Black Oystercatcher
by Don Balke
Title
Black Oystercatcher
Artist
Don Balke
Medium
Painting - Watercolor On Cold Press Illustration Board
Description
Frequently found amid the surf-hammered rocks and reefs of the Pacific coast, the somberly plumed Black Oystercatcher feasts on a variety of shellfish. The all-black or dark brown bird is yellow-eyed, with pink legs and feet, and it is slower and more tame than its cousin the American Oystercatcher. Like the American, the Black Oystercatcher uses its sharp, bright red bill to feed on crustaceans, which cling to the rock surfaces. Sluggish in flight and stilted in gait, the Black Oystercatcher reacts to danger by squatting in a depression and emitting a piercing whistle, especially when intruders approach its nest. The nest is builtin a gravelly hollow above the tide line of the beachhead or along the reef. Both parents attend the brown-speckled buffy eggs during incubation. The downy brown chicks can run well just three days after hatching, catch insects after five days, and can both fly and use their dusky bills to pry limpets from the rock before the end of their first month. Non-migratory, the Black Oystercatcher seldom wanders more than 30 miles from its nesting place on the mainland, however it is sometimes found on the rocky islets off the coast. The Black Oystercatcher is also a sociable bird, often peacefully feeding on the same rocky shores as turnstones, sandpipers and American Oystercatchers. The Black Oystercatcher is sometimes called "redbill" by commercial fishermen.
Please note the "Fine Art America" watermark will not appear on the painting or any print reproduction.
Artwork Copyright © 1985 Wind River Studios Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved under United States and international copyright laws. You may not reproduce, distribute, transmit, or otherwise exploit the Artwork in any way. Any sale of the physical original does not include or convey the Copyright or any right comprised in the Copyright. WRSH Stock Number XB10071
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April 7th, 2022
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