(I wish my own instincts would be that way when I'm watching TV in the evening on the couch. I wish my nature would be to say, "oh no, I'm close to going to bed, I have NO INTEREST in Ice Cream at this hour!")
I got closer and tried to shoot them again, since in the above video I had maxed out my zoom and knew it'd be even smaller on blogger. And to my amusement, I saw they'd been joined by a turtle, warming himself in the sun. There's a healthy population of turtles in the Lake. They're cold blooded and regulate their temperature by absorbing sun. I like to think of their shells like solar panels that they can draw upon long after it's dark. Click HERE to learn more.
Amazing how the geese use their long necks to curl in such a dramatic way, and can smooth their downy feathers with not just their beaks but the back of their heads. At times when I see waterbirds poking at themselves with their beaks, it looks like they're perhaps pinching out mites or some other little bug that's gotten on them.
But in fact their big, outer feathers have zipper-like little connections called barnucles. The preening straightens out any of these that might have come undone and restores them to their fully waterproof nature. Underneath those are small whispy feathers called down, which of course is what's used in pillows and comforters. Together they provides insulation and bouyancy. I learned about that when I took an all day training for cleaning birds caught in oil spills at the Wildlife Rehab Center. Hoping to never have to use those skills....
Mr. Grizzled from RiverDaze, you may have something else to add on this grooming activity....
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