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Red Phalarope
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Phalaropus fulicarius
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This is the male. The male phalarope is the female - it builds and takes care of the nest and the nestlings. Meanwhile the female goes out and finds another mate. So the females are showy and the males are plain (being nest-sitters and all). This is known in the lit as "reverse sexual dimorphism". Reverse dimorphism only exists where there is so much energy that it's worth it for the female to spend energy on more than one clutch. Only the high arctic summer provides that much energy.
This male became quite used to me after a while. Nothing more fun than tundra shooting at eye-level. All that spongy moss below you...It's like shooting in bed. :-)
Some day soon, I hope, I will return to those cold high places :-) |
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Focal length: 700 mm
fStop: 5.6
ISO: 400
Shutter Speed: 1/1250
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Barrow, AK
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Jun 23, 2007
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Flickr! - Comments on Red Phalarope
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