Chile
Read More3 / 54
Flying Steamer-Duck (male)
Though capable of flight (barely), this heavy-bodied bird of Chile and Argentina usually thrashes through the water to flee danger, their labored escape likened to the paddle wheels on steamships in centuries past. I'm not sure what's going on with the exposed orange skin on the elbow. Many other individuals show it, and I suspect it has something to do with their weak flight. It's worth noting there is a second and related species -- the Flightless Steamer-Duck -- which cannot fly at all. Their wings are mostly vestigial, barely coming halfway down the birds' backs.
Punta Arenas, Magallanes, Chile, 12/30/21
Canon 600mm f/4 IS II + 1.4x III on EOS R5
1/1600 at f/5.6, ISO 800
- No Comments