Birds

BIRDS Cryptic & Beautiful

Words and Pictures by William Bowell

Despite the popular religious verse, not all things bright are beautiful. Or rather, some things not so bright are beautiful.

In the bird world, we often think of the female of the species as being dull and brown. This has obvious evolutionary benefits, such as being able to sit on a nest unnoticed from predators. The bold and brash plumages of males might draw unwanted attention if sat on the nest. Indeed, among Phalaropes, where roles are reversed, and females leave the dowdy males to tend to the nest and young; it is the females who are the show offs with their show-stopping colours.

But I digress, as I often do long-suffering reader. In some species, both sexes are alike as they want to avoid the gaze of the likes of you or me (and predators of course), and neither are lookers. Or are they?

If you look very, very hard and pay extra attention to detail, these often-hidden gems are just as stunning as their more colourful counterparts. A mix of shades of brown, orange, black and white make for a cryptic and beautiful plumage but also keeps the bird hidden from view.

One such cryptic camouflaged creature, the Bittern, has made a remarkable comeback over the past three decades. It is a heron species, which lives in reedbeds and has a particular liking for Rudd. It remains mostly unseen but, in the spring, males famously give their presence away with an incredible gulping ‘boom’ at dawn and dusk.

In my pre-teens I remember it made national news that there were less than ten pairs left breeding in the country. The RSPB and other wildlife conservation organisations have made a tremendous effort to restore reedbed and wetland habitats and such is the success we now have booming Bitterns breeding around the Deepings!

Their subtle plumage, designed to blend into the reeds, makes them a real challenge to spot but when you do see one they are way more than just a brown bird. They are stocky birds, on long green legs with massive green feet, which help them wade as well climb up reeds. Their plumage is a mix of brown and black with white and males have incredible blue ‘lores’ near the bill. When they stand dead still, as they often do, they look like a bunch of reeds. From the big to the small: the Jack Snipe. Any patch of damp grass with puddles can attract this delicate winter wader and they are renowned for being one of most secretive species in Britain. They have such a faith in their invisibility, that they don’t move a muscle unless you nearly tread on them. And that’s not an exaggeration, dear reader!

And once they have flown up from your feet, you are left thinking, ‘How did I not see that?’ With the thermal imaging becoming affordable, the secret world of Jacko’s (as we famously call them) has been unveiled. They remain motionless which allows close study of what is a very beautiful bird, covered in golden stripes which are broken up with dark browns and blacks. An even closer look reveals exquisite turquoise hues with white feather fringing.

Bittern- amazing plumage lets this large bird sneak around in reeds unseen.

Short-eared Owls might be easy to spot on a post but when roosting in tall grass, they become quite a challenge.

Way more than just black and brown. Jack Snipe have nearly every colour on the spectrum to camouflage themselves.

They occur around the Deepings at most of our gravel pits, in the muddy, reedy fringes and do love a good wet field as well. April is a great month to see (or rather not to see!) these birds, as they move north. Everyone is aware of their camouflaged plumage of Owls, especially tree and field dwelling Owls. Shorteared and Long-eared Owls, of the Asio family both share similar plumages but Short-eareds have yellow eyes, whilst Long-eareds have orange eyes. Oh yes, and the tufts on their head are different lengths. Their roosting habitat preferences are different as well, with Long-eareds loving a tree whilst a Short-eared will make do with long grass. I don’t think anyone can deny the beauty of these birds! One thing all these birds share is their cryptic camouflage which makes them both beautiful and a challenge to spot and this makes them special. The challenge of seeing them, the fact that their hidden, secretive lives means that a sighting isn’t an everyday occurrence, and their subtle splendour makes them bright and beautiful in my book.

Not only very crepuscular in behaviour, Longeared Owls plumage allows them to melt into their scrub roost during the day.

Will works at Grasmere Farm in Deeping St James (with a butcher’s and deli in Market Gate, Market Deeping) but in his spare time enjoys wildlife watching locally and across the country. He is also a keen photographer. Many of his images can be found at http://justwildimages.blogspot.co.uk/ and photo cards can be found for sale at Market Gate Deli in Market Deeping.