Ruff male displaying its plumage, Varanger Peninsula, Norway
© Winfried Wisniewski/Minden Picture
Project 'ruff'-way. Making it work—in Norway
Springtime is high-fashion season for the ruff. In wetlands across northern Europe and Asia, these medium-sized waders gather in marshes to form leks, which are small breeding areas used for courtship displays. Dominant males (also called independents) like the fancy fellow on our homepage, fluff up their colored and intricately patterned capes and collars and mock fight with each other. Their aim? Each wants to secure a prime spot on the lek to showcase his finery and entice watching females to choose him as a mate.
Related Images
Ruffed grouse in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada
Screech owl resting in a tree cavity, Massapequa Preserve, Long Island, New York
Tawny frogmouth chick, Australia
Barn owl sitting on a branch
Snowy owl at Jones Beach, Long Island, New York
Burrowing owlet posing in Cape Coral, Florida
An adult burrowing owl emerges from its burrow at sunset in Davis, California
Snowy owl
Bing Today Images
Jöriseen lakes in the Silvretta Alps, Switzerland
May 02, 2023
Travertine terraces of Pamukkale, Turkey
May 02, 2022
Ruins of a kasbah in Kalaat M'Gouna, Morocco
May 02, 2020
Anechoic chamber, Copenhagen, Denmark
May 02, 2016
