Well, that was what these guys were after 😉
Oystercatchers
Not such refined fare for the starlings. A much more proletarian bird, they just scrapped over the peanuts 😉
Starlings
And meanwhile a curlew glided serenely overhead.
Curlew
Camera note: all shots taken with the EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L USM IS lens.
gdare
26 Dec 2008From this angle it is obvious why the name is Curlew. Or is it only me? :left:
Flying Red Fox Blog
26 Dec 2008It was great to have sunshine on Christmas day too! 😀
The only snag though was they locked up Hotham Park which i thought was a shame, but after all the money spent on it i think they look after it more now and no one wanted to come down and unlock it for Christmas Day which is ok i suppose but dissapointing all the same, they could at least have put a sign up saying Closed Christmas Day.
Ukwildlife
26 Dec 2008fantastic photos, especially the starlings.
As for the oystercatchers, they ironically dont eat oysters lol
Words
26 Dec 2008Neil, whoops, I didn't check what they eat, though the number of cockle and mussel shells along the shoreline gives something of a clue as to what they must find around here.
Words
26 Dec 2008Darko, apparently it's named after its 'call', though I can never figure out how they get from this to the name (the sound file is a tthe top left of the page).
Words
26 Dec 2008Mark, yes Christmas Day turned out lovely, and today as well. It's a shame they locked the park, it would have been an ideal place for a Christmas Day 'constitutional' after lunch. Hope you all had a great day!
Vulpes vulpes
27 Dec 2008:up: Great shots!
SittingFox
27 Dec 2008Nice avian collection 🙂 Great to catch the curlew in flight. They have the most amazing beaks.
gdare
27 Dec 2008Well, I thought it looks like a curl… curly… somehow :left:
Words
27 Dec 2008Darko, I know what you mean!
Words
27 Dec 2008Vulpes, thanks!
Words
27 Dec 2008Adele, the curlew shots certainly beat my one previous attempt. It was a way off shore, but flying only at moderate speed and in a wonderfully line to track.