I was back in London today, and the cormorants were back grappling with the local fish. Last time it was (after much debate) a flounder. This time I'm ready to risk my own identification and say the catch is an eel.
Ouch! Competition is evidently fierce between cormorants
An equal surprise was the amount of snow still sitting in London. It made an ideal backdrop for the starlings (more of which are in the February Birds album).
Starlings in the snow at the Tower of London
I also took a few tourist shots while I was there… as well as numerous photos for couples who proffered their camera at me and asked for a shot with either the Tower or the Bridge in the background. I was happy to oblige 😀 
Tower of London
Tower of London from across the Thames
Tourists with Tower Bridge in the background
Camera note: the cormorants were taken with the EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L USM IS lens. All the rest of today's photos (including the starlings in the snow) were taken with the EF 17-40mm 1:4L USM lens. It was odd using such a short lens for birds, but not ineffective.
Flying Red Fox Blog
5 Feb 2009Wow that fish is longer than the Comorants neck! :yikes: Great snow shots, you are lucky your work sends you to London. :D…… i think its lucky anyways or hard work i dont know lol. 😛
Nice shot of Tower Bridge.
gdare
5 Feb 2009This is eel definitely but how big stomack that cormorant must have :eyes:
cakkleberrylane
5 Feb 2009Wonderful shots. Very action packed!
SittingFox
5 Feb 2009It's amazing that they don't choke! :ko:
It is surprising that there is still snow in central London. There's still plenty in the North Downs, naturally, but it's turning to muddy slush in Croydon (where I work).
Words
5 Feb 2009Mark, it really struggled with that eel and I'm not sure that it didn't give up in the end. I don't mind the occasional trip up to London, and yesterday's was less than a minute away from the river so it could be worse. I wouldn't want to commute every day though. Coming back in rush hour isn't much fun at all.
Words
5 Feb 2009Lois, thanks. The amount of wildlife activity in London is astonishing.
Words
5 Feb 2009Darko, I think they sometimes take fishes bigger than they can eat. I've yet to see a completely successful catch (I needed more time than I had), but the struggle is fascinating to watch.
Words
5 Feb 2009Adele, indeed! What amazed me is that it appeared to more or less compeltely swallow the eel several times, but a moment later would be be waving it like a scarf over its head. Eyes bigger than their bellies, is all I can think. Plus the second cormorant was attempting to steal the catch, which can't have helped much.
Ukwildlife
5 Feb 2009Ha I was there the weekend before last. I saw the cormorants perched in the Thames but not hunting. Those photos are fantastic, no doubt its an eel. Ive seen both a heron and a cormorant and both struggled for ages, with eel sliding back up the throat every time they were swallowed!
Words
5 Feb 2009Neil, I've been lucky with the cormorants. Both times I've caught them hunting I saw them within a minute of arriving there. Mostly they are just diving and coming up empty-beaked. The light was moderate and those are fairly severe crops. It would be good to get a boat out and get closer to them.
Flying Red Fox Blog
6 Feb 2009Yeah i agree, some people i know catch the 5am train and dont get back to Bognor until 9pm. :yikes: …… not very fun at all but i guess it pays for their keep….. even though they spend little time where they live! 😆
Words
6 Feb 2009Well I guess they avoid the worst of the rush hour, but that's no way to live!
folleherbe
8 Feb 2009:eyes: :yikes: bon appétit!!!
A great post Words!!!:) 🙂
I like the opposition between the action photos and
these peaceful places…:up:
Words
8 Feb 2009Thanks Foll!
annoushkiss
20 Feb 2009Wonderful post, Words :up: All the captures are amazing and together they go very well. Thanks for the excursion to the Tower of London. Maybe you'll take some pictures of its famous ravens one day 😉
Words
20 Feb 2009Thanks Anna!