Sunbathing iguana
after aphoto from E. de Framond
Iguanas are among the largest terrestrial reptiles, however they are very agile and even climb trees. They like to warm up in the sun.
The Owlfly warming up
after a photo from Thibault Andrieux
In the dry meadows, owlflys need to warm up in the sun before flying off...
A conehead Mantis (Empusa pennata)
after a photo from Thibault Andrieux
The conehead mantis is a mediterranean insect that lives in dry meadows. It is closely related to the praying mantis and uses the same strategy to capture its prey. It has very large eyes to detect the slightest movments of potential prey.
A Thrush nightingale singing in an Acacia tree
Thrush nightingales are long-distance migrants and spend winter in Africa. Their song is a very melodious suite of varied phrases, that they utter during the day in their wintering grounds, and both days and nights in Europe during the breeding season.
Read the study that shows how they sing also in the winter quarters
A ring Plover performing the broken wing display
after a photo from O. Ferling.
When they spot a predator near their nests, many shore birds feign an injury and run away from their nest, thus attracting the predator far from their precious eggs. This behaviour is called the broken wing display. In a recent study, we found that the broken-wing display is a very common behaviour in more than 50 different bird families, suggesting that it has appeared independently several times among birds. We also found that this behaviour is much more common at high latitudes, where the days are longer.
Read the original study, and the Audubon blog post for more details.
Singing chaffinch
after a photo from F. Bénard.
Chaffinches are very common songbirds all over Europe. Like many temperate passerines, males sing in spring to attract a female and defend a territory.
See our study about chaffinch songs and calls for more details.
An owlfly
after a photo from F. Bénard.
Owlflies are insects from the family Ascalaphidae, and of the genus Libelloides. They are neither butterflies nor dragonflies, but they belong to the order of Lacewings. As suggested by this name, they have beautiful wings with many veins. They live in dry sunny grasslands. They are in-flight hunters, their flight maneuvres are very distinguishable.
A great green Bushcricket (Tettigonia viridissima)
photo © entomart.be
Great green bushcrickets are crepuscular and nocturnal katydids. Their song is a long and loud trill. As all other Orthopterans, their ears are located on the anterior legs. Because of their loud songs, they can not both sing and hear at the same time !
An acorn Weevil (Curculio glandium)
photo © entomart.be
Weevils are tiny beetles that eat seeds. They use their very long rostrum to drill holes in seeds and nuts. They lay eggs in the nuts and the larvae grows in the seed, protected form many predators. They are considered pest because of the great damage they can cause to crops and nuts, but their long nose make them look very sweet nonetheless.
