A little sibling rivalry?
I photographed these Western Grebes ten days ago at Bear River MBR.
1/4000, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
Prior to when this photo was taken the chick in the water had been riding on the back of ‘his’ mother, the adult on the right, but eventually he decided to go for a swim. When he’d had enough swimming he tried to climb up on his male parent’s back and join his sibling but Tail Gun Charlie was having nothing of it and refused to accommodate him. I had the definite impression that Charlie wanted nothing to do with the idea of having to share space on board with his sibling.
The chick in the water tried to climb on board several times before he eventually succeeded.
Here’s a closer look at them both, just prior to the chick in the water climbing up on the left side of his dad’s back.
One photo probably doesn’t do justice to how amusing and even cute his attempts were to watch, so maybe you had to be there.
Ron
Precious! I love your photos, especially those of young birds.
At least they’re not playing “Slug Bug!”
How sure are you… ?
Slug Bug reminds me so much of my cousin Ken Dudley. My right arm’s still sore.
Two of my brothers (now in their seventies) are still afflicted with sibling rivalry and will mostly only talk to each other through me.
Given how cute this is on screen, I am sure that the cuteness quotient was upped significantly if you were there.
That’s sad about your brothers, EC.
Adorable! I didn’t have siblings but I had a cousin the same age and we grew up like siblings. We were so competitive at times our grandmother gave us an un-birthday gift at the other’s birthday party. I believe she did the same for my two younger cousins who where a year apart in age.
Ha, an un-birthday gift. I like that concept.
The babies are adorable. The curves and markings of the adults necks are beautiful. And Mom looks pretty placid “Work it out, kids.”
Do the parents react or try to help the babies get back on board?
Carolyn, the adults typically don’t react in any visible way but they do hold their legs (that are attached to the very rear of their body) in a position that allows the chicks to use them almost as ladders as they’re climbing aboard.
Wonderful series ,thanks for sharing!
Charlotte Norton
Thanks, Charlotte.
It looks like quite the stare-down going on between the chicks. They both seem very stubborn. 🙂
“They both seem very stubborn.”
Bill, that’s what it looked like to me in the field, especially Charlie..
Either the one on board is a personal paddling trainer for the follower or it is playing “King of the Hill.”
Kent, I’d bet the latter.
I would bet I treated my younger brother John like that when we were little kids, but had to get used to sharing because there were four more yet to come.
Very cute, but not so cute when young eaglets push one of their siblings out of the nest a couple hundred feet up in a tree.
Appreciate your Western Grebe photos – they sure make for interesting and attractive photos.
I’m glad you like them, Everett. Thanks.
Maybe it’s just the angle at which we see them, but it looks to me
as if the chick in the water is larger ( or at least has a bigger head ?)
If so, maybe the chick “aboard” is thinking- “For once, I’m one-up,
so you can just keep on swimming, big bro !”
Kris, it might be bigger but I can’t tell for sure. It wouldn’t surprise me.
Love it! Anybody who has had siblings can relate to this, and at one time or another we have been on both sides of this.
Thanks, Michael. I was significantly older than both of my sisters so I was usually the giver rather than the taker.
TOO funny! 🙂 Sibling rivalry seems to be universal as well as “putting it to” a sibling now and then….. 😉
Judy, when we were kids I “put it to” my two younger sisters more often than I should have. “Baby Sis” Sheila continues to remind me of that on occasion… 🙂