A Face that only a Mother could Love # 3

            The expectant looks on the faces of these two chicks as they search for signs that mum has food to give them.

Each chick has a dot of white near the tip of their beak and it was fun watching them walking quickly across the lily pads to get to the food bought to them. 

It is interesting how the tip of mum's open beak has cast its shadow on the lily pad located immediately behind her and the first chic.

I spent over an hour photographing these coots and watching mum and dad foraging for food. Every now and again dad would wander off, up or down the river attending to perimeter defense.

As adults, [all] coots have a drab color scheme, with black bodies and white bills. Their chicks, however, have an aesthetic that’s part drunk friar, part disheveled lion, and part tequila sunrise. Their faces and bald pates are bright red, while their necks are encircled in scruffy yellow-orange plumes  - extract from an article by Ed Yong, "The Survival Advantage of Being a Fancy Baby Coot" printed in 'The Atlantic', date unknown

Taken on: October 11, 2020

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coot chics

green

red

beautiful

Bokeh

beautiful bokeh

water birds

yellow

gold

white

birds

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lily pads

feeding time

mother and chics

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Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark IV, f/6.3, 1/500 sec, 400mm, ISO 800 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon EOS 5D Mark IV
Lens:	EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM
Aperture:	f/6.3
Exposure Time:	0.002 sec (1/500)
Focal Length:	400mm
ISO:	800
Exposure Bias:	-2/3 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Aperture-priority AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 6.0 (Windows)
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