Peacok's Feather Amazing photo-shoot

From: http://i.imgur.com/

Bird's-eye view: Seagull 'steals' video camera and shoots footage of its soaring flight above French Riviera

ByDaily Mail Reporter

From

The term bird's-eye view has never been more appropriate.

A video has emerged of a seagull supposedly 'stealing' a video camera and carrying it off through the skies.

With the camera recording at the moment of lift off, the feathered directer accidentally records a video of its flight over Cannes in the south of France, home of arguably the world's most famous film festival.

Steven Seagull: This feathered film star stole a video camera and inadvertently shot a video of its flight over Cannes in the South of France

Shot from above: The seagull recorded its flight to the top of Cannes Castle, capturing images of the roads and streets below

The video begins with an unseen cameraman creeping through the garden of a large house at night, and then placing the camera on the ground.

An inquisitive seagull walks up to the camera and seemingly lifts it up with its beak, before flying off.

The cameraman can be heard making his protests with a rather feeble 'Hey. HEY!' but is not glimpsed as the gull files up above the streets and houses, with cars visible on the roads below.

After a short flight - punctuated by some rather amusing honks and squawks from the seagull - our star comes in to land on top of a building.

The gull pokes around at the camera with it's beak, turning it over a few times, before it settles on a view of another building with a fellow seagull visible - perhaps the leading lady in seagull circles.

The pair have a brief squawking session before the camera fades to black.

I'm ready for my close up: The seagull casts a beady eye over its shiny electronic booty, while in the background is a tower on which he soon finds a friends

'Seagull stole my video camera in Cannes France. I found it on the castle wall, where I had to climb,' wrote opica1983, the YouTube user who posted the video online.

The question of quite how opica1983 knew where there camera had come to rest is unanswered.

One also has to wonder what the original cameraman was doing prowling around in the garden of a large house at night in the first place.

The video is entitled 'Seagull stole GoPro', which refers to the brand of camera.

GoPro make small cameras that are often used by sports people, sometimes mounted on helmets or even attached to surfboards to capture video from unusual angles.

The company has previously marketed its cameras with viral videos, including a snowboarding and surfing short that has so far been watched more than 3million times on YouTube.

In fact, GoPro has made something of a name for itself in that area and has previously been praised for its viral video advertising by the likes of Mashable, the internet and social media news website.

Perhaps after seeing the success it has enjoyed in viral videos the company has decided to spread its wings into viral video advertising.

Or perhaps there actually is a seagull out there with a desire to be in the movies...

Rescued Baby Hummingbird

Uploaded by kandwarf

This is a baby hummingbird I rescued after it was attacked. The song is "Better Together" by Jack Johnson.

Albino and Half-Albino Peacocks Are Simply Stunning (Photos)

by Jerry James Stone

from: http://www.treehugger.com/

Photo by Yvonne Ayoub

Within the plumage of a peacock lies a complex architecture that's continuously changing color. Or so it seems. Though the colors of a peacock are revered, it is just as stunning--if not more so--without them. Often referred to as an albino peacock, it is nothing of the sort. It's technically a white peacock which is a genetic variant of the Indian Blue Peafowl.

Photo by nikki.loraine ( view larger photo)

The colors in the feathers of a bird are determined two factors: pigment and structure. For example, the green in some parrots is a result of yellow pigments over blue-reflecting feathers. In the case of a white peacock, its unusual lack-of-color is due to a missing pigment. This missing pigment is dark and absorbs incident light, making diffracted and interference light visible (i.e. common peacocks). The effect is similar to that of oil on water.

Photo by *amy&kimball

Pigment colorization in birds comes from three different groups: melanins, carotenoids, and porphyrines. Melanins occur as tiny specs of color in both the skin and feathers, and ranges from the darkest black to pale yellows. Carotenoids are plant-based and are acquired only by eating plants or by eating something that ate a plant. They produce bright yellows and brilliant oranges. The last pigment group, Porphyrins, produces a range of colors including pink, browns, reds, and greens.

But feather structure is as important to color as pigment. Each feather consists of thousands of flat branches, each with minuscule bowl-shaped indentations. At the bottom of each indentation is a lamellae (thin plate-like layers), that acts like a prism, splitting light. It's the same principle for butterflies and humming birds.

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Photo by Timothy Riley ( view larger photo)

Photo by Dileep Govindaraju

Photo by JLMphoto ( view larger photo)

Photo by Rocky413 ( view larger photo)

Most intelligent bird in the world! How did he make that?

So you think your pet is Badass! Kyrgyzstan and Manas Air Base

Late last month, the Parliament of Kyrgyzstan voted - by an overwhelming margin - to terminate their lease to the United States of Manas Air Base, and required the Americans to vacate the base within six months. The vote followed closely on the heels of an earlier announcement that Russia would be providing over $2 billion in financial aid to Kyrgyzstan. Manas is a crucial air base for operations in and around Afghanistan, and U.S. officials remain hopeful that there may still be room for negotiation. The majority of Kyrgyzstan's population appears to have little concern about the closure, instead focusing on their own struggles to get by, as migrant work in Russia has recently evaporated, and jobs at home in Kyrgyzstan are hard to come by. News photos from Kyrgyzstan are few and far between - that said, here is a collection of recent scenes from festivals, rural life, and Manas Air Base in Kyrgyzstan. (25 photos total)

A Kazakh hunter flies his golden eagle during a hunting festival "Solburun" in the village of Bokonbayevo, Kyrgyzstan, some 300km outside Bishkek on October 18, 2008. (VYACHESLAV OSELEDKO/AFP/Getty Images)

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Kazakh hunters wearing national clothes hold golden eagles during a hunting festival "Solburun" on October 18, 2008. (VYACHESLAV OSELEDKO/AFP/Getty Images) #

Click here for the rest of the article: http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/03/kyrgyzstan_and_manas_air_base.html

Giant bird breeds in Britain for first time in 177 years

By Michael McCarthy, Environment Editor

PA

Last month a female bird was observed incubating a clutch of eggs; a few days ago they hatched, and two chicks were seen following their mother and being fed

Bird uses body as dam to stop drainpipe soaking chicks

A bird used her body as a dam to stop overflowing drainpipe water from soaking her chicks.

Last Updated: 12:41PM BST 28 May 2009

The female thrush's body is semi-submerged in the water of the gutter as she holds back the flow, protecting the nest and her chicks Photo: SOLENT

The Mistle Thrush had built her nest on top of a downpipe, blocking the water's passage and causing the gutter to flood.

But desperate to protect her young, she puffed herself up to twice her size and sat in the drainpipe to stop the tide of rain water swamping the nest.

She was so occupied with her task that her mate was left to feed her and their young.

The images were captured by amateur wildlife photographer Dennis Bright at a house in Fareham, Hampshire.

Mr Bright said he was astounded by the female bird's behaviour.

"The nest was tucked away from the weather in the shade of the roof but it was so close to the downpipe the gutter flooded when it rained.

"It was only a matter of seconds before the pipe flooded, and water cascaded over the sides."

Mr Bright said he was amazed by the bird's ingenuity.

"She had to come up with a solution so she puffed herself up so she was twice the size of her mate and used her body as a cork to stop the water - it was absolutely amazing.

"She was very dedicated, sitting there even when the rain was hammering down. Then every half an hour she would get out, dry herself off and come back.

"The male was doing most of the work - feeding her and the chicks when she was sitting in the pipe. I feel so lucky to have witnessed something so rare and unique."

Hester Phillips, from the RSPB, said she had never seen such a situation.

"We've heard of them nesting in some unusual sites before, namely on the top of traffic light, but we've certainly not come across anything like this before.

"Birds can be amazingly hardy creatures, their endurance is incredible - especially when protecting their young."