Pheasant Coucal Bird:

The pheasant coucal is a ground dwelling bird with short wings that are roundish in shape and a long tail. It is a species of cuckoos and belongs to the cuculidae family. When breeding, the plumage on the head, neck, and belly take on a black hue. The upper body and wings become reddish brown and are barred cream and black. Cream barring is present on the black tail. When breeding is over, the plumage returns to its chestnut color on the head and back. The under parts of the bird turn a cinnamon color with bold white streaks. The eyes are red and both sexes have a similar appearance, although the female bird is slightly larger than the male. The young ones have a paler appearance with orange spots on the upper body, neck and head. Pheasant coucals usually run instead of flying when disturbed. They may also begin to fly in a clumsy manner and plunge for cover. These birds are not nest parasites, like other types of cuckoos. Pheasant coucals are sedentary birds.

Pheasant coucals bird species are found in Australia, in the eastern and northern regions. They also live in East Timor and New Guinea. The birds usually live in dense under storey vegetated areas such as grasses, sedges, bracken and rushes. They are also commonly found in wetlands, woodlands and forests. Pheasant coucals may also be found around sugarcane fields around wetlands, thickets infested with weeds and farmlands with dense grass. They may also be seen along railway tracks and roads and in gardens and parks. Pheasant coucals, being ground dwelling birds feed on the ground. They eat insects, lizards, frogs and small mammals. They also feed on the eggs and chicks of other birds.

Pheasant coucals remain with their mates for life. Most other cuckoos are parasitic and have a developed a breeding strategy in which they deposit their eggs in the nests of other birds. Pheasant coucals are very different in this manner and build their own nests and also raise their own young. They construct their nests out of grass and sticks and line them with leaves. The nests are kept concealed in weed infested areas or thick grassy fields. The male bird is involved in the incubation of the eggs and also feeds the chicks, while the female helps with the feeding. In today’s times, Pheasant coucals have suffered from the negative effects of increasing urban development.

Blue-faced Honeyeater

The Blue-faced Honeyeater is one of the many birds of the honeyeater family, which is widely found across New Guinea and the northern and eastern coastal areas of Australia. The bird is what is known as a passerine – essentially perching birds that are usually also songbirds. Passerines tend to be relatively small in size and have several other distinctive characteristics relating to their physical structure, feathers, and behavior. The Blue-faced Honeyeater itself is among the larger honeyeaters, and gets its name from a unique patch of blue skin that is visible around the eyes. The bird is otherwise black, with a white stripe across the back of the neck. The underside of the bird is white, and there may be a greenish color to the bird’s wings and back. Young Blue-faced Honeyeaters are not always recognized as such, because instead of blue, the patches of skin around the eyes are a greenish yellow in color. The head may also be dark brown in color, rather than black.

The Blue-faced Honeyeater lives in a wide variety of habitats, but generally prefers wetter land. Mangroves, open woodland, and tropical forests are its favorite habitat, but it is also often found in parks and gardens, as well as in orchards and banana plantations. The bird is in fact quite fond of banana fruit and flowers, which is why it is sometimes known as the Banana Bird. In addition, it also feeds on the fruit and nectar of other local plants, and hunts insects. Insects are in fact the main component of the Blue-faced Honeyeater’s diet.

Blue-faced Honeyeaters are rather noisy birds, with a varied and interesting assortment of calls, ranging from chirps to squeaks. They are inquisitive and relatively unafraid of humans, which is why, in addition to orchards and plantations, they are often also found in public parks and camp sites. One interesting fact about these birds is that when breeding, not only do both the male and the female work together to feed the young, but other Blue-faced Honeyeaters may also pitch in to help with this task. A pair of Blue-faced Honeyeaters will usually lay two eggs, and after the chicks hatch, they usually stay with the parents for a considerable period of time. The Blue-faced Honeyeater is not a migratory bird, and stays in the same location throughout the year. In certain parts of Australia, some seasonal movement has been noticed, but this is local and involves rather small distances.

Sooty Owl:

The Sooty Owl is a species of owl that is found in certain parts of Australia, New Guinea, and a few other nearby islands. In Australia, the owl can be found in the south eastern parts from Melbourne to Brisbane, while in New Guinea, it can be found all over the Montane rainforests. The owl is usually found in areas with thick foliage of eucalyptus trees, tropical fruit trees, gum trees, and so on. They usually roost in tall trees or in the hollow trunks of large trees, but may even be found in caves. Like most owls, they are nocturnal, and feed on smaller birds, rodents, and mammals.

The Sooty Owl is medium to large in size, and as the name indicates, is a sooty black in color, with white spots that are fine and dense on the head, but sparser towards the wings. The underside is of the same color, but a slightly lighter shade. The owl has a large facial disc, which is also sooty black in color, but defined by its light outline. The eyes are large, and the owl is thought to rely on them more than most other owl species. The Sooty Owl’s bill is almost entirely feathered, and so are the legs. The owl has large talons and a short tail. Overall, the females are slightly larger than the males. When speaking of the Sooty Owl, it is usually implied that one is referring to the Greater Sooty Owl. There is also the Lesser Sooty Owl, which is smaller in size, but otherwise quite similar to the Greater Sooty Owl.

Apart from its appearance, one of the characteristic features of the Sooty Owl is its call. The call is often referred to as the “bomb whistle”, as it is a long, descending shriek. Of course, this is only the most common call of the Sooty Owl; it also has other calls that are specific to certain activities or situations, such as mating calls and so on.

Breeding season for Sooty Owl’s is typically in the first half of the year, although in rare cases, owls may breed up to September. Nests are usually made in hollow trees, and the female typically spends all her time in the nest, with the male regularly bringing her food. Sooty Owl’s seem to be a thriving species, however their status is not certain, and some experts think they might be endangered.

Blue Winged Kookaburra:

The blue-winged kookaburra is one of the larger members of the kingfisher family and it measures a total length of about 40 centimeters. While all kookaburras are sexually dimorphic, this is even more apparent in the blue-winged kookaburra as the males sport a blue tail while the females have a tail with blackish bars. This large breed of kingfisher has a rather large squarish head and a long bill. Its eyes are distinctly pale and the head has off – white brown streaks. The shoulders are a sky blue and the bird has a uniform blue rump. The throat will be plain white in color while the under parts are white with faint scalloped orange – brown bars. The feet and legs are usually grey while the bill is dark on the top and yellowish below. Juvenile blue-winged kookaburras have pale streaks on the head along with dark mottling. The blue-winged kookaburra is mainly found in the coastal or sub coastal regions of northwest and northeast Australia. However, the bird is almost completely absent from the Eighty mile beach area in Western Australia that separates the Pilbara population.

The natural diet of these winged creatures covers a wide spectrum and they will eat anything from invertebrates to vertebrates as well as reptiles, insects and even frogs during the wetter months. Much like any kingfisher, they will perform a controlled dive with their bills open in order to grab the food from the ground or from the water level. The bill also has a special groove towards the end of the upper mandible that helps hold on to its prey. Only after the bird has returned to its perch will the prey be beaten to death and consumed. The blue-winged kookaburra’s will usually nest at a high altitude in a tree hollow or hole cut into a soft piece of wood. The floor of the chamber is lower than the entrance with a length of about 50 centimeters.

The blue-winged kookaburras are known to live in family groups of eight individuals that also include a breeding pair that will mate for life. Unlike most other birds, the blue-winged kookaburras have a very strong family bond and the young will tend to live with their parents for several years and help care for their younger siblings. This trait also plays a significant role in perfecting their skills to find a mate and establish their own territory.

Silver Gull Bird:

The silver gull, simply known as a ‘seagull’ in its native Australia, is the most common gull seen in its homeland as well as New Zealand and New Caledonia. Its natural habitat comprises of any natural water body and it is rarely seen far from land. The fact that it has adapted well to an urban lifestyle is probably the main reason that the bird is commonly found near busy areas such as shopping malls and garbage dumps. So far, the only two recordings of silver gulls in the United States of America in 1947 and 1996 are now believed to owe to species escaped from captivity. Much like most other gull species, the Silver Gull is considered to be a rather accomplished scavenger and will regularly pester humans for handouts of scraps and search for human refuse at garbage dumps and trash cans. Its natural diet, however, consists of fish, insects, worms and crustaceans. The birds have a tendency to breed in large colonies on offshore islands and will raise about 2 broods in a year. Both, the male and female, will share responsibilities when it comes to the building of the nest as well as incubation and feeding of the babies. Although the birds may breed at any time over the course of the year, the most common time happens to be between August and November. A regular clutch size from a silver gull is 3 eggs.

The silver gull is rather easy to identify because its head, tail and body are all white. The wings will usually be light grey with white spots and black tips. The average size of an adult silver gull is between forty and forty five centimeters in length while its wingspan will be about 94 centimeters. While the juveniles will have rather dark beaks, the adults will usually sport bright red beaks. The beak is considered to be one of age determining factors of the bird as the brighter the beak tends to be, the older the bird is.

Because of the fact that the birds are rather messy, they tend to be quite a problem for aircraft at airports as well as being able to easily contaminate water storages and picnic areas. Their roosting on roofs causes the blockage of gutters as a result of the regurgitated bones or even nesting material. Not only does this reduce the lifespan of the material used to roof the house, it can also be rather unpleasant for the family living inside.

Curlew Sandpiper Bird Species:

The curlew sandpiper is a rather small wader bird that is found mainly in the tundra regions of Arctic Siberia. Wader birds are essentially very long - legged wading birds much like herons and storks. The majority of wader birds are associated with the wetland or coastal environments, and are closely related to seabirds. The sandpiper family of birds includes a number of varieties – of which the most common happen to be the snipe sandpiper and curlew sandpiper. These waders use their long legs and slender bills in order to feed on the small invertebrates living on the shores. The average size of curlew sandpiper is about 19.5 to 21 centimeters in length and they have a long neck as well as a down curved bill. These two characteristics are the ones that help a trained eye distinguish between the curlew sandpiper and another very similar bird known as the Dunlin. Some of the common features in both of these birds include black legs and de-curved black bills. The adult curlew sandpiper has patterned – dark grey under parts as well as brick reed under parts. During the winter seasons, however, the bird will have a pale grey coat above while a shade of white below.

The curlew sandpiper will perform an aerial display for its prospective mate during courtship. The males are polygamous and those that display on the best territories tend to have more than one mate. Unlike a number of sandpiper varieties, the curlew sandpiper male does not assist in incubation of the eggs. The eggs are usually laid in clutches of about 3 to 4 in ground scrape in the tundra regions and incubated for a period of 21 days. Although the Curlew sandpiper will breed mainly in northern Asia, it is known to stray to many parts of the world that are not considered to be regions of natural habitat.

The primary diet of curlew sandpiper includes worms, snails and insects that are foraged with the help of its bill probing in the mud. As with any variety of bird, the call is one of the most distinct features of the type and help significantly in identification. The common calls of the curlew sandpipers are a rather pleasant ‘chirrup’ or ‘chirrup’ while in flight. When the bird needs to sound an alarm, it will voice a sound similar to ‘wick – wick – wick’. The males are known to sing while flying over breeding grounds.

Pet Nutrition and Vitamins:

Just like humans, our pets also need vitamins and other supplements. These vitamins are intended to supplement the pet’s diet in order to meet their daily requirements. Pets too require many nutrients to help fight disease, germs and other ailments. Animals that are suffering because of nutritional deficiencies require supplements on a daily basis.

These pet vitamins are essential in boosting the immune system of your pet. If you have a pet that is either very young or very old, vitamins are essential for them in order to maintain their health. Most of our pets are not able to meet their nutritional requirements because the processing and the addition of chemicals to the commercially available pet foods decrease its nutritional value and nutrient content.

There are many functions that vitamins perform in the body of animals. They are required for the formation of bones and growth and maintenance of fur and skin. Vitamins are also essential in keeping the sensory organs healthy. If an animal is suffering from a vitamin deficiency, it is likely to have dull hair, poor skin, broken teeth, low levels of energy, weak bones and also anemia.

As with humans, the vitamins for pets are also divided into water soluble and fat soluble ones. Fat soluble vitamins include vitamins A, D, E and K while vitamins B and C are the water soluble ones. Vitamin A is required by the animals to have a healthy and shiny coat. Vitamin B helps in the formation of muscles, blood and skin. Vitamin C and E are antioxidants and are therefore important for fighting disease and raising immunity of the pet. Vitamin D is vital in the formation of teeth and bones and Vitamin K is required for efficient blood clotting and healing of wounds.

Though our pets do require vitamins and other supplements, they often require them in different quantities than humans. Therefore, it is not safe to give your pets any supplements without consulting your doctor first. Your veterinarian will not only tell you which supplements are required by your pet, but will also suggest the quantity in which these supplements need to be given and the brand names which you should buy them under.

If you know of any specific allergies that your pet may have, discuss them with your veterinarian before buying any supplements and giving them to your pet. Also, different animals need different supplements. It is not safe to assume that the vitamins prescribed for your dog will be good for your cat too.

Pet Injury:

If you have an active pet, you must be dealing with a lot of injuries. Pets tend to injure themselves during their regular activities. Here’s what to do when your pet has injured itself:

Causes of Pet Injuries:

If your pet has been bitten by some other animal, it may not be feeling very benevolent. In such a case, it is best to muzzle your pet and restrain it before you approach it. Clean the wound first. You can use any antiseptic solution or even saline water for this. After you’ve cleaned it thoroughly, apply antiseptic lotion on it and wrap a bandage. If the wound is bleeding heavily, apply some pressure on it for a few minutes. If the bleeding continues, your pet may need stitches. Take it to a vet.

If your pet has accidentally burnt itself with chemicals or a heated appliance, apply some cool running water immediately on the burnt area. Wrap an ice pack in a soft cloth or a towel and give your pet some cold compression. Never apply ice directly to the skin. If your pet has a lot of swelling on any of its limbs, and is not able to move properly, it may be because of a broken bone. Check for bleeding and try not to move the limb at all. Cradle the injured area or support it so that it is not able to move and take your pet to the vet immediately.

If your pet is not able to breathe properly and its pupils are dilates, it may be in shock. Shock is usually caused when your pet has had a serious injury or has become very frightened by something. Our pets are highly susceptible to injuries on their paw pads. They may unknowingly walk on broken shards of glass or hot surfaces, seriously injuring themselves. If your pet has injured its paw, take a close look to see if an object is embedded in the soft pad. If there is an object, remove it using a clean pair of tweezers, wash the wound and bandage it properly so that the wound can heal.

If your pet has a swelling around the joint area and is not able to move properly, take your pet to the vet and get it checked for a sprain or a strain. Such injuries might be caused due to rough play or a fall on a hard surface.

Pet Health Signs:

When it comes to health, both humans and their pets respond similarly to disease and ailments. Our pets’ bodies respond to illnesses in a fashion similar to ours. When they are young, the pet health issues they face are very different from the ones they experience when they are older. An experienced vet can help you deal with most of the ailments that your pets have. However, in order to know whether it is time to take your pet to the vet or not, it is important that you know of the symptoms of ill health in your pets. There are many reasons why your pet may fall sick. Here’s what you should keep an eye out for.

• Fitness levels: Depending on your pet’s age, the daily activity levels may differ. Just like people, pets also have different temperaments and different levels of activity. However, their fitness largely depends on their age and their breed. Recent research has shown that dogs that become overweight are more susceptible to different disorders.
• Observe closely whether your pet is gaining or losing weight. If your pet is getting older, it is important to observe whether they are able to maintain their normal activities. There may be a health problem if you see your pet struggling to sit down, get up, climb the stairs, or leap. It is okay if their movements have slowed down because of old age, otherwise it is time to take your pet to the doctor.
• Diarrhea and Vomiting: Your pet may vomit if they have a stomach upset or have eaten something they shouldn’t have. A one time episode of diarrhea or vomiting is normal and could mean that the pet’s body is getting itself used to the change in food or weather. However, if your pet is vomiting or passing loose stools repeatedly, this could be a symptom of an illness.
• Scratching Excessively: Though pets may scratch themselves occasionally to get rid of an itch, if they are scratching vigorously and continuously, it could be because of a parasitic infestation. Fleas, ticks and other parasites can easily attack your pet. Also get your pet checked for any bacterial, viral or yeast infections. These infections are easier to spot since they cause inflammation of the skin, redness or loss of hair in patches.
• Inability to eat: Inability to eat is another symptom that you should look out for. If your pet does not seem interested in its food or is unable to eat, get it checked thoroughly. This could be a sign of a serious ailment.

Pet Health Information and Issues:

Pet health is a very serious issue and therefore should be taken very seriously. If you take proper pet health care, you will be able to prevent most of the common pet health issues. Still, we often find ourselves faced with the challenge of taking care of an ailing pet.

There are many different health issues that your pet may face. While some of these issues are grave and require intensive medical attention, there are many issues that are simple to handle and can be completely treated with the help of a qualified veterinarian. Fleas and ticks are minor problems that can be tackled on your own by using medications prescribed by a veterinarian. However, if your pet is really sick, you may have to take it to a hospital.

Medicines for pets are very expensive. Equally expensive is caring for them when they are no longer well. The overall cost in terms of time, effort, and money, when caring for an ailing pet, may run very high. It is also emotionally draining to see your loyal and frisky friends ailing and in pain. Therefore, the best way to deal with pet health issues is to take preventive measures. Recent studies done on the issues of pet health claim that it is extremely important to pay close attention to your pet’s weight. Just like an overweight human being, overweight pets may also suffer from a lot of health issues. Statistics show that one out of every four pets are overweight and therefore are at a high risk of developing medical conditions.

Making sure that your pet gets plenty of exercise is something that is extremely important. This is the first step towards making sure that your pet remains in good health. You can buy them toys or other accessories that will be beneficial for them.

Some of your pets may need some extra vitamins and supplements in order to meet their nutritional needs. Talk to your vet about any extra supplements that your pet may require. Though your pet may be able to go on without these supplements, there are good chances that later in their life they may develop an ailment.
To make sure that your pet remains in good health, you will have to be disciplined and stick to a regular pet health care routine. Though the cost of keeping your pet healthy is high, the cost of taking care of a sick pet is even higher. Keep in constant touch with your vet and make sure to get a qualified opinion on your pet’s ailments.