The Birds of Patagonia, Argentina

I'll admit I'm not a bird enthusiast, but I did come across some interesting ones on my trip to Patagonia in Argentina. I tried to identify them as best I could in this post, but at least one I could not. Maybe a bird lover will one day read this and can identify and correct.

Swans and Chilean Pink Flamingos

The flamingos were present in the open wetland areas. They were quite abundant. I can't pinpoint the difference between them and the ones I see in Southern Florida. They look identical to this layman.

Here's a short video of the bird estuary where I saw these birds most days. It was directly across from the room where I stayed in El Calafate:

This looks like a type of hawk departing from my balcony where I stayed in Ushuaia. He frequented often but never was a real bother. I don't know why as I never left food out. I guess it was a perching point for field mice?

Can't forget the penguins. They were present on nearby islands. A boat ride was required to see these. They were a bit smaller than I had pictured in my mind but comparable to the ones I saw in South Africa:

I can't identify this bird although I've tried. Perhaps a kind of duck? He was located on a large lake in Ushuaia.

Short video:

This annoying bird was found often in El Calafate. It's called a Southern Bandurria and it makes a very loud sound.

The sound of this bird:

Sounds really strange doesn't it? Ok, this bird was very loud but doesn't exactly sound like that. When I recorded the bird I accidentally was in SLO-MO mode on my IPhone. But he is that loud!

This gives you a flavor of the birds from this area. It's a beautiful country with an interesting, diverse landscape amenable to a wide variety of birds and other wildlife. If I were more of a bird guy I would have sought more photo ops of the many birds. But this is just a casual essay.