The ugliest baby bird in the world?

I'm familiar with the kea parrot for its bad behavior, but I've never before had the decidedly queasy pleasure of seeing a baby one.

Is it in fact the ugliest baby bird ever, as theorized by news sources from the The Independent to the Daily Mail? I don't know, but this is something I've been meaning to do research on, and it's definitely a start.

-Wombat (No Relation)

Your ugly animal shopping advice for the week

You all need to head straight over to Topatoco and buy this brilliant turkey vulture print by Bird and Moon.

Happy - and Ugly - Thanksgiving

Sure, turkeys are delicious. But let's not forget how ugly they are.

And read more about their ugly behavior at my other blog.

Giving thanks to Flickr users Drome and Mark Coleman.

Make your travel plans now!

Usually when I learn of an ugly animal event, I make a note to post when the day comes around. But there's no way I can wait till March to tell you about the Annual Return of the Buzzards to Hinckley, Ohio.

Since the 1950s, ugly animal lovers have been gathering on March 15 to greet the buzzards returning to the Buzzard Roost in Hinckley Reservation. According to the official website:

In 1957, Walter Nawalaniec, ranger for Cleveland Metropolitan Park System (now known as Cleveland Metroparks), told a newspaper reporter that on March 15 he had witnessed for six straight years the turkey vultures returning to Hinckley Reservation. The Cleveland Press printed the story on February 15, 1957, and one month later on March 15 at 2 p.m. the first buzzard was spotted by 9,000 buzzard enthusiasts. Since then, over a hundred-thousand visitors have witnessed the return of the buzzards to Hinckley Reservation.

The event has developed into an entire ugly bird festival, with nature hikes, presentations, live music, an Official Buzzard Spotter in charge and a big Buzzard Scoreboard. Sounds like spring break to me!

Go for it!
-Wombat (No Relation)


Photo from the 2008 event by Flickr user rcoss2001. Check out his photostream for many pictures of the patience and devotion of ugly animal lovers on a cold foggy morning.

Happy holiday!

In the United States it's Labor Day weekend, but the heck with that. For ugly animal lovers it's much more important that today is International Vulture Awareness Day.

So here's a couple more vultures to be aware of. And since it's important to indoctrinate youngsters into the cult of ugly as well, check out Vultures Rock, where they're having a vulture poetry contest for kids 8-12.



Your wrinkly friend,
Wombat (No Relation)

King vulture and Egyptian vulture by dracobotanicus and hooded vulture by rainbirder.

WHOA

This is one of those rare cases where I am pretty much struck speechless by the ugliness of an animal, so, just the facts, ma'am:

This is a four day old seriema at Westküstenpark St. Peter-Ording in the state of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.

The seriema is supposedly descended from huge, carnivorous, flightless birds that roamed South America 60 million years ago, hacking their prey into bloody chunks with their terrifying beaks. But this one will grow up to eat insects, small animals and even sometimes a side of veggies, so, no worries, except the nightmares you're going to have after seeing this photo.

Thanks (I think ) to The Local.

-Wombat (No Relation)

A True Illustration of "Eyes Glazing Over"

Finally, someone to accurately portray how my eyes looked during operating systems class!

Photo by Toby Hudson

This obliging masked lapwing (shown below enjoying a juicy worm) has provided a prime depiction of the nictating membrane, or third eyelid, that provides eye moisture and protection to various animals while still maintaining visibility. The lapwing uses its nictating membrane to blink but closes the whole eyelid to sleep.


Photo by Toby Hudson

Shown here is a chicken blinking:

Photo source: Wikimedia Commons

A red-tailed hawklet winks for the camera:

Photo by flikr user ronmdon

And yes, this is the same nictating membrane you have seen up close and personal on your pets:

Photo source: Washington State University

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Thanks to alert reader JIP for bringing this terrifying horizontal eyelid to our attention. Happy 25th birthday today!

Ugh, monday

If you thought the birds in the last post were having a bad hair day, check out this Phillipine eagle. At least those vultures looked like they'd just rolled out of bed, giving them an excuse. This guy looks like he's worked at it, and this is still the best he could do.

This species is reportedly one of the most critically endangered in the world, but I am also a little worried about this particular specimen. A resident of a conservation center, he's been given the name Binay, because he's been "adopted" by the Phillipine vice president Jejomar Binay.

You'd think this would give him a leg up in life, but a little research revealed that the last vice president also adopted an eagle.... which died. But maybe the new VP can at least get this guy a hairdresser before it's too late?


Thanks to the Telegraph's Pictures of the Day.

The Egg-cracking Egyptian Vulture

Meet the Egyptian vulture, also known as "Pharaoh's Chicken": the bird with a Ph.D. in egg-eating.

Photo by Ron Saldino

Egyptian vultures are best known for their technique of throwing or dropping stones on eggs to crack them, placing them among the few bird species to make use of tools.

Photo by Flikr user Foto Martien

In addition to eating the eggs of ostriches and other large birds, Egyptian vultures also favor carrion, insects, decaying vegetable matter, and the feces of humans and other mammals.

Photo by John Wurth

In answer to the pressing question of whether the use of stones is an instinctive behavior or a technique acquired from watching other vultures, authors Thouless, Fanshawe, and Bertram reported the following in the International Journal of Avian Science:

There was no evidence of cultural transmission for stone-throwing through copying experienced birds. A naïve captive-reared bird threw stones once an Ostrich egg had been linked with a food reward. The origins of aimed stone-throwing are probably related to the unaimed throwing of small eggs, since the actions are similar, and all tested birds strongly preferred to throw rounded or egg-like stones, rather than jagged ones, at Ostrich eggs.

Photo by Linda Schueller

Photo source: Wildlife Extra

This video shows the Egyptian vulture plying its egg-opening technique (though this is only part of the multi-act drama that unfolds).



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This post is dedicated to reader OMBF's nose, whose size has drawn comparisons to a beak.

Baby birds at home and abroad

Let's compare some baby birds found in the wild to their domesticated counterparts.

First up is a set of Western scrub-jays, native to western North America, in their natural habitat. This is how I typically imagine baby birds: giant, gaping beaks, skin stretched tightly over bulbous eyes, optional pinhole eye openings, scrawny necks, and transparent skin.

Photo source: the Register-Guard

Also in our wild lineup are some baby finches sporting crinkly yellow beaks and dubious tufts of down:

Photo source: Boing Boing

Now for the creatures we have invited into our own homes. Eastern Rosella parrots are prized for their brightly colored plumage, of which they give no hint early in life:

Photo source: http://www.parrot-bird.com/

Top honors, however, may belong to baby cockatiels, native to Australia but now common household pets throughout the world. Cockatiels are the second most popular companion parrot species (after budgies) and are known for their gentle and sociable natures. This outstanding specimen has been photographed mid-poop:

Photo uploaded by user tamaralynn24

Observe the veiny skull, sealed eyes, wrinkly neck and leg, full crop, arthritic-looking claws, and Chia pet-style down. This is truly the stuff of which dream pets are made.

So who wins the ugliness contest: baby birds in the wild or baby birds at home? Cast your vote in the comments!

Growing up ugly

As I've mentioned before, birds just can't seem to get the hang of the concept that babies are supposed to be cute. Most of them start out horrendously ugly and gradually grow into those lovely, graceful creatures that so many people love.

This picture of three young Black Palm Cockatoos from the Jurong Bird Park in Singapore demonstrates the process - sort of. We've got a three week old baby in the middle with a two month old on the right and a three month old on the left.

But the black palm cockatoo is definitely a bird after our own hearts here at Ugly Overload because although it does get less ugly as it ages, it never entirely grows out of it:


Someone get that poor bird a hairdresser!

Flightlessly,
Wombat (No Relation)


Babies from the Globe and Mail/AFP and adult from Flickr user Puppies are Prozac.

Triple threat

Starting off October with three creatures so scary, you should make plans to dress up as them for Halloween. Look at those gaping maws like the mouth of hell, plumage like strips of rotting flesh, and cold, dead eyes! These must be zombie birds, right? Yet the Telegraph's Pictures of the Day claims they are perfectly innocent baby Malay night herons. I'm not sure what to believe.

-Locking the door and drawing the blinds,
Wombat (No Relation)

Stuff the ballot box for ugly

This photo of a coot chick, entitled "Bad Hair Day," by Keith Humphrey, is an entry in the 2010 photography contest of Britain's Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust.

The competition includes a People's Choice award, and if you don't go over there and vote, some beautiful swan or something like that is going to win. And wouldn't that be sad?

Democratically,
Wombat (No Relation)

Get ready to party

It's time for a fantastic ugly animal holiday: Saturday, September 4th is International Vulture Awareness Day. Hope the following portraits inspire you while you're making your shopping list for carrion and other delicacies for your celebration.

Black vulture from Flickr user digitalART2.

Hooded vulture by Flickr user Tambako the Jaguar.

White-headed vulture from Flickr user SantiMB.

King Vulture by Flickr user Axel Foley.

Another black vulture by Flickr user Jeremiah McBride.

-Wombat (No Relation)

A couple of followups

Recently our fearless leader posted about the remarkable Titan Arum, also known as the Corpse Flower and remarked that although it is stinky (hence the nickname), it isn't particularly ugly in appearance.

After stumbling across this photo of the same flower about to bloom at the Huntington Gardens in California, I think we may need to reconsider:


The Huntington Gardens takes ugly seriously: this flower has its own blog: Stinky Huntington.

Also, in case you think the baby birds in my previous post are not fair representatives of baby birds the world over, check out these baby blackbirds at a wildlife hospital in Tel Aviv, Israel (from Reuters via The Telegraph):



Respectfully submitted by Wombat (No Relation)

Faces Only a Mother Could Love

It's the time of year - at least where I am in the Eastern US - that we're infested with the most hideous little animals possible: baby birds.

Fortunately, usually they're well hidden, but last year, a nest of robins rudely took up residence right next to my back patio table. Take a look:



Isn't that enough to spoil your appetite? What is it with baby birds? Every other baby animal is adorable. Even little baby snakes are adorable - if you don't believe me, look at this one:



Come on, even if you're not crazy about snakes, don't you just want to kiss its eensy weensy wittle tiny cheeks? Compare that to those baby birds from an even more horrific angle:



There is one bright side, though, which is that they look like that for a very short time. Here's one of those guys only about a week later, looking like it's ready to fill out its college applications:



By the way, if you see one of these teenage birds flopping around on the ground in your yard, be aware that you probably don't need to "rescue" it. Unless it can't move or is obviously injured, you're just watching its clumsy attempts to learn to fly. Scores of overworked wildlife rehabilitators across the country would appreciate it if you don't catch up perfectly healthy baby birds and call them in a panic when you realize that you don't have a clue what to do.

(P.S. Ahoy! I am Wombat (no relation) and I am honored to be helping carry on the grand tradition of Ugly Overload. You can read my ravings about the ugly behavior (not always entirely safe for work) of our fellow creatures at my blog, where you will learn never to trust a pretty animal face.)

The Majestic Bald Blue Jay

You're looking at a bald blue jay. Why bald? There might be a few answers: a faulty molting process (post breeding), disease, feather picking, or a feeder that has rubbed the feathers away. Bald songbirds aren't actually that rare. You'll occasionally find bald cardinals and blackbirds too.

Photo courtesy: Kathy Vespaziani

So, why the baldness? Most likely it's due to feather mites. But why only on the head? Feather mites located elsewhere on the body get cleared by the bird's preening: he can actually reach those mites and eradicate them. Not so with feather mites on the head.

But fear not for our corvid friend. It won't affect his next moult, and his feathers will come back. The mites, having lost their food supply, have two choices: 1) to leave the bird altogether in search of more feathers, or 2) to migrate to other parts of the bird, but then the bird can rid himself of them, and probably with a vengeance.

Thanks for the photo, Kathy. Check out some more of her bird photos at Avianatic Nature Photography.

Sage Grouse In All His Glory

Bill saw the earlier post on the sage grouse and found this fantastic video of a male sage grouse doing his mating dance. When my sister's fiance asked my Dad to marry her, my Dad and I both had him do a similar dance to prove his worth. He had a bit of trouble with the air sac thing initially, and we had to improvise on the tail feathers, but it turns out that he's great at beatboxing, so he's in.

Thanks, Bill.

Chicks with Appetites

Photo source: John & Fish
As a father of multiple children, I know exactly how the parents of this brood feel. Harrassed, weary, frazzled. But when it's all said and done, it's still adorable. Besides, a child with an appetite is usually a healthy child.

I don't know how Malayan night herons feed their young, but I'm glad I don't have to regurgitate anything for mine. Pizza just wouldn't taste as good the second time down.

Grousy

Not ugly. How about intimidating? If those tail feathers were truly sharp and if those bare patches on his chest were cannon muzzles, well, maybe this sage grouse wouldn't be making its way onto the endangered species list. Or at least it would be going down with more of a fight.

Photo source: LA Times
But not all is lost for this once abundant grouse. Federal wildlife officials and the State of Idaho have signed a first-of-its-kind accord designed to incentivize land owners to take their own steps in protecting sage grouse habitat. We'll see how it plays out.

In the mean time, I'll stand down in this confrontation. Even if those feathers aren't sharp, those talons will be.

Thanks for the article, Ida.