Abo Posted February 20 Share Posted February 20 A while ago I encountered an amazing type of bird while visiting a zoo, and I've been trying too find out exactly what it was. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures, but I will try to give my best description from memory: The birds were rather small, black feathers, with the inside of their wings colored a bright red/dark orange. They were aquatic birds, but shaped quite aerodinamically (so not like a duck). Most notably, they could dive underwater and resurface flying up vertically, fluttering almost like a hummingbird. They were constantly displaying this behaviour, playfully diving in and out of the water. They were in a zoo enclosure with shallow pools, which they shared with tiny penguins and other water birds from all over the world, so I have no clue what region they are from. It would be amazing if anyone knows the name of this bird. It was unlike any other bird I'd ever seen, but somehow I can't seem to find anything about it using Google... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake Fingers Posted February 20 Share Posted February 20 (edited) Try googling “cormorant”. That’s all I have to offer. EDIT: never mind cormorants are too big and don’t have color on the wings like that. Also not sure if this forum offers ID help for non-wild birds. Sorry Edited February 20 by Snake Fingers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peromyscus Posted February 20 Share Posted February 20 Welcome to Whatbird, Abo. Were you by chance at the National Zoo in Washington DC? At one point there was an exhibit containing auklets or puffins. Whiskered and Crested Auklets are about 7 3/4 and 10 1/2 inches respectively, are all dark with small red bills, and (probably) exhibit the behavior you describe. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake Fingers Posted February 20 Share Posted February 20 9 minutes ago, Peromyscus said: Welcome to Whatbird, Abo. Were you by chance at the National Zoo in Washington DC? At one point there was an exhibit containing auklets or puffins. Whiskered and Crested Auklets are about 7 3/4 and 10 1/2 inches respectively, are all dark with small red bills, and (probably) exhibit the behavior you describe. That’s what I was thinking, but what about the color inside the wings? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abo Posted February 20 Author Share Posted February 20 1 hour ago, Peromyscus said: Welcome to Whatbird, Abo. Were you by chance at the National Zoo in Washington DC? At one point there was an exhibit containing auklets or puffins. Whiskered and Crested Auklets are about 7 3/4 and 10 1/2 inches respectively, are all dark with small red bills, and (probably) exhibit the behavior you describe. Thanks for answering, but unfortunately it were no Aucklets or Puffins. The red color inside the wings was very distinctive, and they were not crested. I saw them at the Pairi Daiza zoo in Belgium by the way. There was no info on them there so I suspect they were only housed there temporary. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avery Posted February 20 Share Posted February 20 @Abo could you describe its beak? Was it long and skinny, short and stubby, curved, parrot-like, Duck-like, etc? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abo Posted February 21 Author Share Posted February 21 16 hours ago, Avery said: @Abo could you describe its beak? Was it long and skinny, short and stubby, curved, parrot-like, Duck-like, etc? I believe it was pointy and either straight or slightly curved. More shaped like a kingfisher's beak but shorter and smaller. Certainly not parrot-like or duck-like. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colton V Posted February 22 Share Posted February 22 Maybe they had some kind of red identification tag on their wings? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avery Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 (edited) 1 hour ago, Colton V said: Maybe they had some kind of red identification tag on their wings? That's what I was guessing. Maybe some sort of dove that was bathing? The zoo has Bleeding-Hearts right now (doves) Edited February 23 by Avery 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake Fingers Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 13 hours ago, Avery said: That's what I was guessing. Maybe some sort of dove that was bathing? The zoo has Bleeding-Hearts right now (doves) Which Bleeding-heart? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avery Posted February 23 Share Posted February 23 I think Luzon @Snake Fingers 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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