I got these before the rain arrived in earnest today. A lone rat, scrambling around the tree roots at the edge of the pond at Falmer.
Rat about to make the great leap
Rat leaping across
And that’s a fine landing!
Checking out the next level.
And a closing portrait… in black and white for a change.
Camera note: all photos taken with the Canon 7D Mark II and EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens.
A blazing hot afternoon, and a mini-trek over Sheepcote Valley in search of kestrels. They made it easy. I spotted the first one as I drove in to the empty(!) car park. It was perched on the fence, having hopped over from the road side as I drove in. There’s an odd colour cast on this shot, but I like the business of it all, and it was the first shot of the day.
Male kestrel perched on wooden post at the Sheepcote Valley car park
This next one is altogether more conventional…
Kestrel in flight under blue sky
It was out hunting, and between perches picked up a small snack (a speckled bush cricket, I think).
Kestrel at with speckled bush cricket
Kestrel eating
The young male eventually flew off into the distance. A female then appeared, perched along the fencing that runs between the fields and the local golf course.
Female kestrel at Sheepcote Valley
Brown on beige
Note the brown head (as opposed to the grey of the male)
Kestrel cruising over the golf course at Sheepcote Valley
The heat got to me. I headed back to the car. Andthere he was again. The young male perched on a street lamp.
Kestrel perched on street lamp
Back to watching from a handy perch
Camera note: all photos taken with the Canon 7D Mark II and EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens.
I got over to Woods Mill today, the headquarters of the Sussex Wildlife Trust. It was quiet on the small lake, and the fringes are heavily overgrown so very few people were spending any time by the water, which was all the better for me. There was a lone cormorant on the lake, doing very little. These shots were taken over a three hour period. Someone did say that they thought the bird had been injured, and that it is recuperating at Woods Mill. That may be the case, but it certainly looked in good shape (and a lazy cormorant is not that uncommon!) Anyway, some pix…
Cormorant swimming in the lake at Woods Mill, Sussex
I shot this through foliage, which produced an awful green tinge. I’ve desaturated the greens which leaves this semi-b&w shot. I’ve upped the yellow on the beak.
I think this may be a coot’s nest that it’s standing on, among the lily pads.
More of the same!
Later on, from the far side of the lake… balancing on a branch.
This one looks like a chimp in a cormorant suit!
Feather preening (and proof that a spirit level in the 7D2’s view finder is incredibly useful)
Cormorant resting… let’s call it a day!
Camera note: all photos taken with the Canon 7D Mark II and EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens.
