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John Busby, Artist

Landscape and wildlife artist, illustrator and author

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Fairy Tern

June 1, 2020

Fairy Tern against the blue sky

A delicate all-white Fairy Tern (Gygis alba) flies in an azure sky, somewhere over the Seychelles or Aldabra atoll. Bright sunlight makes its wings almost transparent.

These little birds are relatively common across the tropical oceans of the world despite their daft parenting practices.  The female lays an egg on a bare branch and then has to incubate it for 21 days, holding it between her feet to prevent it falling off.  The chick is born with out-sized clawed feet to grip the branch tightly until it fledges.

£130, 11 x 20 cm in A4 mount link to shop

 

Filed Under: Birds, Blog, Pictures

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