5740 x 4265 px | 48,6 x 36,1 cm | 19,1 x 14,2 inches | 300dpi
Aufnahmedatum:
21. August 2012
Ort:
River Nith, Dumfries. Dumfries-shire. Scotland. UK.
Weitere Informationen:
These handsome diving ducks belong to the sawbill family, so called because of their long, serrated bills, used for catching fish. Their diet of fish such as salmon and trout has brought them into conflict with game fishermen. At home on both fresh- and saltwater, red-breasted mergansers are most commonly seen around the UK's coastline in winter. They are gregarious, forming flocks of several hundred in the autumn. In most places, the common merganser is as much a salt-water as a fresh-water frequenter. In larger streams and rivers, they float down with the stream for a couple of miles, and either fly back again or more commonly fish their way back, diving incessantly the whole way. In smaller streams, they are present in pairs or smaller groups, and they float down, twisting round and round in the rapids, or fishing vigorously in some deep pool near the foot of some waterfall or rapid. When floating leisurely, they position themselves in water similar to ducks. But they swim deep in water like Cormorants too, especially when swimming upstream. They often sit on some rock in the middle of the water, similar to Cormorants, often half-opening their wings to the sun. In order to rise from water, they flap along the surface for many yards. Once they are airborne the flight is strong and rapid
