Woodcocks are a whiter shade of pale

BBC Wildlife|May 2023

These waders sport the whitest feathers known to science - but they like to keep them under wraps

- By Stuart Blackman

New research shows that the woodcock is the unlikely owner of the brightest white feathers of any bird tested so far. Woodcocks are not known for their dazzling colours. The upper plumage of these nocturnal waders is a mosaic of browns and greys that camouflages them exquisitely against forest floors by day.

"That's the beauty of it," says Jamie Dunning, who led the work at Imperial College London. "They keep it where you can't see it, but where they can get it out when they need it."

この記事は BBC Wildlife の May 2023 版に掲載されています。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアムストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。

すでに購読者です ? サインイン

この記事は BBC Wildlife の May 2023 版に掲載されています。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアムストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。

すでに購読者です? サインイン

BBC WILDLIFEのその他の記事すべて表示

BBC Wildlife

Jump Around - Bagheera Kiplingi - The acrobatic spider with a predilection for veggie food

Spiders eat flies, right? everyone knows that the 45,000 or so spiders in the world are all obligate carnivores, more or less – eating other animals, mainly invertebrates. Nature, however, loves an exception, and one particular spider missed out on that ecological memo. It goes by the wonderful scientific name of Bagheera kiplingi, and its claim to fame is that its diet is – at least mostly – vegetarian.

3 分 |

November 2024

BBC Wildlife

Female of the Species - Zebras - A strong sisterhood is key to staying safe

Zebras are masters of confusion. Their collective noun is ‘a dazzle’, which is fitting since their bodies and behaviour have been surprising scientists for centuries.

2 分 |

November 2024

BBC Wildlife

See It, Save It? - Wildlife tourism can be a powerful ally in protecting nature - but it can also harm it. We weigh up the pros and cons.

The sums of wildlife travel aren’t as simple as more tourists equals happier nature. How much did my visit really contribute to the conservation of Lady Liuwa and her habitat – and was that outweighed by carbon emissions from my flights? Did my presence disturb the animals’ natural behaviour more than it reduced the threat of poaching or benefited local communities?The question of whether wildlife travel is, on balance, good for wildlife is a complex one – and there’s no simple answer.

8 分 |

November 2024

BBC Wildlife

Can Your Really Offset Emissions? - Planning an overseas wildlife-watching trip entails facing some inconvenient truths

Imagine (or maybe you don't need to) that you hanker after the safari trip of a lifetime in sub-Saharan Africa. A 17-day tour beginning at the iconic Victoria Falls, passing through Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi and Tanzania, taking in some of the continent’s most wildlife-rich national parks, and ending on the lush island of Zanzibar.

5 分 |

November 2024