Ducking, diving and wading

The feet of waterbirds are specially adapted to help them find their food.

Some waterbirds wade around the edges in shallow water amongst the plants looking for small fish, frogs and insects to eat. They have long thin toes to wriggle in the mud and disturb the insects so they can grab them with big strong bills.

Most paddling and diving birds have webbed toes to help them move easily in the water. Some diving birds, such as Coots and Grebes have lobes on the side of their toes. These act as paddles, helping them to dive deeper.

Some small birds have long toes to allow them to walk on lilies and other floating plants.

Each year, over 200 species of birds visit HWCA. They are not here at the same time as it depends on the time of year, the amount of water in the ponds and the food available for them.

At certain times of the year we may get large numbers of a particular species, such as, during summer when the Egrets are nesting or when water levels start to drop and there are large numbers of Stilts visiting. If the inland wetlands are dry, we may have large numbers of Wandering Whistling Ducks visiting.

All of these birds are able to find the food that they like to eat in the HWCA ponds.

The open water of Water Ribbon Pond attracts large groups of Eurasian Coots, Australasian Grebes, Grey Teals and other open water species. It is also a popular nesting site for Black Swans.

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