USA Texas Bird pyramid roost (1 Viewer)

T

The quiet assassin

New member

• Jan 19, 2008

• #1

I am a novice birder and wonder if anyone could help with this bird behaviour. Is it common?

We got home from a walk in Bentsen State Birding park in South Texas and as we parked our RV in the adjacent RV Park we saw a bird pyramid on a branch. They looked like sparrows but a little bluer on the breast. It was difficult to see through the screen. We got some pictures. They are poor quality as they were taken through the windscreen.

The time was about 4.30 pm and it was going to be a cold night for the area.

The quiet assassin [ Poker player retired ]

 

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borealowl47

Darrell Neufeld

• Jan 19, 2008

• #2

pyramid

They are Inca Doves and from reading up on their behavior ,that seems to
be common on cold days to stay warm.

 

Larry Lade

Moderator

• Jan 19, 2008

• #3

Those are some sort of doves. At the moment I do not what species they might be though.

 

Larry Lade

Moderator

• Jan 19, 2008

• #4

Inca Dove

Here is an excerpt from this website.

Behavior
The Inca dove spends its time foraging, roosting and sunning. In cold weather it will build living pyramids with other members by grouping together and standing on one another's backs. These pyramids will periodically collaspe and reform with different members on the interior. They can be social or territorial during feeding and display heavy defending of the territory during the breeding season (Mueller, 1992).

Click to expand...

 

T

The quiet assassin

New member

• Jan 19, 2008

• #5

Thanks for the ID

Thank you for the id and the info on the behaviour. I will look them up in my book and check that against my better pics

John Duncker AKA tHE QUIET ASSASSIN

 

KC Foggin

Very, very long time member

Supporter

• Jan 19, 2008

• #6

It's a great behavior capture. I've never seen this and probably never will.

 

S

stonechat1

New member

• Feb 16, 2010

• #7

Great capture John, thank´s for sharing!
So even we european birders can learn and adore the behavior of New World birds.

 

C

Cheshire Birder

Well-known member

• Feb 16, 2010

• #8

KCFoggin said:

It's a great behaviour capture. I've never seen this and probably never will.

Click to expand...

Agreed. This must be common in this particular species but i've never heard about or seen it before.

CB

 

Xenospiza

Distracted

• Feb 16, 2010

• #9

Very nice to see this picture!

A birder I know has seen this kind of behaviour for Egyptian Goose chicks (on a cold day in the Netherlands), I believe even a couple of times.

 

KFC

Ken Tucker

• Feb 16, 2010

• #10

Fascinating - thank you for posting, Quiet Assissin.

I have read reports of Passenger Pigeons piled high on branches and never quite believed it or at least couldn't imagine it. These pictures help me imagine it. Unfortunately, imagine is all we can ever do for passenger pigeons - perhaps one day I'll see Inca doves doing it.

Thanks again for a fascinating post
Ken

 

Scrogdog

Well-known member

• Feb 16, 2010

• #11

I've never seen them pyramid before, but did have a group of four Inca's that bunched up really tight together on the chain link fence behind my house four days ago when we had cold weather and a foot of snow on the ground.

 

F

fugl

Well-known member

• Feb 16, 2010

• #12

Wonderful photo. You ought to consider putting it in the gallery.