Birds from Latvia
Latvijas Pasts issued two stamps within the series “Birds of Latvia” featuring Long-tailed Duck and European Bee-eater. Long-tailed Duck (Clangulahyemalis L.) is a medium-sized sea duck. Adults have white underparts, though the rest of the plumage goes through a complex moulting process.
The male has a long pointed tail (10 to 15 cm) and a dark grey bill crossed by a pink band. The female has a brown back and a relatively short pointed tail. In winter, the female’s head and neck are white with a dark crown.Their breeding habitat is in tundra pools and marshes, but also along sea coasts and in large mountain lakes in the North Atlantic region, Alaska, northern Canada, northern Europe and Russia.
European Bee-eater (Meropsapiaster L.) is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family Meropidae. It is strongly migratory, wintering in tropical Africa, India and Sri Lanka. This species occurs as a spring overshoot north of its range, with occasional breeding in northwest Europe. This species is a richly-coloured, slender bird. It has brown and yellow upper parts, whilst the wings are green and the beak is black.
Weasel on a new Estonian stamp
Eesti Post issued a stamp depicting weasel (Mustelanivalis), a representative of Estonian fauna.
The tail of the weasel, brownish on the back and white on the belly in the summer, is slightly shorter than that of the other small carnivore, the ermine, and the hair at the end of its tail is never black. In the winter, the weasel turns white all over. Weasels live everywhere where they can hide and where there is prey, from sand dunes to grasslands to forests and hills. They are active round the clock.
The tracks mostly come in pairs, and the track of the tail is noticeably only seldom. The weasel likes to sometimes stand up and observe the neighbourhood. When disturbed it hisses or trills at a high pitch. It expresses fear by means of sharp yelping. The weasel is so small (body length 15 to 20 cm) that it can follow rodents into their nests. It mainly catches and eats microta and mice, but does not refuse birds and eggs either.
Otiorhynchusmonoecirupis – New Species, Discovery in Monaco
A new stamp was issued by Monaco post to celebrate the discovery of Otiorhynchusmonoecirupis.
A new species of Curculionidae, endemic to the Principality has been discovered in the underground tunnels of the Prince’s Palace. This is the weevil Otiorhynchusmonoecirupis. This species will be the focus of an exhibition organized this summer at Monaco’s Exotic Garden by the Department of the Environment in association with the scientists who led the inventory exercise into Monaco’s entomological heritage from 2008 to late 2010.
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