Ducks, Geese and Cormorants

 Today we went on a new path and saw ducks, geese and cormorants.



Common Shelduck

These ducks can get up to 65cm, bigger than a Mallard but smaller than a goose. They eat invertebrates, small shellfish and aquatic snails. The have a wingspan of 1.33m and weigh 1.4kg. Their conservation status is amber and there are around 15,000 breeding pairs in the UK although there are 61,000 wintering in the UK. They are recognisable with their red beak, that is how we could tell it wasn't a gull.

Canada Geese

Canada geese can get up to 110cm in length and have a distinctive black neck. As the name would suggest, they are originally from North America and now you can see them almost everywhere in the UK. There are around 62,000 breeding pairs in the UK which increases to 190,000 birds in the winter.

Cormorant

When this Cormorant flew over, it reminded me of a Pterodactyl. It's long neck makes it look like it's wings are far back on its body. They are often found near the coast and water ways. They are excellent at catching fish. There are around 9,000 breeding pairs and in the winter around 41,000 birds.

Comments

  1. Nanny24 February 2021 at 12:15

    Brilliant, you are obviously getting out and about to find all of these, well done

    ReplyDelete

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