Without a doubt, Kingfisher is one of my favourite birds. Lindsay and I used to see quite a few when we had our small cruiser based on the canals and I got some photos that were quite pleasing at the time, although they fall well short of what I would be happy with these days.
It's a few years now since we sold the boat, and my subsequent sightings of Kingfisher have been infrequent, to say the least, and resulted in very distant 'record' shots, blue blurs or, more usually, nothing at all! I was, therefore, over the moon to find myself looking at Kingfishers in a local location.
The first bird to appear was a male. He performed beautifully, giving the opportunity for a wide variety of shots including intimate close-up portraits. Fortunately, for this location, the sun was not shining, but it was relatively bright.
I make no apologies for the number of images in this post. This session was, and I'm confident will remain, my avian highlight of the year - even outstripping the juvenile Long-eared Owl encounter in Scotland and the Hoopoe in Loughborough!
All the images below are in strictly chronological order, which I hope will help to convey some of the action.
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| Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) (male) - Leicestershire |
The flight photos are a bit shabby as I was set up for stills. After this, the male flew off down to the brook, but I only had to wait six minutes before the female arrived. She also performed quite well but spent most of her time fishing from a stick which was close to the hide. The hide was busy with people and I was not in the best position to maximise the opportunities whilst she was here. Nevertheless I'm delighted with what I did get! The preening session was somewhat of a bonus!
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| Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) (female) - Leicestershire |
All the above took place in a period of two hours and twenty minutes duration. It was one of my most memorable birdwatching sessions ever, and all because of a single species!
I have made three return visits since then and, although the birds did not show for long, the results were a little different and so may appear in a future post.
Thank you for dropping by. I suspect my next post may feature Red Grouse.
You are a lucky man, beautiful images of the male Kingfisher, great Richard.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Bob. Luck was certainly the most significant factor here!
DeleteBest wishes - - - Richard
The Kingfisher must surely be one of, if not the most photographed of all our birds, and you have achieved some of the best examples during your time with these birds Richard.
ReplyDeleteHaving had this amazing session, Pete, I can fully understand why Kingfishers are such a popular subject for photography - when one gets the chance!! They are visually exciting in their plumage, adopt extremely attractive poses when static, and are fabulous to watch when in action. In a nutshell - superstars! Thank you for your kind words.
DeleteWith my best wishes - - - Richard
I cannot imagine that anyone will be anything but delighted to see this sequence, Richard, and everyone will be delighted at the sequential coverage. Some of these images are truly outstanding in my opinion, rivalling Noushka's work even - and it doesn't get much better than that.
ReplyDeleteThank you for those extremely kind words of encouragement, David. I'm sure, however, that I've got a long way to go before I achieve Noushka's standards.
DeleteWith love to you both - - - Richard
An absolute pleasure to view these Richard. Cracking photos of a stunning bird.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Marc. It would have been difficult to make a complete hash of the opportunities that these birds gave. Most of the credit musy go to the birds!
DeleteBest wishes - - - Richard
Perfect. There is little else to say.
ReplyDeleteMuch appreciated, Adrian - thank you!
DeleteWOW Best ever. FAbulous images. Have a great week ahead.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Margaret - I hope you have a wonderful week yourself!
DeleteI loved every shot,pure Magic Richard.
ReplyDeleteJohn.
Thank you, John, for those very kind words.
DeleteWith my best wishes to you and Sue - - Richard
Wow what a great performance but up by both male and female, it would certainly be memorable to me also if I saw that display. Not only did you enjoy it but thanks to you sharing it we have had a chance to enjoy it as well. Fabulous photos, well done.
ReplyDeleteHave a great week, best wishes Diane
It was a truly wonderful experience, Diane. Thank you for your kind words.
Deletewith my very best wishes - - - Richard
Oh how wonderful pictures! I would love to see this bird sometime. Best regards
ReplyDeleteThank you, Anne. I had never thought about it being absent from Finland. I guess it is because it can't fish in your winters as all the water is frozen! I hope that one day you will get to see one - they are wonderful to watch in action.
DeleteWith my best wishes - - - Richard
What a brilliant spot for them. I've never noticed the white feathers (images 3&4)acting like an air brake and wonder if that's why they do that.
ReplyDeleteI'd never noticed those white feathers sticking out by the base of the bill, Doug, until I came to process the photos. I wondered if it was to slow itself down once it hit the water and had grabbed the fish. The water is very shallow there - you'd probably not get wet feet if you walked through it with wellies on!
DeleteBest wishes - - - Richard
Congratulations Richard. I am so happy for you that at last you found the spot for enjoying and taking amazing captures of the Kingfisher. It took a lot of patience but succes at last.
ReplyDeleteRegards,
Roos
Thank you, Roos. I suspect that this session will turn out to be my highlight of the year!
DeleteWith my very best wishes - - - Richard