Bye Bye!

I do not have a professional telephoto nor do I have the ability to make those joining me on my vacation wait until I get that perfect shot. While I saw a lot birds, and got a few good shots, there were many that got away. These below are some of those, grainy and blurry photos, but their graceful departures are worth noting, I think!

Take off is the most energy demanding activity for birds.  Imagine that you are standing at the side of the road and something frightens you and you have to immediately run at your very fastest for some time.  Sometimes take-off can only happen for large birds if they face into the wind.  Bird bones are hollow, body lines are streamlined and wing feathers are not symmetrical so that they have a strong side and a light side all of which aids flight.  One research project found that female birds exposed to predators during ovulation produce chicks which grow their wings faster than chicks produced by predator-free females. Their wings are also longer. Both adaptations may make them better at avoiding avian predators.  Flight is used to avoid prey, reach new feeding grounds, avoid bad weather and get food for young.  Sometimes birds that reach islands where there are no predators and plenty of food lose their ability to fly.