Eye Colour of Birds..

A question put to me “Why are so many birds eyes red” This was a good question and I decided to look into the tendencies… yes a lot are red but it appears they are not in the majority, yellow appears to be the colour of choice..  but it had me wonder why are our eyes certain colours, yes genes, DNA and contact lens seems the answer… I suppose the avifauna is the same… but I intend to follow this up as to see if seed eaters have a preference to a certain colour, as is the fruit, and bug birds, what of the predatory eagles or vultures… watch this space maybe a PhD is on the cards…

Imagine the conversation.. “What did you get your PhD for?”  “Birds eye colour..” maybe National Geographic’s have discovered my blog and want to finance the research… We’re allowed to dream aren’t we?? …  Here are a few photos of birds heads cropped from my photos to show some of the colours…

This Eagles eye is black from one side yet see when the sun catches the eyes…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kobus the Waterbuck..

The waterbuck (Kobus ellipsiprymnus) is a large antelope found widely in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Waterbuck stand 120 to 136 cm (47 to 54 in) at the shoulder. Head-and-body length ranges 140 to 240 cm (55 to 94 in) and tail length from 10 to 45 cm (3.9 to 18 in). Males weigh 200–300 kg (440–660 lb.) and females 160–200 kg (350–440 lb.). Their coats are reddish brown in colour and become progressively darker with age; they have a white ‘bib’ under their throats and white on their rumps. The waterproofing secretions of the waterbuck’s sweat glands produces an unpleasant odour in its meat, unless the animal is skinned carefully. According to African myth the meat of the waterbuck is not edible, but this is untrue—whilst not especially tasty, waterbuck venison is safe to eat. The long spiral structured horns, found only in males, sweep back and up. (Courtesy of Wikipedia)

Kobus (New Latin) from koba, an African name. ellipsiprymnus refers to the white ring on the rump. (Damn even I didn’t know that)