H.J. Ruiz – Avian101 – Page 823 – "My Backyard Visitors" – All about birds

Ruddy Turnstone

The Ruddy Turnstone is a small wading bird, one of two species of turnstone in the genus Arenaria. It is a highly migratory bird, breeding in northern parts of Eurasia and North America and flying south to winter on coastlines almost worldwide. It is the only species of turnstone in much of its range and is often known simply as Turnstone.

Ruddy Turnstones typically feed on insects in the summer, though their diet is extended to other invertebrates such as crustaceans, mollusks, and worms in other seasons.

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Text and photographs © H.J. Ruiz – Avian 101

Tags: birds, migratory bird, nature, photography, photos of birds, Ruddy Turnstone

Red and Green Macaw

The Red and Green Macaw, is a large mostly-red macaw of the Ara genus.

This is the largest of the Ara genus, widespread in the forests and woodlands of northern and central South America. However, in common with other macaws, in recent years there has been a marked decline in its numbers due to habitat loss and illegal capture for the parrot trade.

The Green-winged macaw can be readily identified from the Scarlet Macaw as whilst the breast of both birds is bright red, the upper-wing covert feathers of the Green-winged macaw are mostly green but can occasionally sport a few yellow feathers above the band of green (as opposed to mostly yellow, or a strong mix of yellow and green in the Scarlet Macaw). In addition, the Green-winged macaw has characteristic red lines around the eyes formed by rows of tiny feathers on the otherwise bare white skin patch; this is one of the biggest differences from a Scarlet Macaw to the casual viewer. Iridescent teal feathers are surrounded by red on the tail. If seen together, the Green-winged macaw is clearly larger than the Scarlet Macaw as well.

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