PRODUCTIONS: PRIVATE PROPERTY

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M.P.Pavese, S.Tamaro, D.Cini, P.Torricelli, M.Barsotti, P.Benassi

SD Cinematografica

30'

16 mm

Small and colorful, the kingfisher is a very difficul bird to observe in Italy. Its sharp sight allows it to seek cover before being spotted.
an amateur cameraman with the enthusiasm of a professional - and a great deal of patience - spent all his free time observing a pair of kingfishers build their nest beside a small stream on the outskirts of Genoa. This film is the result of three years of perseverance and shows their life, battles, courtship, fishing excursions, nest-digging, egg-laying and even the birth of their fledglings. It was filmed from nature in a nest built more than a meter underground.
The colorful plumage of the male sand martin signals its presence to rivals, while the gudgeon employs a strange strategy for the same purpose.
All fish are mute.
There are some who have learned to compress their swimbladders in order to emit real sounds. This is the case with the Patogobius martensis, better known as the fresh water goby. This tiny, insignificant fish uses sounds in at least two instances. When another male invades its territory, the goby grown dark in the face and launches a series of "howl" is used to court the pregnant female. The male continually launches its love call until the female agreees to enter the nest the male has prepared and lay its eggs.
From the moment all parental care is performed by the male who, mute and mimicking the female, fans and cleans the eggs until they hatch.