Smew

The smew is definitely one of the most striking ducks! Very nicely portraited/photographed I must say with the cool blue colors in the background.

This species breeds in the northern taiga of Europe and Asia. It needs trees for breeding. The Smew lives on fish-rich lakes and slow rivers. As a migrant it leaves its breeding areas and winters on sheltered coasts or inland lakes of the Baltic Sea, the Black Sea, northern Germany and the Low Countries, with small number reaching Great Britain, mostly at regular sites. On lakes it prefers areas around the edges, often under small trees.

The Smew (Mergellus albellus) is a small duck which is intermediate between the mergansers and the goldeneyes, and has interbred with the Common Goldeneye. It is the only member of the genus Mergellus (Selby, 1840). [source: youpet.com]

Thank you very much Daria!

Crane

Identification

At rest, Cranes are rather stork-like but with big bushy tails and grey bodies; even from a great distance you'll also see the white stripe through the black head. In flight, the long neck, held outstretched and slightly drooping makes them quite different from the herons and the grey plumage eliminates both of the storks. Their habit of flying in flocks in 'V' formation and making trumpeting calls may cause confusion with geese but the long trailing legs soon scotch that idea.

Habitat

Breeds in large areas of marsh and bog. Occurs in winter and on passage in open, often agricultural, areas close to large wetlands used for roosting.

Behaviour

Flocks of Cranes in late spring can be watched performing their 'dancing' displays. This usually involves opening their wings and leaping vertically into the air with the legs dangling. Once one bird starts this, others will join in and the whole performance can even be initiated by a human pretending to be a dancing crane. Once the birds are paired off they are more likely to perform different displays involving stretching their necks vertically and trumpeting.

Migration

Cranes use two major migration routes. Birds from Scandinavia and the Baltic winter mainly in Spain and Portugal having rested in large numbers in Germany and France. Birds using the eastern flyway migrate to north-east Africa, Turkey and the Middle East after staging in Estonia and Hungary. [source: birdguides.com]

Thank you very much Ulyana!

Birds of Belarus

The mute swan is commonly associated with romance because of its stark white beauty, graceful swimming and the fact that it mates for life. Yet there are many things most people don’t know about this swan, including that it is not native to North America and it can be one of the most aggressive waterfowl.

Mute swans are native to Europe and Asia, and they have been heavily domesticated in Europe and introduced as domestic waterfowl for estates, parks and gardens in North America. Released birds have formed feral populations around the Great Lakes as well as the North Atlantic coast from Massachusetts south to Virginia. The occasional released bird may be found nearly anywhere, typically near large open areas of water including lakes, large ponds, sheltered bays, bogs and marshes. Mute swans in Europe may migrate east to the Middle East in winter, but North American birds typically do not migrate. [source: birding.about.com]

At first glance, the Eurasian tree sparrow is similar to the house sparrow, both in appearance and in the fact that both species are Old World sparrows introduced to North America. Unlike its cousin, however, the Eurasian tree sparrow has not spread across the continent and it lacks the aggressive behavior that characterizes the house sparrow.

Eurasian tree sparrows are common and widespread in agricultural habitats and suburban parks and gardens throughout Europe, Asia and Indonesia, including the British Isles and the Middle East. In North America, the species was introduce in Lafayette Park in St. Louis, Missouri in 1870 and an established population exists in the greater St. Louis area, extending into eastern central Missouri, western Illinois and southern Iowa. The North American population does not migrate, but northern populations in Siberia may migrate to the Mediterranean coast in winter. Small Eurasian tree sparrow populations have also been introduced in Australia. [source: birding.about.com]

White Storks are tall, long-necked wading birds with long red legs and a straight, pointed red bill. The white plumage of the head, neck and body contrasts with the black wing feathers highlighted with a sheen of purple and green iridescence. A small patch of bare black skin surrounds their brown eyes.

It is also very easy to recognize the sound a Stork makes – they have a very characteristic way of clattering their bills together, sounding like the clattering of two thick sticks. The easiest way to see a Stork is probably on its nest, but you can also easily find it on wet meadows and newly mown fields. Storks’ nests are very big and built in high places with good all-round views. You can see Storks in Europe from March till late August. [source: springalive.net]

A strikingly beautiful bird, the small and secretive bluethroat takes its name from the bright blue bib of the male. Mostly brilliant blue, this conspicuous patch on the chin and throat often has a central bar or triangular patch which is white or reddish-brown, and is bordered underneath by a narrow black-and-white band and a second, broader, reddish-brown band. The upperparts of the male are greyish-brown, the underparts are whiter and there is a whitish streak above the eye. The female bluethroat usually has whitish stripes above the eye and along the cheeks, and its white throat has a ‘necklace’ of dark streaks and spots, highlighted by a dark throat-stripe, which may occasionally show traces of blue and reddish-brown. In both sexes, there is a rufous patch at the base of the outer tail feathers which can be seen in flight and when perched with the tail erect. The juvenile bluethroat is dark brown, with many buff streaks and spots on the upperparts, head and breast, and is buff with dark streaks underneath. There are 10 recognised subspecies of the bluethroat, each with slightly different throat patterns and plumage tones. [source: arkive.org]

Thank you very much Pasha!

European wolf

This very nice stamp is issued in 2012 (sheet of 8 identical stamps) commemorating the games of the XXX Olympiad, London 2012

European wolves, like most all others, live and hunt in packs which are extended families of an alpha (the dominant male), his mate, and their offspring. They usually stay within a home range, but may wander far outside their territory to hunt. They hunt and kill game up to 10 times heavier than their own weight. Wild reindeer, elk, and red deer are their favorite prey. European wolves will also eat much smaller animals such as mice and frogs. Because of the decline in the number of wild game, they have begun to prey on domestic horses, cattle, and dogs. Starving wolves will even eat potatoes, fruits, buds, and lichen.

The alpha male and female mate between January and March. The cubs are born seven weeks later in a den dug among bushes or rocks. The male brings food back to the den, either by carrying it whole or by swallowing and then regurgitating it for the others to eat. As the cubs grow, the mother and other members of the pack help to feed them.

Few European countries still have substantial numbers of wolves. Wild wolves are hard to count, so exact numbers are not known. Sometimes radio-tracking is used to determine their numbers. European wolves have managed to survive only in the most remote, mountainous, or densely forested regions. Areas in which these wolves can live without coming into conflict with humans are decreasing. There is little effective international agreement about the wolf's conservation. All efforts to preserve the wolf are conducted locally.

Because of the increasing shortage of natural prey in Italy, wolves have been forced to give up their pack-hunting habits, and scavenge for food around villages and farmhouses. Roughly, about 250 wolves live in remote mountainous areas in Italy, and are officially protected. Projects which are financed by the World Wide Fund for Nature may enable small numbers of wolves to survive if farmers and herdsman can be persuaded to accept them. Many rural villages have open dumps where the local slaughterhouse disposes of its waste. Many wolves feed there alongside feral or stray dogs. These dogs and wolves will occasionally mate, and their offspring are often impossible to distinguish from ordinary dogs.

The wolf-dog'sdeceptive appearance makes it all that more dangerous. Wolf-dogs may wander freely through populated areas, unrecognized as wolves. They are wilder than their feral parents. They can be extremely ferocious, and are often infected with rabies. In Norway, Wolves are protected to the extent that they are illegal to kill by anyone other than farmers protecting their livestock. To prevent continuous slaughter, farmers are often compensated for livestock which is killed by the endangered wolves.

"Grupo Lobo" was founded in Spain and Portugal in 1985 in attempt to protect the wolves in the mountains on the Spain/Portugal border. There is an extremely small number of wolves in Sweden, regardless of protective legislation. These systems are often abused. Lapp herdsman in the North of Sweden have often blamed the deaths of their reindeer on wolves rather than on poor care. 

The "wolf-plague" in Scotland resulted in the extermination of the animal there. The last British wolf died in 1743. Wolves survived in Ireland until about 1773. Similar waves of wolf persecution on the European continent has driven the few survivors into remote areas far away from human settlement. Although the wolf is a protected species in most European countries, some hunters see no reason to stop killing wolves for sport, and will pay a great deal of money for the privilege. Wolf survival in Europe obviously requires more than simple legislations. These wolves are rather shy and intelligent, yet they are still viewed as a ruthless predator by the mainstream. [source: http://everythingthatiscool.wetpaint.com]

Thank you very much Olga!

Railway station square - Minsk

The station was built in 1873 as Vilenski vakzal, Vilnius station (Belarusian: Віленскі вакзал Russian: Виленский вокзал). The initial wooden building was demolished in 1890 and rebuilt in stone. During World War II Minsk railway station was completely destroyed. It was rebuilt in 1945-1946 and served until 1991. The new building of Minsk-Passazhyrski railway station was built in 1991-2002. Its construction was delayed due to financial difficulties. However now Minsk boasts one of the most modern and up-to-date railway stations in the CIS. There are plans to move all suburban rail traffic from Minsk-Passazhyrski to smaller stations Minsk-Uskhodni (East), Minsk-Paudnyovy (South) and Minsk-Paunochny (North) by 2020. [source: wikipedia]