hint

party record with a siren
my fish re-appeared today in my pond - amazing how they disappear completely during the cold weather, for about 5 months, but after just a couple of days of sunshine they're back in action and hungry again like nothing has happened. :)

I'd had a scare cos a couple died quite close to each other about a month ago (including my one and only goldfish - known as terminator), so I thought there might have been some kind of disease picking them off one by one. but after a couple more weeks with no deaths, I'm assuming they were the unlucky casualties of a heron attack.
 

hint

party record with a siren
yeah - nice natural pond - a big hole full of murky water, which the fish seem to thrive in because there's more natural food for them and the low visibility protects them from predators.

a couple of moorhens come and nest on the bank every year and have at least 5 chicks each time (not all survive though, but that's nature for you). this year there's a new addition in the neighbourhood who's suddenly appeared and settled down - a coot (picture below). it's very tame and happily hangs around while I'm out there feeding the fish.
 

sufi

lala
moorhen vs coot

i was educated on this only a couple of days ago by cheekybuddha who had a moorhen encounter recently (but that's another story)
for personal reasons i've always felt some affinity with moorhens, and so assumed that i knew the diff between them and coots.
turns out not :mad:
apparently moorhens have a red go-faster stripe on their beaks...coots don't
moorhen.jpg
funky moorhen

coot.jpg
coot

more twitcher porno...
 

hint

party record with a siren
I assumed it was a moorhen at first, but saw it up close and noticed the differences.

moorhen = black feathers with white details, red beak with yellow tip, yellow legs and long, thin toes

coot = all black feathers, white beak that extends quite far up his head ("bald as a coot"), with white / grey legs and really interesting toes - each one has webbed segments hanging either side. if he gets startled he runs across the water surface - a very impressive trick.

he's quite slow on land compared to the moorhens, so I guess that's why he stays in the water when I'm around - his crazy feet and water-walking skills give him a better chance of escape if he's threatened while he's in the water.

I'm hoping a mate will turn up and they'll make a nest. :)

http://www.rspb.org.uk/birds/guide/...id=/Images/2141_CootAndChick_1_tcm5-57769.mov
 
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rewch

Well-known member
love the nonchalant smoking of cigarette while holding giant fish that threatens to submerge canoe of that last one... mmm... catfish grow to quite extraordinary sizes really...
 

nomos

Administrator
when catfush pounce

catfish_sm.jpg


lots of interest in something called a buck fush but i've found no pictures

buck_fush_ami_r-768548.jpg
 
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