The Pied Kingfishers, one of my favorite birds, always have a flair for the dramatic. Here's one on a rope screaming at another one who happened to fly too close for comfort:
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| Pied Kingfisher: This is MY rope! |
When not screaming they can look very cuddly, almost cat-like in their expression. This one is female (she has two black spots on her chest - the males have a single connected spot).
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| Pied Kingfisher on a rope |
They're also excellent fish catchers. Here's one that caught a pretty large fish. Somehow she managed to swallow the whole thing a few minutes later.
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| Kingfisher, Pied Kingfisher: shaken, not stirred |
The White-throated Kingfishers also have a flair for the dramatic, usually with their location. This one caught some nice scenery with the colors of the fall behind it. In the smaller picture it looks very presentable on a warning sign.
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| White-throated Kingfisher |
In a bird-watching tour to Agmon Hefer (pretty close to my house) last Friday, we had a surprise waiting for us on a tree right next to the walking trail: an incredible Long-eared Owl! Just have a look at this beautiful creature...
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| Long-eared Owl on a tree |
From behind, the beautiful wing feathers are showing, and they are glorious!
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| Long-eared Owl showing beautiful wing feathers |
The Friday tour started at Hefziba, and there we had the Cormorants put on a display.
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| Cormorant on a tree |
They're even more impressive in flight:
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| Cormorant in flight |
Then we were hit by some rain, which the waterfowl, obviously, didn't really mind.
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| Moorhen swimming in the rain |
After the while the rain subsided, and there was a ray of light.
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| Ray of light |
It's beautiful around here this time of year, especially after the rain. Nature is finally waking up from the long dry season.
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| Moments after the rain |
There was lots of waterfowl to observe that day. The Agmon Hefer conservation was opened just months ago and apparently the birds are finding it to their liking!
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| Stilt taking a sip |
I returned to my favorite spot for watching the Gulls prey on fish. They continued to present some beautiful poses.
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| Gull in flight over water |
There are a few Spoonbills still around, maybe they'll stay for the winter?
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| A couple of Spoonbills in flight |
Some other remnants of the glorious migration season are still around, as well.
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| Black Stork in flight |
And last, but not least, numerous Pelicans are still here. They are so impressive, with their huge wings propelling the large bodies in the air.
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| Pelican in flight |
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| Pelican above |
And they're not any less impressive in the water!
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| Pelican spreading the wings during landing |
So that wraps up a pretty nice photography week for me! I'm happy with the pictures. What do you think? Let me know in the comments or via email.
Till next week :)
