The posture of these two white-faced whistling-ducks is a common image in this species. They are preening one another, that is they are allopreening. Preening is a common behaviour in all the species, but allopreening is only observed in those species with strong social ties like the white-faced whistling-duck. With no apparent reason one bird approaches another, directs its bill to the neck and begins preening. The other one reacts doing the same thing. Either adult-adult or adult-juvenile indulge in this activity. Beyond the benefits of preening, keep free from parasites and with tidy feathers, allopreening reinforces the bonds in the group
The posture of these two white-faced whistling-ducks is a common image in this species. They are preening one another, that is they are allopreening. Preening is a common behaviour in all the species, but allopreening is only observed in those species with strong social ties like the white-faced whistling-duck. With no apparent reason one bird approaches another, directs its bill to the neck and begins preening. The other one reacts doing the same thing. Either adult-adult or adult-juvenile indulge in this activity. Beyond the benefits of preening- keep free from parasites and with tidy feathers- allopreening reinforces the bonds in the group
The posture of these two white-faced whistling-ducks is a common image in this species. They are preening one another, that is they are allopreening. Preening is a common behaviour in all the species, but allopreening is only observed in those species with strong social ties like the white-faced whistling-duck. With no apparent reason one bird approaches another, directs its bill to the neck and begins preening. The other one reacts doing the same thing. Either adult-adult or adult-juvenile indulge in this activity. Beyond the benefits of preening- keep free from parasites and with tidy feathers- allopreening reinforces the bonds in the group
Three white-face whistling-ducks in the water, four fulvous whistling-ducks, three yellow-billed teals, a neotropic cormorant with open wings and a lapwing
Along with rosy-billed pochard Netta peposaca, silver teal Anas versicolor and neotropical cormorant Phalacrocorax brasilianus.