In the last couple of weeks I have seen a Northern Shoveler at the Local Patch. The first week it had a black bill and then the next week the bill was lighter in colour. I thought that perhaps the bird was undergoing a plumage change. The mystery has now been solved, there are a pair of birds in the house
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I sat and watched as several Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters used the overhead irrigation wire of the centre-pivot as a launching pad to swoop down and catch the butterflies in the field below. You could hear the snapping of the beaks as they caught their prey. They would then return to roost on the wire to despatch their catch. My good friend Mike Pope has assisted me with the butterfly ID's Keeping a beady eye out Bee-eater with Clouded Yellow Butterfly Bee-eater with Clouded Yellow Butterfly Bee-eater with Painted Lady Butterfly
I came across this European Hoopoe that had caught this big fat juicy caterpillar. I watched as it went about despatching it in short order First up a bit of assessment as how best to tackle this feast It picks it up in its beak Hammers it several times on the ground to stun it Flips it lengthways with the spine facing backwards Down the hatch it goes What's next on the menu?
Here are some more of the images of the seabirds I came away with from my visit to Al Khor Harbour the other day A Large White Headed Gull - exact description unknown. Possible 1st winter Caspian Gull Caspian Tern Gull-billed Tern A Large White Headed Gull. Note how dark the plumage is. A possible juvenile Heuglin's Gull A Slender-billed Gull showing a lovely bright red bill and legs Caspian Tern
Whilst at the harbour in Al Khor there was a mix of terns and gulls patrolling back and forth on the look out for a meal. I watched as this Caspian Tern was dive bombing and trying to catch fish close to the surface. It made several unsuccessful attempts before finally snaring a fish. Shortly after impact Spreading its wings for lift-off Clearing the water Patrolling once again Success after several dive bomb attempts
I t was a bit of a quiet visit. The Indian Pond Heron was not to be found, there were not many migrants on offer, but still good to be out and about A rather obliging male Desert Wheatear was chasing a moth and hopped to within a few feet of where I was sitting allowing me take this image There was a Northern Shoveler on one of the ponds. I am not sure if it is the same bird as seen here last week as the bill is now a pale orange as opposed to a black bill in the other bird. Perhaps it continues to adopt late summer plumage A juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron sits motionless in the Bougainvillea bush A Daurian Shrike in soft early morning light A Common Redshank
I found this male bird resting up in the shade of this bush. They are quite nervous birds and fly off quickly so I was pleased I managed a couple of images of this the less common of the two harriers we see here This young male bird showing the long narrow pointed wings with black wingtips and the single upper-wing bar Note the double wing bars to be found on the underside of the wings (as can be seen on the right wing)
Gavin Farnell found two Nightjars in Mid-February of this year. They hung around for a couple of days before moving on. See post of 18/02/2016. Now he has found three birds resting up in the same area. He kindly guided me onto them again and I was able to take some images The first bird was perched high up in a palm The second bird was lower to the ground perched on a thick branch Here it is seen from the other side of the tree giving us a better view The third bird was perched on a branch just under the canopy of a large tree situated nearby
There was another wave of Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters passing through. As usual they were using the overhead cables to roost on and hawk insects from. This bird took some time out for a spot of preening whilst all this activity was going on around it A good scratch Breast feather maintenance Wing work Simultaneous wing and tail stretch Good to go
Early the other morning I came across this Falcon resting up on the ground. One can clearly see the jesses attached to the legs and there also signs of a leg ring visible. It was quite approachable and I managed to take these images without it showing any signs of wanting to fly off. I wonder who it belongs to?
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