<< Previous Next >>

All mine


All mine
Photo Information
Copyright: Pekka Valo (pekkavalo1) Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 303 W: 21 N: 1173] (3685)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2008-05-19
Categories: Birds
Camera: Canon EOS 40D, Sigma EX 500mm f4.5 APO HSM, RAW ISO 800, Kenko Teleplus Pro 300 DG 1.4x
Exposure: f/11, 1/800 seconds
Details: Tripod: Yes
Photo Version: Original Version
Date Submitted: 2008-05-22 3:30
Viewed: 417
Points: 42
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
A male Shoveler at RSPB Elmley Marshes nature reserve.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
The Shoveler (pronounced /ˈʃʌvələr/) or Northern Shoveler (Anas clypeata) is a common and widespread duck which was formerly known as Northern Shoveller. It breeds in the northern areas of Europe and Asia and across most of North America and is a rare vagrant to Australia. This species was first described by Linnaeus in his Systema naturae in 1758 under its current scientific name. Usually placeed in Anas like most dabbling ducks, it stands well apart from such species as the Mallard and together with the other shovelers and their relatives forms a "blue-winged" group that may warrant separation as genus Spatula.
This dabbling duck is strongly migratory and winters further south than its breeding range. It is not as gregarious as some dabbling ducks outside the breeding season and tends to form only small flocks.
This species is unmistakable in the northern hemisphere due to its large spatulate bill. The breeding male has a green head, white breast and chestnut belly and flanks. In flight, pale blue forewing feathers are revealed, separated from the green speculum by a white border.
The females is light brown, with plumage much like a female Mallard, but easily identified by the long broad bill. The female's forewing is grey. In non-breeding (eclipse) plumage, the drake looks more like the female.
This is a bird of open wetlands, such as wet grassland or marshes with some emergent vegetation, and feeds by dabbling for plant food, often by swinging its bill from side to side and using the bill to strain food from the water. It also eats mollusks and insects in the nesting season. The nest is a shallow depression on the ground, lined with plant material and down, usually close to water.
This is a fairly quiet species. The male has a clunking call, whereas the female has a Mallard-like quack.
In the British Isles, home to more than 20% of the North Western European population, it is best known as a winter visitor, although it sin southern and eastern England, especially around the Ouse Washes, the Humber and the North Kent Marshes, and in much smaller numbers in Scotland and western parts of England. In winter, breeding birds move south, and are replaced by an influx of continental birds from further north.
The Northern Shoveler is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.
No living subspecies are accepted today. Fossil bones of a very similar duck have been found in Early Pleistocene deposits at Dursunlu (Turkey). It is unresolved, however, how these birds were related to the Northern Shoveler of today; i.e. whether the differences noted were due to being a related species or paleosubspecies, or attributable to individual variation.
eng55, jaycee, vanderschelden, Gert-Paassen, Tamrock, Silvio2006, gracious, gannu, haraprasan, rousettus, parthasarathi has marked this note useful
Only registered TrekNature members may rate photo notes.
Add Critique [Critiquing Guidelines] 
Only registered TrekNature members may write critiques.
Discussions
None
You must be logged in to start a discussion.

Critiques [Translate]

great pic, you can get rid of the red string, TFS Ori

Hi Pekka

A rather unusual comical shot of the shoveller on a hay bale. Nevertheless it allows us to see all his beautiful plumage and great leg colour.
Good comopsition and sharpness.

Chris

nice shot, nice color

  • Great 
  • eng55 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 353 W: 3 N: 376] (1127)
  • [2008-05-22 6:08]

Hi Pekka,
Very nice capture.I liked golden eyes,POV,details and pose of duck a lot.
Thanks for posting.

  • Great 
  • jaycee Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1778 W: 8 N: 4605] (14893)
  • [2008-05-22 9:25]

Hi Pekka,

This Shoveler is posing so nicely for you! Face and plummage are wonderful. I love the eye and the broad bill. Lovely colors and details. The only distraction is the string or cord - I would have gotten rid of that.

Jane

Hello Pekka,
Excellent portrait of this Shoveler.
The cord is a bit distracting IMhO otherwise a very good post.
TFS
Annick

Hello Pekka,

Nice capture from the Shoveler, good photo and he posed good for you.

Gert

hi pekka!
great shot on this fine bird!
sharp with fine pov and dof
good work!

Hello Pekka,

I've never before seen one of these!
The name fits perfectly!
He's a dandy of a bird with matching socks, vest and specs!
Fabulous details and good, off-centre composition!

Kind regards,
Bev :-)

Many thanks for your warm comments on 'Worms Again!'

  • Great 
  • mariki Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 987 W: 65 N: 1991] (8329)
  • [2008-05-22 13:02]

Hello Pekka,

A great picture of this duck. Excellent POV, DOF, sharpness, light and colours. I hope that the cord is not attached to the foot of the duck.
Cheers,
Mariki

  • Great 
  • joey Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1683 W: 242 N: 5560] (19685)
  • [2008-05-22 14:12]

I'm even more jealous now!! Once again a bird that I've never seen which you have photographed so bloomin' well!
Extremely sharp with immense detail.
Beautiful colours and perfect light.
Brilliant DOF and BG.
Great composition.

Very, very well done, Pekka!

Joe

Hello Pekka,
I loved this image with a proud Shoveller standing up high with a good look!
nice image with sharpness, nice colour and details
many thanks for the sharing
cheers
Tony

  • Great 
  • gannu Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 917 W: 4 N: 2282] (10648)
  • [2008-05-23 2:34]

Hello Pekka,
This is lovely composition. Very nice shot and great clarity. Sharp image and well done. Ganesh

Hi Pekka,
A lovely capture of this beautiful duck. Very good composition and excellent details. Thanks a lot for sharing.

Hi Pekka, splendid bird in great pose with fantastic colors, good details and splendid sharpness, very well done, ciao Silvio

  • Great 
  • PeterZ Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1202 W: 68 N: 2477] (8179)
  • [2008-05-23 10:24]

Hello Pekka,
Very beautiful photo of this Shoveler. Great pose. Excellent colours and very sharp. Good composition.
Regards,
Peter

Lovely shot, Pekka.The bird is a part of its environment, which I love!
Cheers!
Goldy

  • Great 
  • Jamesp Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1252 W: 0 N: 4834] (14354)
  • [2008-05-24 3:19]

Hi Pekka

An excellent capture. Good detail and exposure. Expertly done.

James

I am in Vancouver - middle of the night - jetlag!!

  • Great 
  • arfer Gold Star Critiquer [C: 2731 W: 0 N: 0] (0)
  • [2008-05-24 19:30]

Hello Pekka

What a wonderful pose you have captured of this excellent specimen of the male shoveler.
He cuts a magnificent profile.
The colours are rich and well saturated.
Wonderful sharpness and detail,his eye is terrific.
Great job.
TFS

Hello Pekka
In first view, biotop looks unusual for Shoveler. The place similar straw pile in a barn. But then I saw it is on water:) But this is really very beautiful capture. Nice POV and great focus. Its plumage looks very beautiful, usual for males.
Composition also great. good notes and interesting to learn about its fossils from Turkiye.
Thanks for sharing, best wishes
Ahmet

Great capture.

Calibration Check
















0123456789ABCDEF