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Gathering food for their young?

With both my local male and female Blackbirds (Turdus merula) hunting it suggests that they are feeding young in the nest. All images taken with Panasonic G1 and 100-300mm Panasonic lens (borrowed). The images have been minimally post processed with Bibble Pro 5 and are not cropped.

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female blackbird, f/8, 1/320 sec, iso 400

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male Blackbird, f/8, 1/250 sec, iso 400, I hope that worm is for your young

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oh well, maybe it wasn't, f/8, 1/200 sec, iso 400


Barrie
 
Dave, I was wondering if your woodpecker might be a cactus wren. I was just looking at some woodpeckers this afternoon and had my bird book out. Nice shots.
 
BBW said:
I'm so glad you still have that lens, Barrie - and very nice closeups of the parents foraging for their young!
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BBW, I might have the use of it for somewhat longer than I expected. The lady who lent it to me did not have a good week. We were out walking a couple of days later and she managed to put her foot down a disused badger hole resulting in a fractured knee, so she is out of action for some time, puts her dropped camera bag and damaged lens into perspective.

Barrie
 
Barrie, I just read about your friend's accident on another post - how terrible! Oh I feel so badly for her, especially since I am sure that this is The Season for her. I hope she mends quickly.

No doubt she is heartened by the fact that you'll be putting her lens to great use - and sharing the photos with her as she heals.
 
BBW said:
Barrie, I just read about your friend's accident on another post - how terrible! Oh I feel so badly for her, especially since I am sure that this is The Season for her. I hope she mends quickly.

No doubt she is heartened by the fact that you'll be putting her lens to great use - and sharing the photos with her as she heals.
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Thank you for your thoughts on her behalf. She is very much a botanist so this really is her season, doubtless she is extremely frustrated. She has a strong and independent character and will I'm sure make the best of a bad deal.

Barrie
 
davect01 said:
I really don't know. I assumed it was a wood pecker as it was drilling away at the palm tree next to my place, but I know very little about birds species.
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Hi Dave,

I'm an amateur ornithologist from the other side of the pond, so I've had to consult my guide book on American birds west of the Rockies, and it's a dead wringer for Cactus Wren.

Barrie
 
some grab shots from this mornings walk

I'm still "testing" that borrowed 100-300mm lens. These are all hand held grab shots as the opportunity presented itself on my morning walk. Non of the images have been cropped. Cirl Bunting and newly arrived Whitethroats evaded me.

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male Linnet (Acanthis cannabina)

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female Linnet with nest material. She was accompanied by the male when collecting material, but he always landed further away from me than she did.

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male Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella)

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female Yellowhammer

Barrie
 
continuing to test the 100-300mm lens

A couple more from a walk today, this time on farmland that forms part of the land holding of the Whitley Trust who administer Slapton Ley National nature Reserve where i volunteer, although this land does not form part of the reserve.

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This is a male Cirl Bunting, a rare farmland bird in the UK with just a few hundred pairs breeding, virtually all in south Devon. This is a species that I have monitored for the last 25 years.

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A male Blackcap , a widespread summer visitor, although some from a population in SE Germany have started to winter in the UK in the last 30 years.

Both shots have been partially cropped with minimal post processing in Bibble Pro 5.

Barrie
 
I don't think we have these two here in the eastern United States. Looks as though you all had a great day, Barrie, with plenty of sunshine.

Your Blackcap, reminds me a little bit of a Tufted Titmouse with a big dark toupee.

It's rainy and overcast here in New York, but I'm going out for a little walk with my dog to see what we can see.
 
BBW said:
I don't think we have these two here in the eastern United States. Looks as though you all had a great day, Barrie, with plenty of sunshine.

Your Blackcap, reminds me a little bit of a Tufted Titmouse with a big dark toupee.

It's rainy and overcast here in New York, but I'm going out for a little walk with my dog to see what we can see.
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No, these are very much Old World bird species. We are enjoying an unprecedented period of sunshine for the month of April, which is commonly known as a showery month, farmers will certainly be wanting rain, where I photographed those birds we have prepared a field for spring barley and a bird seed mix, but no point in planting until there is some rain in the forecast. I hope your dog enjoys his (her?) walk, as indeed do you despite the rather gloomy conditions.

Barrie

Barrie
 
Another day and yet more testing, think i might be getting the hang of it

Yet another early morning walk up my local lane to see what i could capture with the borrowed 100-300mm lens. I got some distant Yellowhammer and Whitethroat pictures, but am now waiting until I can get closer images where possible.

Eventually this female Linnet cooperated and came and perched very close to me. Neither shot is cropped, both with the lens zoomed to 300mm, hand held @ f/8, iso 400 which is giving speeds in excess of 1/1500 sec in the bright conditions we are enjoying at the moment.

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Here she is carrying nest lining material

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Managed to get the lens to auto focus through the branches at the front, in several shots where she was a little more distant that did not happen, so I ended up with a photograph of a nice sharp branch in front of an out of focus bird.

Barrie

oh dear, no border on one shot, lost brownie points
 
These are fantastic, Barrie - particularly the first with her beak full of nesting materials!

In your second, I think her head is quite in focus...so it's not your best ever but it shows what this lens can do in your capable hands. I have a feeling this is going to be a great spring season for you!(y)

P.S. I can't even do borders, so you're way ahead in brownie points.;)
 

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