American or Snowy Sheathbill - Outside a Research Base in
Winter Waiting for Kitchen Scraps
- Chionis albus
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Sheathbills "Mutts" waiting outside the kitchen
window in winter. With no skuas around in the winter
months, these birds that live around an Antarctic scientific
base can actually get to the best supply of food around
at this time. They accumulate around meal times drawn to
the smells coming from the kitchen waiting for the "gashman"
to start clearing up and hopefully throw some tasty morsels
in their direction.
Not exactly a good looking bird and very nervous and skittish as befits a small and vulnerable creature that makes its living by scavenging, it was difficult not to have some respect at least for Mutts as they braved the harshest of conditions and seemed to know their place in the hierarchy - right down at the bottom.
Photo; © Paul Ward - Pictures taken on Signy Island, South Orkneys, Antarctica.