On our last day in Amsterdam over February half-term we decided to pay a visit to Amsterdam Zoo, one of the oldest in Europe. It was two minutes walk from our hotel and we thought we'd just pop in for a couple of hours before heading in to the City but in the end we spent most of the day there. As well as all the 'usual' exhibits, the Zoo boasted a planetarium, butterfly and reptile houses which kept us fully occupied despite its relatively small physical footprint.
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| Short-toed Treecreeper, 21st February |
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| Longer billed and a shorter hindclaw than Common Treecreeper... |
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| ...white tips to the primaries... |
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| ...brown tinge to the underparts... |
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| ...even steps along the edge of the wingbar |
A large number of exotic captive birds provided me with plenty of photography practice, but the highlights of the day for me were the discovery of two wild bird species which had made their home in the grounds of the zoo. The first appeared just as we were taking a breather by the Asian Elephant enclosure when a small brown and white blur passed my face. I knew immediately it was a Treecreeper, and most likely a Short-toed. Photos and hearing the call would probably be necessary to prove this to my satisfaction so I left the bemused family on their bench and scuttled off in the direction which the bird flew.
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| Night Heron |
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| About a dozen birds were hanging around near the pelican pond |
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| Enjoying a stretch |
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| Night Heron close-up |
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| A small and attractive heron |
I soon relocated it feeding in some large trees and managed some photographs which seemed to confirm Short-toed, and I also heard it call providing corroborating evidence. On arriving home I started to wonder whether both species of Treecreeper might be present but I checked the photos with better qualified birders who agreed they were all Short-toed.
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| Grey Heron |
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| Egyptian Gosling |
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| Cormorant |
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| Black-winged Stilt (captive bird) |
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| Spoonbill (captive bird) |
Another surprise awaited me as I approached a pond full of pink Pelicans - as well as wild Grey Herons and Cormorants I noticed a couple of Black-crowned Night Herons hanging out in the trees. At first I assumed that they were captive birds but then realised they were unringed. An interpretation board also explained that Night Heron from the colony were being ringed to study their migration habits, implying they were wild birds. I'm still not entirely sure about the provenance of the colony - whether they are wild birds just taking advantage of easy pickings in the zoo or descended from captive stock - but they are described on line as a 'free-flying colony' and were fun to photograph as they preened and stretched among the trees.
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| Lesser White-fronted Goose (captive bird) |
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| Inca Tern (captive bird) |
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| Hamerkop (captive bird) |
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| Griffon Vulture (captive bird) |
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| Chilean Flamingo (captive bird) |
Other naturalised exotics such as Egyptian Geese and Ring-necked Parakeets were abundant in the grounds, making for a colourful day all told.
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| Satyr Tragopan (captive bird) |
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| Ostrich (captive bird) |
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| Himalayan Monal (captive bird) - national bird of Nepal |
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| Mandrill, Amsterdam Zoo |
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| Dwarf Mongoose, Amsterdam Zoo |
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