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There is an old Yakut legend about young girls who considered themselves not beautiful enough and wished with all their hearts to become much more beautiful than they are. They asked the evil sorceress for advice in the hope that she would suggest some way to enhance the beauty. But the evil sorceress envied the girls, their youth and freshness. Therefore, of course, she did not advise them anything good. She told the girls to swim in the river in severe frost. The witch convinced them that this would bring them unprecedented beauty, and a blush would constantly adorn her face. Believing the sorceress, the girls went to the river and dived into the hole formed in the ice cover. The red sun illuminated the water so that it seemed pink. The poor naive beauties perished, and their souls became pink gulls, and soared high into the sky.
Appearance
A pink gull reaches a length of about 35 cm. Their chest and abdomen have a pale pink hue. This beautiful color harmoniously combines in the color of the bird with blue-gray, which painted the back and head of the birds. A black bezel is clearly drawn on their neck, which looks like a necklace. The beak of representatives of the species is thin, with a curved end.
The main distinguishing feature is the pink color on the abdomen and on the chest, as well as the graceful structure of the body. Watching a seagull in flight, one can only be surprised at its grace and beauty. The bird soars without making any sounds, as if this does not constitute any difficulty for her. Another distinguishing feature among other gulls is a high voice. She can make a variety of sounds if desired. The bird does not make these sounds for no reason. In this way, pink gulls communicate with each other. On shouting, other individuals understand that the bird is worried about something, or, for example, in a rage.
This species cannot be called numerous. Birds live in northern Siberia. It is difficult to see her in nature due to excessive timidity. In addition, she spends a lot of time hovering over the sea.
Over the past few centuries, as a result of destructive human activities, the number is becoming smaller. In the 19th century, the Eskimos hunted for them. Pink gulls served as food for them. At the beginning of the next century, stuffed animals from these beautiful birds gained great popularity. Locals caught them, after which they made effigies in large quantities, and sailors bought and brought home as a souvenir or sold them very expensive.
Today this bird is in the Red Book. Various measures are being taken to preserve the population and make it more numerous. Hunting is strictly prohibited. The areas where the bird lives become reserves.
Lifestyle
They equip a nest near rivers, as well as in swamps that are overgrown with dense vegetation. They weave it from small branches and grass. In winter, pink gulls try to stay near the sea, not flying away from nesting places. To have a source of food, they live in groups near unfrozen sections of the sea.
It is difficult to study all the features of the behavior of these birds, so scientists were not able to do this to the end. The problem is too harsh climate in their habitat. In addition, these birds are very shy and try not to show themselves to humans. Many descriptions of this species are based on the assumption of scientists, which are based on the behavior of other species of gulls.
They migrate very far from the sea coast, so this phenomenon is also extremely difficult to observe. But some researchers still made desperate attempts to find out as much as possible about the behavior of pink gulls. It is known that they most often leave the nesting territory in the first half of August. Animals of different ages take off, and are sent in different directions.
During the migration period, birds spend a lot of time in flight. Sometimes they are overtaken by a storm that causes the bird to stray off course.
Food
During the nesting period, as well as when the chicks are still very small, their food is ground food. They eat insects, various invertebrates living in rivers, as well as small fish.
If the bird cannot find enough animal food, then it can feed on vegetation. She eats the greens of plants, as well as their seeds. They are almost omnivorous. Therefore, if there is no food nearby that suits their taste, then they will peck any suitable food found on water, in the air or on the surface of the ice.
During nesting, pink gulls seek food as close to the nests as possible. Find ground insects, invertebrates. They do not spend this period in flight, looking for food, but move on foot to find a treat that is hidden in dry leaves.
If the seagulls do not find food, they can approach human settlements to search for food in garbage dumps. When in summer the air becomes warm enough and a large number of mosquitoes appear, the birds begin to feed only on them, returning to air hunting.
When pink gulls are above the sea, they hunt away from the ice. They sit on the water and look for insects on its surface. If she notices prey in the water that swims past her, then dives in full or in part to catch her. If there is enough food around the habitat for the bird, but its quantity is very limited, the bird will actively drive other birds away from this territory.
Breeding
These birds fly to the nesting site by the end of spring or with the beginning of summer. The pink gull selects a suitable place where you can equip the nest, and begins to cook it. Their nest is usually very neat, it is lined with small twigs, foliage and grass. She tries to use any suitable materials so that the chicks are as comfortable and good as possible. During this period, close to each other, equip their nests and other seagulls.
Most often in the clutch there are 3 eggs. Seagulls gently hatch them for three weeks. Both female and male are involved in the process. They succeed each other in order to warm future offspring in turn. When one of them sits on eggs, the second goes in search of food to eat.
Already at the end of June, small chicks peep in the nest. If the birds began nesting a little later, then this can happen in early July. The chicks of a pink gull very quickly adapt to the difficult conditions of the tundra. They remain unattended by adult birds, warming each other with their bodies. At the age of three weeks, the birds can already fly perfectly.
With the beginning of molting, the family of pink gulls gathers together in a group to go closer to the sea. Here, young individuals learn to hunt on their own, adapt to the harsh climate.
Representatives of the species live for about 12 years. But reliably science cannot name their life expectancy, since the species has not been studied well enough.
Video: pink gull (Rhodostethia rosea)
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