A Eurasian Wryneck (Jynx torquilla) sits on a branch of Black Elder (Sambucus nigra) in the first light of morning. He sunbathes and yawns. He opens his beak wide. An extension shoots out like a dagger. The wryneck shows his tongue!
The tongue of a Eurasian Wryneck is surprisingly long when fully extended. It’s pointed like an arrow, and it’s covered with sticky saliva. For the Eurasian Wryneck, the tongue is a tool that he knows how to use masterfully. With the help of its sticky tongue, the woodpecker collects the prey in its throat pouch. He uses it skillfully to get ants and their eggs and larvae out of their burrows. The youngs in particular are fed with their favorite food, the ant pupae.
A little later, the brown-grey bird turns and shows its striking black pattern on the head and back. It is a distinctive feature and resembles a snake’s back pattern.
The pattern of the Eurasian Wryneck is strongly reminiscent of tree bark, so it is difficult to spot it in the wild. Unless the Eurasian Wryneck shouts out its melancholic-sounding, rhythmic series of calls that can be heard from afar.
The name Wryneck refers to the slow, snake-like head movements performed during courtship and in dangerous situations. If it is not enough to freeze as a whole figure when threatened, the neck can be dislocated in an unbelievable way. The head and neck are moved in meandering movements, and he also bends back and forth with his body stretched. The head feathers are also raised, the tail is fanned out and the eyes are rolled. As a further deterrent, strange hissing and gargling sounds are also made when the tongue is stuck out.
The Black Elder (Sambucus nigra) is probably the center of a wryneck territory in southern Brandenburg, only 60 km south of Germans capital, Berlin. Again and again I can position the camera, a Canon EOS R 5 on the Canon EF 400mm f2.8 L IS II USM.
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