handy and also where the prevailing winds blow uphill from the sea, to facilitate takeoff.

In addition to the Albatross, there is a colony of penguins, and the Rock Hoppers are some of the smallest penguins. They have finished breeding by now, and even the chicks have matured enough to go out to sea, but there were still several moulting adults around. Without insulation and waterproofing all they can do is stand around, looking peeved, and occasionally groom each other.

There were other birds present on the island, too, including a very messy vulture sitting in the midst of the Albatross colony. And around the perimeter of that area were many young Striated Caracaras. We found out later that these are among the rarest birds in the world, although on a few of these islands they seem to be everywhere. They are curious and cunning, and pretty much take the place of ravens here. They will scavenge, but also just try to get into anything and everything. The white bulge on their chest is their craw. They are totally unafraid of people and will try to steal just about anything.

After we walked back to the dock, we were able to stop by the farmhouse for tea and some home-baked goodies - all delicious. The house has a wonderful flower garden, just past its prime, as we are getting into autumn. It also had matching vultures on the two chimneys visible. Just keep moving...

We spent the afternoon at Carcass Island - which was close by and considerably larger. Here there was also a small settlement with many more buildings and old Land Rovers. There was also more tea and baked goods - the Brits are always good for that! On this island we walked around the flats a bit and onto the beach, as the tide was out and there were lots of Oystercatchers and ducks. Lots of other birds, too, and we saw a couple of Magellenic Penguins stumbling over the rocks. Magellenic Penguins are the only ones around here that nest in burrows, rather than on top of the ground, and are also called "jackass" penguins because of their loud braying call. This is the far southern bit of their range, as they can be found mostly further north in Chile and Argentina.

On Carcass Island there is also a lot of introduced vegetation, such as gorse and a type of juniper. There are no trees native to the Falklands, but settlers always want to have things that remind them of home. Despite the relative bleakness of these islands, there are many bird species, and quite a few found no where else.

On our short hop between the Islands, we were once again joined by a group of Dusky Dolphins. They waited by the side of the ship as we were just getting underway and then raced to the front to catch the bow wave when we started picking up speed. What a treat.

We had a fairly clear evening and the moon came up over the bow as we headed east towards our day in Stanley tomorrow. When it got dark enough I looked for the Southern Cross, and think I found it. This constellation has wound up on quite a few flags in the southern hemisphere and I frankly expected something grander, but maybe it seemed a bit dim because of the full moon. This is the first clear night i think we have had in our three trips in South America.

Tomorrow we have a day in Stanley, the capital of these islands, and although it is quite windy, our captain feels good about being able to get us on shore. We are expected to anchor in the inner harbor, at least in the morning before they move to the outer harbor for refueling. This is our last chance to get fuel before Cape Verde and it is important the tanks are full. It is also the biggest settlement we will see for quite a while.

[tracygrenier-blog]

NYTimes: Freakishly Smart Falcons Run These Islands

Freakishly Smart Falcons Run These Islands https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/20/science/falkland-islands-falcons.html?smid=nytcore-android-share