mvecht`s fifth BY

[mvecht]

@Galanait was ringed in Southern Sweden but I was unable to read the ring number. It is a vary rare breeder in Danmark but has been reintroduced in Sweden with some succes. 

[Galana]

Thanks for that update.

Always interesting to read this.

[mvecht]

#189 Greater Whitethroat, near Vrads Denmark

 

A bird that I dont see very often as they tend to be shy.

Seen extremely well through the front window of the car. Somehow the window confused the autofocus so I ended up with 50+ shots out of focus!

#190 Black Woodpecker (two of them )

 

 

 

Edited May 27, 2023 by mvecht
typo

[Galana]

Shame about the windscreen issue.

[PeterHG]

A great sighting of the woodpeckers! Yes the front window of a car always messes with the focus, unfortunately 

[mvecht]

Just Back from a weeks holiday in Cyprus.

This was not meant as a birding trip but we did do a full day with local guide George Konstantinou who did a great job.

First sighting was a lifer and on the wishlist I had given George.

#191 Great Spotted Cuckoo

Not very cooperative 

 

 

[mvecht]

In general the birds were quite shy. We saw at least 12 European Rollers and not a single shot!

#192 Crested Larks were an exception

Quite common. In Denmark we have one nesting pair!

 

As the birds were shy I ended up with several EBC`s

#193 European Bee-Eater

Lots of Haze

 

#194 Ruddy Shelduck (Lifer)

 

#195 Griffon Vulture

 

#196 Shag (lifer)

[mvecht]

#197 Collared Dove (abundant)

 

#198 Laughing Dove

[mvecht]

#199 Eleonora Falcon (lifer)

I had asked George to see this bird.

It would have been to long a drive but he gave me good directions to see it. We saw several but this was the only one within reasonable range. Unfortunately the light was not too great.

[mvecht]

I had asked George if he could find any owls.

He took us to two active Barn Owl nests with chicks. Both were in caves and unfortunately the birds did not show.

He did however find us

#200 Little Owl

adult

 

and in a different location a juvenile

[mvecht]

We saw surprisingly few seabirds. 6 Gulls and one Shearwater!

#201 Yellow-legged Gull

 

[mvecht]

#202 Spur-winged Lapwing

 

My Kenya picture of Black-winged Stilt was quite poor so here comes a slightly better one.

 

[mvecht]

#203 Eurasian Hoopoe

We did see 7 in one day so my wife was quite happy.

 

My Kenyan photo of Barn Swallow was more of an EBC so here comes a new one

[TonyQ]

A good collection from Cyprus, and a beautiful bird for your 200 - well done

[mvecht]

George had asked if we wanted to extend the trip as one of his friends had found a pair of Woodchat Shrike showing feeding behaviour.

Of course we wanted to see them.

We followed Andy`s car and my wife I I got a bit nervous as he parked just outside a military base with armed guards.

The guard shouted no cameras and binoculars. George walked up to the guard and we were allowed to take pictures as long as they did not show any sensitive details.

George quickly located the nest and it did not take long before we saw the birds although at a distance.

#204 Woodchat Shrike

I had a positive surprise with the Canon EOS R7. Normally the Eye Detection does not work on very small subjects but it easily found the bird on the wire.

 

 

George managed to persuade one of the local officers that he could set up a Gopro

See below

 

 

[Galana]

Congratulations on both the 200 AND the Little Owlet. Cute as always.

[Peter Connan]

Beautiful little owl! Well done on the double!

[pedro maia]

Congrats on the double century, the juvenile owl is really cool, I saw many adults but never a young one.

[Zim Girl]

Well done on 200.  I love the Little Owl pictures!

[xelas]

Love the Little Owl close-ups! Congratulations on 2nd century.

[Kitsafari]

congrats on the 2nd century and with a cute juvenile and a cute adult LO!

[michael-ibk]

Congratulations on #200, fabulous photos of the Owl. And how cool shot the Falcon, would be a lifer for me too. 

[PeterHG]

Congrats on a beautiful #200! Some great sightings in Cyprus and good footage of the Woodchat Shrike. At least the parents were not put off by the nearby camera so it seems. I am just a little surprised the guide would do that.

Edited June 22, 2023 by PeterHG

[Dave Williams]

Fair moving along now! Well done on 200.

Makes me smile when I watch detective series on TV and they are taking pictures through the front windscreen..then they come out sharp ! Doesn't happen for real. Black Woodpecker is a bit special too. So was the Eleanor's Falcon, you got a much better shot than I did in Lesvos.

[mvecht]

A couple a days ago there was a report of a very nice find.

#205Juvenile  Red-footed Falcon

This is a bird we only see during migration and then only a few are spotted each year.

The bird had been spotted in a field next to the parking lot of one of my favorite spots.

Lots of Wagtails in the field and the Falcon gave them a try.

 

 

 

 

Earlier in the day I got an EBC of a Merlin. They are so fast so by the time you get your camera in position you only get a butt shot.

#206 Merlin

Edited September 24, 2023 by mvecht
typo