View allAll Photos Tagged birdsofprey
nice to find the little owl again at wattisfield harder now the trees are in leaf and would not have seen it if it had not flew to a different tree
This osprey was trying to hunt for fish. Unfortunately for the bird and for us he didn't manage to catch one.
Going through some old images and came across this previously unedited photo of a male Kestrel taken a few years ago...
A large raptor around 55-70 cms tall and weighing around 1.5 - 2.4 kg and found throughout the year in India. They are probably the smallest of the 9 species of vultures found in India. The birds are very distinctive and easily recognizable unlike some of the other vultures which are confusing to id.
This one is an adult with the full white plumage and yellowish face and beak. Immatures tend to be totally brown with a greyish face. The birds are often seen around carcass dumpyards or in the deserts where dead cattle / animals are lying rotten. In our Rajasthan trip last week, we sighted 100+ of them all around the state - they are quite common there. In fact, Rajasthan has 7 of the 9 vultures found in India. Like most vultures, this is quite shy of people, but many a time, we found very close to the nomad settlements perched on the poles or walking around on the ground.
Thanks in advance for your lovely feedback and views - much appreciated.
A common winter harrier found along the water bodies in the countryside. These medium sized birds are migratory from Central Asia and winter in large numbers in India. They hunt small reptiles like Snakes, frogs, monitor lizards and water birds. The hunting pattern is constantly harassing the birds till some of them just give up tired and don't fly away. Then the bird just pounces and makes a meal of them.
Here it was flying over the edge of small lake that is hosting 100's of the smaller teals. The water was shallow and just a few feet deep - so the Teals were active and in good numbers. And where there is prey, there are predators. There were about 2 Marsh Harriers and several other falcons too. Some of them roosted in the marshes, while others roosted on the lake banks.
Thanks in advance for your views, favorites and feedback. Much appreciated.
A large bird of prey that has an extensive range stretching from South Eastern Europe, parts of Africa, parts of South Asia and throughout South East, North Asia and Russia. It is large dark colored Eagle and larger most other Eagles in India (Except for the Golden eagle maybe).
They measure about 80-90 cms with a wingspan of 5-5-7.5 feet and weigh about 3.5 - 4.5 Kg. The bird is an opportunistic predator and our guide informed us that this raptor often claims prey from other raptors like the Falcon. It hunts waterbirds, reptiles like the Monitor / Spiny lizards and there is a recent picture of it hunting a fox as well.
We sighted several Imperial Eagles roosting in the desert in sighted a few of them later in the day flying in circles probably targeting some prey. The area has a big population of desert rat which many of these raptors target.
Thank you very much in advance for your views, faves and feedback.
A majestic and powerful eagle and maybe the largest raptor found in the country. A full grown adult eagle is around 80-90 cms tall with a wingspan of around ~6-8 feet. These weigh around 3-4.5 kgs - roughly 50-60% heavier than a Greater Spotted Eagle which is the common large raptor we see in our state during winters.
During the trip to the Nilgiri's forest, we sighted a few of them all over the forest - sometimes in the sky and few times on the trees. Twice, we sighted them in flight with the Red Headed Vulture (Super rare) and the White Rumped Vulture (Even more rare) - it was a fabulous sight for me. All of these were impressive sized raptors - majestic, fearless and with a muscular / bouncer kind of look. I couldn't get the vultures on the ground though.
The birds probably had roosted the whole night on the trees safely above the Tigers / Leopards / Hyenas in the area. Though these Eagles are predators, they mostly scavenge and sometimes claim kill from other birds like the Falcons, harriers etc.. They also hunt reptiles, mammals like Fox, the young ones of Deer/ Antelopes, Ducks and Geese all of which are found in the desert. They have few natural enemies, but I suspect Hyenas could take these birds down - and that area has some population.
These are national birds of Kazakhstan and are migratory to India during winters. They are very rare in my state, but common in the place I visited.
Thanks in advance for your wonderful feedback and likes.
During our visit to the Desert National Park, sighted several Common Kestrels quite active and hunting in the desert. These are visitors from Central Asia / Europe and migrate around End-September to our state, much earlier than all the other raptor migrants. This is a medium sized bird and prefers grassland / desert habitats where it hunts for small reptiles and birds like pipits, larks and quails.
This is a female, sub-adult judging by the size and plumage. She was resting on the ground when she sighted a Harrier in the distance. The Kestrel carefully watched the Harrier fly away before it tried to hunt nearby, but wasn't successful.
Thanks in advance for the views and feedback - very much appreciated.
Male and female. The male is on the left. It has spots on its sides. The female, on the right, has streaks on her breast. Thanks Alice Cahill for the clarification.
A large majestic raptor commonly found around forest areas. This was sighted in the forest area near a temple - under the canopy getting drenched in the light rain that went on for several hours. The bird unlike other raptors that survey while flying, perches for long hours, sights a prey and waits for opportunity to dive and catch. This Hawk Eagle hunts for prey like small birds, snakes, monitor Lizards, quails, Chameleons, squirrels etc..
The bird sort of looked sheepish perched like that - the area had quite a bit of small bird activity that didn't seem to care for this raptor. After many hours, the rain was the lightest and all the birds needed food I suppose. The narrow forest road was bustling with bird activity in the light morning rain. I expected the Hawk Eagle to hunt, but it didn't - maybe it was waiting for the rain to subside.
Many thanks in advance for your views / comments. Much appreciated.
lucky today at lackford the osprey had not been seen all day but I wandered down to a empty hide not very confident and a pair turned up within 10 mins not the nice blue skies of the weekend but a first for me so a happy man
A Barn Owl that flew across my path (thankfully) and proceeded to hunt around me allowing some opportunity for pictures
A beautiful medium sized resident raptor of the country found throughout the year in grassland areas and open forests. This is a relatively easy hawk to identify due to its distinctive white-eye. The birds tend to sit on tall perches for long periods and soar on thermals while hunting.
Sighted this in a beautiful grassland that is all but gone due to trespassing and real estate development. The bird was perched on a farm post and was eyeing some the small birds in the field. The area hosts some unique wildlife like the Indian Fox, Jackal and a wolf along with many raptors and migrant harriers - last year that place was the biggest roosting place for harriers in the state. This year, smooth top roads are laid by some real estate builder.
Thanks so much in advance for your views and feedback. Much appreciated.
Back to some previous images from the Hawk Conservancy Trust near Andover - some more action scenes from this Time Line / Leading Lines event.
This African Fish Eagle catching her prey from a large pond - her name is Stella.
Image info :- Nikon Z9 with Nikon Z 100 - 400 mm @ f/5.3, ISO 800, focal length 350mm, shutter speed 1/1000th second