TESSA
KOUMOUNDOUROS
2 FEB
2019
The photo
above is not depicting some ten-legged mutant bird as some
of our Instagram commenters have suggested. It's also not one
of those hilarious birds
with arms memes.
He's just
one brave daddy bird hauling his four chicklings to safety.
Comb-crested
Jacanas (Irediparra gallinacea) are also known as lillytrotters or Jesus-birds
for their ability to seemingly walk across water. Their gangly legs end in long
twiggy-toes, splayed wide to distribute their weight across the surface of lily
pads and the other floating plants they walk on.
This
allows the water plants to keep these 20
to 27 centimetre (8 to 11 inch) birds afloat as they dart
across the surface of their wetland habitats.
Here,
they search for their favourite foods,
mostly freshwater invertebrates such as aquatic moth larvae, and aquatic
plant seeds, particularly lily seeds.
Sally
Corte from Queensland, Australia captured the jacana pictured in the cover and
in the image below, as it was displaying this species' unique parenting
behaviour.
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