Saturday 2 February 2008

The Language of Love, or Strickly Come Dancing, Duck Style

It starts with a rhythmic chase across the dance floor, and the male may even manage a complete circle round the female if he is really feeling amorous.

Then they turn and face each other, and a little beak waggling may follow.

The next move needs a bit of practice, both did their beaks in the water, briefly and then.....

quickly stretch their necks up and a little beak shaking will follow. The again a bit more practice,

dipping the beaks in a neatly synchronised fashion. This seems to go on for a good while. Subsequently, and later in the season, things seem to get a lot more rough, but at this time of the year all seems quite civilised.

Other birding info. Phil Chantler photographed a second year Iceland Gull in Dover harbour today.
p.s. weren't England appalling in the second half of the rugby!

4 comments:

Kingsdowner said...

(or to put it another way, weren't Wales good!)

Tony Morris said...

No, I don't think they were. They were just competent, England on the other hand were abysmal. France will have a field day against both if they are in the mood.

Kingsdowner said...

Sorry Tony, when you're in a family that's suffered Wales playing and losing badly over the years, any success is talked up to Grand Slam status :-}
Especially against England.
It was a very strange match!

Daniel Chérouvrier said...

A new translation of "L'art d'aimer" by Ovide.