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Thursday 15 January 2015

Electric Blue

The Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis)

Yes, you guessed it from the title of the Post.
Yet another productive walk produced a better attempt at getting some reasonable shots of the Kingfisher.

These were taken along a short stretch of water that is a tributary of the largest lake in the Parkland.
There are secluded spots along the bank that I was able to remain covert and wait for the bird to come along. They have a habit of patrolling what is known as the Kingfisher's Beat. This can be a short distance or a couple of miles. This length of the water is about 150 metres.
About every 5 minutes or less it would move along the beat and perch watching for fish movement in the water. I believe from the appearance of the birds that there was a male and a female as some images show the reddish orange under the beak which is the female. The male's beak is all black.

You can observe from some of the images that my view was obstructed by tall dry foliage or branches of trees which leave blurs on the images.









This below is the spot that I was able to shoot from and it will be familiar to local Birding Colleagues. I was stood in the shadow of a tree trunk and the sun was behind the tree which enabled me to stay unnoticed by the birds. I was also very camouflaged with dark green clothing and black gloves and headgear.  Problem is with Kingfishers that they can detect the slightest movement and I was not able to manoeuvre much to get a clearer shot. The wooden fence on the other side of the stream was a favourite perch for the birds and my location was the only suitable one close by.


30 comments:

  1. Good to see where you photographed the Kingfisher from. All the greats are great.Such a beautiful little bird.

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  2. Beautiful photos Roy.. the Kingfisher is such a stunning colour :o)

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  3. Hij staat er geweldig mooi op.je header is trouwens ook een beauty

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  4. It's always a good feeling when all your efforts pay off and you come away with a beautiful set of shots like these Roy....and I'm sure that you'll soon be going back for more?...[;o)

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  5. Hello Roy
    Très belle série de cet oiseau que tout le monde aime !
    La photo 5 possède un superbe bokeh ! Bravo

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  6. Fantastic. Such a beautiful bird and a real treat to see and capture on camera I'm sure.

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    1. Thanks Suzie, yes it was a treat to see, wish I had been a bit closer though.

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  7. Nice shots Roy! They are indeed female and male, I always remember it by thinking that the female has a little bit of lipstick on her bill, hence the colour! Daft, I know!
    J
    Follow me at HEDGELAND TALES

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    1. Thanks John. I think thats a brilliant way of remembering it.

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  8. Lucky you for getting these images :-)

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  9. Your kingfisher is such brilliant colours!

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  10. Fabulous photos of this hence the bird Roy! You have captured him beautifully.

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  11. Fantastic images! I do see them around my own lake, but it's rare that they perch out in full view, sadly.

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  12. This really great pictures of the kingfisher. I think it's a very beautiful bird with its intense blue color. Beautiful series. My compliments. Also a wonderful compliment to your header.

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  13. Makes me wonder if our new resident kingfisher is a solitary bird or whether there is another...I never get close enough to see the beak!

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  14. It is nice that you got some images. We have the Belted Kingfisher over here that I just never can get on top of.

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  15. It's a gorgeous bird with amazing colours.

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  16. Hi Roy, wonderful bird and wonderful shots of them. Nice to see the location too. I think it wassen't easy for you to not move all the time but you did it, with great results!

    Regards,
    Marianne

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