"having tired on some long eccentric flight"
"Also known to catch, drown,
and swallow seagulls, beak first."
best bits right thar.
narrationally this is really quite boring. devoid of a sense of action,
which might jazz this up just enough to nudge it out of mediocre-dom.
but always nice to read about birds, or people wathcing birds. :) I've
written dozens of such.
KS
On 24/01/07, Max Richards <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>
> Bird Snaps
>
> Drifting grandly over the lake -
> the biggest water-bird we've seen!
>
> Great black and white cantilevered
> sections, and a pendulous throat pouch.
>
> This pelican must have just dropped in
> having tired on some long eccentric flight.
>
> On the bay we've seen pelicans, eight
> or so at a time, cruising, flying short
>
> distances. Will this one stay?
> or, better, be joined by a partner?
>
> Later, we photograph it.
> Later still, we look and can't find it.
>
> End of pelican episode, it seems.
> But the camera shop this evening
>
> promises us a packet - a pouch - full.
> And googling 'pelican' brings up:
>
> Australian pelican...
> travels wherever there are fish,
>
> to Lake Eyre when not dry,
> and 'as a vagrant to New Zealand'.
>
> Also known to catch, drown,
> and swallow seagulls, beak first.
>
> Well, our lake never has seagulls.
> The printed snaps prompt forgetfulness,
>
> restore our slow-motion
> silhouette of serenity,
>
> rectangles of ruffled lake water
> each with a central
>
> tiny quadrilateral
> of black and white.
>
>
> - Wednesday 24 January 2007
>
> Max Richards
> Doncaster, Victoria
>
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
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>
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