Cannot find a good clear reference pic on a flying swan. Can anyone direct me to one or tell me if they tuck their feet or they lay them back for flight. Thanks
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They lay them back against the body up under that sides of the tail. All waTERFowl do this. Cranes and herons as well. (although I have seen photographic evidence of Sandhills tucking their legs to keep warm)
Upland birds such as quail, pheasant, turkey and the vast majority of songbirds tuck their feet during flight..
Jon~
and why is it important enough to get emphasized?
Jon~
Guess Ken has the program set to recognize that combination of letters as TERF. LOL
Honest I did.. hehehe
J~
I have a calender with a picture of 6 flying canada geese. One has his feet by the tail like you said above. Another one looks to have his tucked as all you can see is a toe. On the other 4, you can't see any of their feet.
Also have another picture of flying pintails. I can't see their feet either. Is it possible for them to have them beside their tail and still be hidden by feathers?
Not trying to disagree with you, just wondering. When I got the calender, my husband and I were discussing that very issue and had decided that they do tuck. I just want to make sure I'm doing them accurate.
Thanks,
BP
By "Tucking" I am referring the legs actually bending at the "knee" and being pulled up into the lower chest.
Keep in mind that ANYTHING is possible.. but as a general rule waTERFowl fly with the legs extended back towards the tail. In this position, it is possible for the feathers to cover the leg all the way back to the feet, but usually the leg is visiable for the most part.
I personally would find quite peculiar to see a duck or goose with it's feet tucked like an upland game bird. Had I not of see the photograph of the sandhill crane with it's legs tucked, I would have never believed it. But like I said.. ANYTHING is possible regardless if it's the norm or not.
Jon
Becky, duck feet will almost always be carried back and are usually tucked in the under tail coverts. On Pintails those feet will tuck right up underneath the tail and be, for the most part, invisible--especially if the bird is really cranking. They are most visible on diving ducks because the feet are usually much larger than puddle ducks.
There are exceptions to everything but generally ducks will carry their feet back under the tail (tucked into the under tail coverts to minimize wind resistance) while upland birds will pull their feet up to their bellies and tuck them under their side pocket feathers. I DO have photos of ringnecks, though, that show the legs hanging back so I can't say that will never happen either.
:)
In the midst of the question I was able to find a reference photo allthough not a great one of a Swan flying with the feet back. Thanks for the feedback.