By Mary Alice Hayward
Mary Alice Hayward by no means thought a lot about birds till after retiring in 2021 and waking up one spring day to a hen attacking her eating room home windows. Curiosity led her to search out out what it was, a Nice Crested Flycatcher. With that, her eyes opened as much as uncover and fall headfirst, deep down into the birding world. Mary Alice lives and birds on the Outer Banks barrier islands on the Atlantic Ocean, North Carolina, USA. She travels typically and birds on daily basis, regardless of the place she goes. Her favourite birds are the black and white ones.
It got here to me the second I first noticed Pied Kingfishers in Shanghai, China. Perched on energy traces over a small creek, the pair of kingfishers was unmistakable. Slender lengthy black payments, black dots on a vibrant white background, and fabulous goth black eyeliner. Beauties! I watched them by way of the tall reeds as they perched, observing their leafy inexperienced environment and the rippling floor of the water on the creek. I knew they might keep imprinted in my mind ceaselessly. Black and white. Simple for me to recollect and admire. That’s once I realized it, I really like black and white birds as a result of they’re putting, just like the zebras of the hen world, and I can simply determine them (largely). I’m in China. New birds, new habitat, and right here is that this new hen, which isn’t a thriller, not ambiguous, simply what it’s. A Pied Kingfisher and unmistakable. My favourite black and white hen in Shanghai, China is the Pied Kingfisher. One hen. Continent one.
My realization made me consider different black and white birds I’ve seen as I’ve birded around the globe. My favourite warbler in my dwelling “patch” involves thoughts. A Black-and-white Warbler is unmistakable, and this little hen visits my dwelling patch within the Outer Banks of North Carolina twice a 12 months. Just like the beautiful Pied Kingfisher, it too suits my parameters for straightforward identifiers: petite black invoice, black stripes on a vibrant white background and fabulous goth black eyeliner with a touch of white eye ring for further brightening. Each time I see one, I’m thrilled as a result of I do know precisely what it’s. No doubts, no trying up on the Merlin App or my favourite warbler guidebook. It’s a Black and White. My favourite migrant warbler in the USA is the Black-and-white Warbler. Hen two. Continent two.
What about one other continent? A few years in the past, I had the nice fortune to journey to Antarctica on a ship stuffed with hen photographers and naturalists. Penguins galore, and I used to be fortunate to see all of the completely different ones residing within the area. They’re all black and white, with some even sporting orange crests or golden bibs, and are simple to determine as penguins. Of those, my favourite is the Gentoo Penguin. Moreover having an important white “bonnet” throughout the highest of their heads, black capes, and lengthy stiff tail feathers that stand out once they stroll (so cute!), Gentoos are fabulous iceberg divers. Their diving kind exhibits braveness, poise, and sure, I’d give them 10 factors for precision. Their stroll with these stiff tail feathers cocked up simply so offers Gentoos angle. My favourite penguin in Antarctica is the Gentoo. Hen three. Continent three.
