Christmas

25c : Western Meadowlark (西草地鷚) ; $5,00 : Yellow-rumped Cacique (黃腰酋長鳥)
50c : American Yellow Warbler (北美黃林鶯) ; $1,00 : American Goldfinch (美洲金翅雀)
$1,60 : Northern Mockingbird (小嘲鶇)

Nevis (1996)
28th August, 2015. Charlestown, Nevis

Nevis, like most small Caribbean islands, has a wealth of events and festivals scattered throughout the year. The two main holidays on Nevis are Christmas and Easter. On Nevis people celebrate Christmas the day before, in Charlestown, until midnight, when everyone goes home to spend Christmas day with their families, and then everyone parties again on Boxing Day (the day after Christmas Day). Easter celebrations stretch from Good Friday, with kite contests, until Easter Monday, with beach parties).

Penguins, Predators and Prey

Magellanic Penguin (麥哲倫企鵝) ; Falkland Skua (福克蘭賊鷗)

Falkland Islands (2015)
21st August, 2015. Stanley

Magellanic penguins are opportunistic feeders, taking roughly equal proportions of fish, squid and crustaceans. During chick-rearing, foraging trips take place on a daily basis during daylight hours. Birds generally hunt at depths of less than 50m, but may dive up to 100m. One of the more common prey species is the Falkland Sprat or Fuegian Sardine Sprattus fuegensis. This a small fish about 150mm in length which breeds in spring and early summer in the coastal shelf waters around the Falkland Islands and feeds on copepods, euphausiids, mysids, pelagic amphipods, chaetognaths, eggs and fish larvae. Large numbers appear close inshore during the summer making them ideal prey for penguins. The maximum recorded age is five years. The Falkland Sprat also lives along the Patagonian coast between 43° 30'N and 55° S.

Magellanic penguins encounter a number of predators at sea such as sea lions, leopard seals and orcas. They also face predation of chicks and eggs by avian predators such as caracaras, gulls and skuas although, by nesting in burrows, such predation is greatly reduced. The Falkland Skua is amongst the fastest and most skilled of all the flying birds. Add to that power and strength, high intelligence and longevity and the penguins have a formidable foe. Skuas are quick to spot any weak or infirm “Jackasses” and often attack them in mobs. Being without the claws and hooked beaks of hawks, skuas have to rely on each other to take hold of different parts of their prey in order to tear it apart. Falkland Skuas are entirely pelagic during the southern winter and come ashore in the Falklands only between October and April. The illustration shows part of their distinctive “courtship walk”. They nest in loose colonies, often close to their prey which, in addition to Magellanic Penguins, also includes other penguins and prions. They also specialize in harrying and forcing shags to re-gorge their food in flight over the ocean.

Penguin 2014

From left to right :

Macaroni Penguin (馬可羅尼企鵝) ; Adelie Penguin (阿德利企鵝)

Chinstrap Penguin (南極企鵝) ; Gentoo Penguin (巴布亞企鵝)

Emperor Penguin (皇帝企鵝)
British Antarctic Territory (2014)
19th November, 2014. Singy

Of the 17 different species of penguin the emperor and Adélie make the Antarctic continent their true home, whilst the chinstrap, gentoo and macaroni breed on the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, where conditions are less harsh. 

Penguins are the most common birds in the Antarctic with the total number of breeding pairs in the region estimated to be about 20 million. They were once thought to be the most primitive of birds. Members of Captain Scott’s famous expedition went on what they described as “the worst journey in the world” in the Antarctic winter to obtain an emperor penguin embryo to prove this point. But they were wrong — penguins are highly evolved to be able to live in the coldest of places.

Whilst penguins cannot fly they have evolved into the most efficient swimmers and divers of all birds. Some species spend 75% of their time at sea and one female emperor penguin was recorded at an astonishing depth of 535m.

As penguins are rarely seen underwater our main impression of them is confined to how they appear on land. With their legs set far back for efficient movement underwater, the penguins walk awkwardly in a very upright position. This is possibly the reason for their extraordinary appeal — they look like funny little people.

Emperor Penguin (皇帝企鵝)
British Antarctic Territory (2014)
19th November, 2014. Singy

Adelie Penguin (阿德利企鵝)

  British Antarctic Territory (2014)
19th November, 2014. Singy

Macaroni Penguin (馬可羅尼企鵝)

  British Antarctic Territory (2014)
19th November, 2014. Singy

Extra definitive stamps of Ireland

Mute Swan (疣鼻天鵝) ;
Great Spotted Woodpecker (大斑啄木鳥)

 Ireland (2015)
1st September, 2015. Dublin

An Post increased the standard domestic letter rate again from 68c to 70c on 2015. As the new rate effective on July 1, An Post released couple of new coils and booklet stamps, those stamps still as well as Biodiversity definitive series. However An Post did not have special postmark to match those stamps, here are the maxicard and cover of the stamps.

Mute Swan is a species of swan, and thus a member of the waterfowl family Anatidae. It is native to much of Europe and Asia, and (as a rare winter visitor) the far north of Africa. It is also an introduced species in North America, Australasia and southern Africa. The name 'mute' derives from it being less vocal than other swan species. Measuring 125 to 170 cm in length, this large swan is wholly white in plumage with an orange bill bordered with black. It is recognisable by its pronounced knob atop the bill.

The Great Spotted Woodpecker can be found in both broadleaved and coniferous woodlands and forests and recently has been spotted in gardens and parks. They feed on seeds, invertebrates, and occasionally bird eggs and nestlings. During spring they can be heard ‘drumming’; a sound produced by rapidly pecking on a dead branch or other resonant object.

Mute Swan (疣鼻天鵝) 

Ireland (2015)

1st July, 2015. Dublin

Singapore Botanic Gardens UNESCO World Heritage Site

Singapore Botanic Gardens (新加坡植物園)

Singapore (2015)
7th August, 2015. Killiney Road

Established in 1859, the Singapore Botanic Gardens played an important historical role in the introduction and promotion of many plants of economic value to Southeast Asia, including the Para rubber tree.

Over the years, the Gardens has continued to introduce and rejuvenate its horticultural attractions while continuing its mission of connecting plants and people.

Today, the 74-hectare Gardens is a key civic and community space, and an international tourist destination. Attracting an annual visitorship of more than 4.4 million, it is also an important institution for tropical botanical and horticultural research, education and conservation.

The Gardens showcases the best and most spectacular of tropical flora, including more than 10,000 types of plants and the region’s most significant living collection of documented palms, orchids, cycads and gingers. Its historic 19th century garden landscape is well preserved and includes the earliest ornamental designed lake in Singapore. Home to numerous heritage trees and a tract of primary rainforest, the Gardens is less than a 10-minute walk from the shopping belt in Orchard Road. The Gardens was inscribed as Singapore’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2015.

Up : Oriental Pied Hornbill (冠斑犀鳥)
Bottom : Lesser Whistling Duck (栗樹鴨)

Singapore (2015)
14th August, 2015. Tanglin

Singapore Botanic Gardens (新加坡植物園)

Singapore (2015)
7th August, 2015. Singapore

Golden Oriole and Golden Plover

From left to right :
€1,42 : Eurasian Golden-Plover (歐金斑鴴) ; €0,71 : Golden Oriole (金黃鸝)
Latvia (2015)
28th June, 2015. Liepaja

Golden Oriole is the only member of the oriole family of passerine birds breeding in Northern Hemisphere temperate regions. It is a summer migrant in Europe and western Asia and spends the winter season in central and southern Africa. Golden orioles have an extremely large range with large populations that are apparently stable. Therefore, they are evaluated as least concern by BirdLife International.

European Golden Plover is a largish plover. This species is similar to two other golden plovers. American golden plover, Pluvialis dominica, and Pacific golden plover, Pluvialis fulva, are both smaller, slimmer and relatively longer-legged than European golden plover, and both have grey rather than white axillary feathers.

Iraqi birds

Blue-cheeked Bee-eater (藍頰蜂虎)
Iraq (2015)
21st January, 2015. Iraq

Nature Iraq conducts scientific studies on biodiversity including birds, plants, mammals, and other taxa. In addition, through the laboratories and field staff of Blue Horizons, a private lab that Nature Iraq helped to establish, Nature Iraq has conducted sampling of water quality physical and chemical parameters and conducted sediment and bacterial analysis.

Also Nature Iraq has helped to build civil society networks to activate grassroots support for the protection of the environment, particularly the marshlands of southern Iraq and the watersheds of Kurdistan, northern Iraq. Further, Nature Iraq strives to build capacity within Iraq, both in government and in academia, to help restore and protect the environment.

European Robin (知更鳥)
Iraq (2015)
21st January, 2015. Iraq

 Common Kingfisher (普通翠鳥)
Iraq (2015)
21st January, 2015. Iraq

Tree Sparrow (麻雀)
Iraq (2015)
21st January, 2015. Iraq

European Goldfinch (紅額金翅雀)
Iraq (2015)
21st January, 2015. Iraq

Wildlife in Oman

First row :
Indian Roller (棕胸佛法僧) ; Arabian Scops Owl (阿拉伯角鴞)
 Sooty Falcon (烟隼)
Second row :
Bruce's Green Pigeon (黃腹綠鳩) ; Blue-cheeked Bee-eater (藍頰蜂虎)
 Rüppell's Weaver (麗臉織布鳥) 
  Oman (2014)
26th August, 2015. Ruwi

Oman witnesses huge swarms of migratory birds during their seasonal journey between their nesting habitats and the places where they spend winters, especially those birds migrating from Europe and East Asia. Many birds, especially water fowl, migrate from faraway regions like northern Siberia, and travel about five thousand kilometres.

Visitors can see many species of birds in each of Oman’s different regions. Al Hikman Peninsula, Masirah Island, Al Wusta Governorate beaches, the Lagoons, the beaches and springs in Dhofar are ideal places for bird observation. Many of these species live in Dimaniyat Islands and in Musandam.

Indian Roller (棕胸佛法僧)
Oman (2014)
7th July, 2015. Ruwi

Birds of Tunisia

100m : White-headed Duck (白頭硬尾鴨) ; 600m : Ferruginous Duck (白眼潛鴨)
600m : Moussier's Redstart (摩希爾氏紅尾鴝) ; 600m : Marbled Duck (雲石斑鴨)
Tunisia (2004)
29th May, 2015. Bardoc

Tunisia is a country much undervisited by birders in the spring. It has plenty to offer both for bird-lovers and history-lovers, plus comfortable tourist resorts. white-headed duck is a small stiff-tailed duck. Adult males have a grey and reddish body, a blue bill and a largely white head with a black cap and neck. Adult females have a grey-brown body with a white face and a darker bill, cap and a cheek stripe. Length is 43–48 cm and weight is 580–750 g. Ferruginous Duck breeding habitat is marshes and lakes with a metre or more water depth. These ducks breed in southern and eastern Europe and southern and western Asia. They are somewhat migratory, and winter farther south and into north Africa. The adult male is a rich chestnut colour with a darker back and a yellow eye. The pure white undertail helps to distinguish this species from the somewhat similar tufted duck. The female is similar but duller, and with a dark eye.

Moussier's Redstart is a small passerine bird in the genus Phoenicurus, formerly classed as a member of the thrush family, but is now classified as an Old World flycatcher. It is an endemic resident breeder in the Atlas Mountains of northwest Africa. Its habitat is open woodland in rocky areas from sea level up to 3000 m altitude in the mountains. Marbled Duck is a medium-sized duck. It used to be included among the dabbling ducks, but is now classed as a diving duck. The scientific name, Marmaronetta angustirostris, comes from the Greek marmaros, marbled and netta, a duck, and Latin angustus, narrow or small and rostris billed.

Northern Shoveler

Northern Shoveler (琵嘴鴨)
Belgium (2015)
30th May, 2015. Monk

Northern Shoveler is unmistakable in the northern hemisphere due to its large spatulate bill. The breeding drake has an iridescent dark green head, white breast and chestnut belly and flanks. In flight, pale blue forewing feathers are revealed, separated from the green speculum by a white border. In early fall the male will have a white crescent on each side of the face. In non-breeding (eclipse) plumage, the drake resembles the female.

The female is a drab mottled brown like other dabblers, with plumage much like a female mallard, but easily distinguished by the long broad bill, which is gray tinged with orange on cutting edge and lower mandible. The female's forewing is gray.

They are 48 cm long and have a wingspan of 76 cm (30 in) with a weight of 600 g.

Birds of Slovenia II

From left to right :
€0,01 : Great Crested Grebe (鳳頭鷿鷈); €0,02 : Stock Dove (歐鴿)
€0,05 : Black Stork (黑鸛) ; €0,20 : Kentish Plover (東方環頸鴴)
€0,50 : White-winged Snowfinch (白斑翅雪雀)
Slovenia (2015)
7th July, 2015. Službeno, Maribor

Slovenia continuous its bird definitive series on 2015, five stamps are Great Crested Grebe, Stock Dove, Black Stork, Kentish Plover and White-winged Snowfinch. Great Crested Grebe is the largest member of the grebe family found in the Old World, with some larger species residing in the Americas. They measure 46–51 cm long with a 59–73 cm wingspan and weigh 0.9 to 1.5 kg. It is an excellent swimmer and diver, and pursues its fish prey underwater. The adults are unmistakable in summer with head and neck decorations. In winter, this is whiter than most grebes, with white above the eye, and a pink bill. Stock Dove is the largest within the pigeon family, and has the widest distribution. Its members are typically pale grey or brown, often with white head or neck markings or iridescent green or purple patches on the neck and breast. The neck feathers may be stiffened and aligned to form grooves, but these are absent in this species. The stock dove is less grey in plumage than other pigeons in Europe.

With a body length of 90–100 cm, the black stork is slightly smaller than its cousin the white stork. The black stork is a shy bird that is highly sensitive to human presence and lives inwoodland in the vicinity of small streams or ditches. It builds its large nest in old trees, usually oak, in lowland wooded areas, forests. Occasionally it will build a nest on a suitable rock. It has one brood consisting of three to five chicks. Kentish Plover is 15 to 17 cm long and can be distinguished from the little ringed plover, which also nests in Slovenia, by the dark patches on the side of the breast and, in the male bird, by a sandy-brown cap. Generally speaking it has less black on its body than related species. It nests on the coast, in areas safe from floods, on salty soil with scant vegetation. The nest is simply a hollow in the
ground.

With a body length of 17–19 cm, the snowfinch is the largest passerine species in Slovenia. It inhabits inhospitable areas of rocky grassland and screes above the treeline; it is unconcerned by human presence. It likes to build its nest in crevices close to areas where the snow remains on the ground for a long time and surrounded by steep rock faces. It lays clutches of four to five eggs and has one to two broods a year.

Great Crested Grebe (鳳頭鷿鷈)
Slovenia (2015)
7th July, 2015. Službeno, Maribor

Antarctic Tern

Antarctic Tern (南極燕鷗)

French Australia and Antarctica Territories (2015)
1st January, 2015. Dumont D’Urville

Antarctic Tern is a typical tern. It ranges throughout the southern oceans. It is very similar in appearance to the closely related Arctic tern, but is stockier, and the wing tips are grey instead of blackish in flight. It is, of course, in breeding plumage in the southern summer, when the Arctic tern has moulted to its non-breeding plumage.

Breeding takes place from mid-November to early December. Chicks hatch from December to February. Skuas and jaegers are the primary predators of this bird's eggs and young.

The total global population of this bird is around 140,000 individuals.

110th anniversary of Naardermeer Nature Reserve

Great Crested Grebe (鳳頭鸊鷉)

The Netherlands (2015)
28th April, 2015. Naarden-Energiestraat

Naardermeer Nature Reserve was the first-ever natural area to be managed by the Dutch Nature Preservation Society, having been acquired as early as 1906. “More than a century on, visitors continue to enjoy the lake, swamp forests and surrounding fields every day and see what a sanctuary this unique reserve represents for plants and animals. I would imagine that the stamps will inspire many nature lovers to visit Naardermeer Nature Reserve and enjoy the beautiful scenery and all that it has to offer”, said Marc van den Tweel, Managing Director of Natuurmonumenten.

Naardermeer Nature Reserve is celebrating its 110th anniversary this year, and it remains a great source of pride to many people in the Netherlands

 

From left to right :

Eurasian Reed Warbler (蘆葦鶯) ; Great Cormorant (普通鸕鶿)
The Netherlands (2015)
28th April, 2015. Naarden-Energiestraat

Ruddy Turnstone

Ruddy Turnstone (翻石鷸)

Vanuatu (2012)
8th October, 2013. Port Vila

Ruddy Turnstone is a small wading bird, one of two species of turnstone in the genus Arenaria. It is now classified in the sandpiper family Scolopacidae but was formerly sometimes placed in the plover family Charadriidae. It is a highly migratory bird, breeding in northern parts of Eurasia and North America and flying south to winter on coastlines almost worldwide. It is the only species of turnstone in much of its range and is often known simply as turnstone.

It is a fairly small and stocky bird, 22–24 cm (8.7–9.4 in) long with a wingspan of 50–57 cm (20–22 in) and a weight of 85–150 g (3.0–5.3 oz). The dark, wedge-shaped bill is 2–2.5 cm (0.79–0.98 in) long and slightly upturned. The legs are fairly short at 3.5 cm (1.4 in) and are bright orange.

At all seasons, the plumage is dominated by a harlequin-like pattern of black and white. Breeding birds have reddish-brown upper parts with black markings. The head is mainly white with black streaks on the crown and a black pattern on the face. The breast is mainly black apart from a white patch on the sides. The rest of the underparts are white. In flight it reveals a white wingbar, white patch near the base of the wing and white lower back, rump and tail with dark bands on the uppertail-coverts and near the tip of the tail. The female is slightly duller than the male and has a browner head with more streaking.

Herons and Bitterns found in Malaysia

From left to right :

60sen : Black-crowned Night Heron (夜鷺) ; 70sen : Striated Heron (綠簑鷺)
80sen : Grey Heron (蒼鷺)
Malaysia (2015)
26th June, 2015. Seremban, Negeri Sembilan

Black-crowned Night Herons are small stocky, short-legged compared to other herons. They are handsomely attired in a tri-colour plumage of black, grey and white, with two long plumes on the nape. Night Herons are very aggressive and steal eggs and young of other heron colonies.

Black Crowned Night Herons eat a wide range of prey from aquatic invertebrates, amphibians and reptiles to land invertebrates including small mammals. Prey is shaken vigorously until stunned or killed and then juggled about in the beak and swallowed head first.

The Striated Heron also known as mangrove heron, little heron or green-backed heron, is a small heron. Striated herons are mostly non-migratory and noted for some interesting behavioral traits. Little herons are often encountered at Sungei Buloh Nature Park, hunched into a compact egg-shape on a branch over the water, motionless but intently looking out for prey. Little herons use a wide variety of hunting techniques, but usually hunt from cover and rarely forage on the open mudflats.

The grey heron is a wading bird of the heron family Ardeidae, native throughout temperate Europe and Asia and also parts of Africa. It is a large bird, standing up to 100 cm tall and measuring 84–102 cm long with a 155–195 cm wingspan. Grey Herons have long necks and powerful bills for a long and strong reach. They usually wait on the mud or at the water’s edge to snatch passing aquatic prey. They can stand motionless for hours.

 

Black-crowned Night Heron (夜鷺)

Malaysia (2015)

25th June, 2015. Kuala Selangor

Traditional hunting

From top to bottom :

Golden Eagle (金雕) ; Saker Falcon (獵鷹)
Peregrine Falcon (黑翅長腳鷸)

Kyrgyzstan (2015)

15th May, 2015. Bishkek

'Salburun'which means "Hunter's Zest" in Kyrgyz language, is a traditional hunting fest that has been held annually since 1997 in the area of Issyk Kul lake in Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia.

Hunting with golden eagles is a skill handed down from generation to generation in rural Kyrgyzstan. It dates back to the times when hunting was the only means of survival in the Kyrgyz steppe. The organisers of the "Salburun" Festival revived the tradition in the form of a competition four years ago in order to preserve local culture. Hunting has always been an integral part of the nomadic lifestyle of the Kyrgyz people.

There are only a few "berkutchi" - birds of prey hunters - left in Kyrgyzstan. The majority of them learned the secrets of taming the wild bird from their fathers and grandfathers. The hunter takes the bird and begins training when it is a nesting. When it grows up, the bird remains faithful to its owner and even recognises his voice.

Kyrgyz hunters say that in former times one hunter with a golden eagle could support a large family.

Golden Eagle (金雕)

Kyrgyzstan (2015)

15th May, 2015. Bishkek

Saker Falcon (獵鷹)

Kyrgyzstan (2015)

14th May, 2015. Bishkek

Peregrine Falcon (擬游隼)

Kyrgyzstan (2015)

15th May, 2015. Bishkek

Macao wetlands

Black-faced Spoonbill (黑面琵鷺)

Macao (2015)
5th May, 2015. Seac Pai Van

Wetlands, known as the “Kidneys of the Earth”, together with forests and oceans, comprise the three paramount ecosystems of the Earth. This May, to demonstrate China’s achievement in wetland conservation and its pioneering experience in the development of wetland protection, China Central Television (CCTV) kicked off a major charity programme – “Beautiful China – Tour of Wetlands” and launched an internet poll in late September. A combination of the online votes and the organising committee’s evaluation selected Macao’s wetland as one of China’s Top Ten Charming Wetlands.

Amid rapid economic development and continuing population growth, China’s wetlands face many problems such as declining biodiversity and decreased nationwide wetland area, etc. This programme aims to discover and exchange experiences on wetland conservation, and also hopes to awaken people’s awareness of conservation of the natural environment and the need to safeguard the healthy growth of wetlands. The programme started in May and included an opening ceremony, a documentary show, an internet poll and an award ceremony, etc. Across the entire network it is recorded more than 230 million people voted online, with the Macao wetland receiving more than one million votes. In combination with the evaluation by the organising committee, leaders from the State Forestry Administration, experts and scholars based on the rarity of prominent species and benefits from conservation, Macao was successfully included in the list of China’s Top Ten Charming Wetlands.

Black-faced Spoonbill (黑面琵鷺)

Macao (2015)

5th May, 2015. Seac Pai Van

Black-faced Spoonbill (黑面琵鷺)

Macao (2015)

5th May, 2015. Macao

Tranqueras

Greater Rhea (美洲鴕鳥)
Uruguay (2014)
22nd July, 2014. Tranqueras

Tranqueras is a city in the Rivera Department of northeastern Uruguay.

During the first decades of the 19th century the area was known as Paso de Tranqueras because of the homonymous bridge over the Tacuarembó Grande river. In 1890 the French Marcos Bourré donated to the state some land for the construction of a railway station. The arrival of the railway became the birth point of a village which grew rapidly with hotels, stores and small industry.

Red Knot (紅腹濱鷸)
Uruguay (2013)
22nd July, 2013. Montevideo

Tristan's endemic Finches

35p : Gough Finch (高夫島雀) ; 45p : Dunn's Finch (特島雀)
50p : Nightingale Island Finch (南丁格爾地雀) ; £1,50 : Wilkins's Finch (大嘴島雀)
Tristan da Cunha (2014)
6th August, 2014. Tristan da Cunha

Tristan’s finches traditionally were called buntings. The Gough Finch Rowettia goughhensis, was named after John Quiller Rowett, the sponsor of Shackleton’s last expedition, which called at Gough in mid-1922 after Shackleton’s death. Unfortunately, Gough Finches are now scarce on Gough Island, being largely confined to sheer coastal cliffs and high mountainous areas where they find some refuge from introduced House Mice. The mice prey on the finch’s chicks (and those of many seabird species), resulting in the finch being listed as Critically Endangered.

Tristan’s finches are equally prone to introduced predators. They once occurred at all three islands in the Tristan group, but died out on Tristan within 50 years of the island’s colonization in 1810. Fortunately, Inaccessible and Nightingale Island lack introduced mammals, and so still support healthy populations of finches.

35p : Gough Finch (高夫島雀)
Tristan da Cunha (2014)

14th April, 2015. Tristan da Cunha

45p : Dunn's Finch (特島雀)
Tristan da Cunha (2014)

14th April, 2015. Tristan da Cunha

50p : Nightingale Island Finch (南丁格爾地雀)
Tristan da Cunha (2014)

14th April, 2015. Tristan da Cunha

£1,50 : Wilkins's Finch (大嘴島雀)
Tristan da Cunha (2014)

14th April, 2015. Tristan da Cunha

£2,00 : Inaccessible Island Finch (伊納克塞瑟布爾島雀)
Tristan da Cunha (2014)

14th April, 2015. Tristan da Cunha

£2,00 : Inaccessible Island Finch (伊納克塞瑟布爾島雀)
Tristan da Cunha (2014)

18th June, 2014. Tristan da Cunha

Rhein-Ruhr-Posta 2015

Postmark : Little Owl (縱紋腹小鴞)

Germany (2015)
17th April, 2015. Löhne

The little owl is a bird that inhabits much of the temperate and warmer parts of Europe, Asia east to Korea, and north Africa. It is not native to Great Britain and was first introduced in 1842 by Thomas Powys[dubious – discuss] and is now naturalised. It was also successfully introduced to the South Island of New Zealand in the early 20th century.

This species is among the larger grouping of owls that is known as typical owls, Strigidae, which contains most species of owl. The other grouping is the barn owls, Tytonidae.

Our ecosystem

From left to right :

NT$10 : Black-faced Spoonbill (黑面琵鷺) ; NT$25 : Black-winged Stilt (黑翅長腳鷸)
Taiwan (2015)
25th April, 2015. Taipei

Zengwen River estuary wetlands sit by the mouth of the river, where the waters empty into the sea. The abundance of nutritive salts brought from the upstream area has made the wetlands a habitat for a diversity of wildlife. The most notable species of all is the black-faced spoonbills. Their long, flat bills bear a striking resemblance to pipa, a traditional Chinese musical instrument. They winter here in the wetlands every October.

Sicao wetlands sit at the convergence point of Zengwen River, Luermen River, Yanshui River and Jianan Canal. Large quantities of silt from the upstream area amassed over the years have formed a large plot of tidal land in the Taijiang Inland Sea. The area, with its plentiful food resource, has attracted an impressive array of sandpipers and plovers. The very leggy black-winged stilts are also the frequent faces here. Within the wetlands is a green tunnel, shade on both sides by mangrove trees, and the view is picture-perfect.

Black-faced Spoonbill (黑面琵鷺)
 Taiwan (2015)
25th April, 2015. Taipei
 

Black-winged Stilt (黑翅長腳鷸)
 Taiwan (2015)
25th April, 2015. Taipei