A glorious male Ruddy head.I am a bit obsessed with some of our sheldgoose species, not least the Falkland island examples such as the Ashy and Ruddy-headed goose. They just tick every single box; beautiful, delicate, unique, compact, characterful... stripy!
After several disappointments from our Lesser Magellan and Ashy-headed, finally we have some potential with the Ruddys! Up until recently two single males have occupied the gosling field all on their lonesome, sitting in amongst the Red Breasts on occasion and looking generally dejected. Until now...
My colleague Duane recently acquired two young females, and now that their quarantine period is finally up I like to think that there might already be love in the air.
3 of the 4 new friends.The boys are in quite a poor state of moult compared to the fresh young juvenile females. They stand around together looking positively shabby, not quite believing their luck! The females have some very brightly coloured leg jewellery which helps to set them apart but they need no such identification; they look stunning!
Already, one of the females seems to have a tentative partner. They stand around together almost as if they are kicking their heels and looking abashed! I cannot wait for spring, where hopefully the four of them will cement strong enough bonds to prompt potential breeding in 2013!
Beautiful!
