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Re: Wildlife wallpapers

Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2018 12:19 pm
by asqwerth
Thanks for the new pics! That fox is a handsome fellow (my sis in the UK hates urban foxes though, since they overturn rubbish bins and leave the trash - including soiled diapers - all over the ground).

Please don't feel obligated to do them though, if you're busy. This is meant to be for fun.

Re: Wildlife wallpapers

Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2018 3:26 pm
by ChrisUK
asqwerth wrote:Thanks for the new pics! That fox is a handsome fellow (my sis in the UK hates urban foxes though, since they overturn rubbish bins and leave the trash - including soiled diapers - all over the ground).

Please don't feel obligated to do them though, if you're busy. This is meant to be for fun.
The Urban Foxes are welcome around here... the Rats make more mess ;)

I do feel an obligation to help if I'm able to, but I don't feel pressured to do so ;)

Here's a Sparrowhawk pic to start off with... and some info that might be of interest:

The bird is a juvenile (hatched the year that I took the picture) Sparrowhawk - I can tell the age by the plumage and by the time of year. Sparrowhawks, like most Raptors, don't moult into their adult plumage until their second year. It's probably a female, based on size compared to the prey and prey choice. Top left of the pic you should be able to make out a spread wing of the Sparrowhawk - bottom right of the pic is the back of a Pigeon. Don't worry, despite the Sparrowhawk mantling the Pigeon for a while, inexperience meant that the Pigeon escaped.

Oh, this was in my garden. (1920*1200 image uploaded to usual place)

(Ring-necked Parakeet images and others when I have the time tomorrow.)

Re: Wildlife wallpapers

Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2018 5:08 pm
by Jerry3904
Gorgeous! Nice depth of field on the head, BTW

Re: Wildlife wallpapers

Posted: Sun Apr 15, 2018 10:58 am
by ChrisUK
She was a striking bird... she won't have that plumage now ;) Actually, she won't have moulted yet, but she'll have worn rather than fresh new feathers.

Re: Wildlife wallpapers

Posted: Sun Apr 15, 2018 11:23 am
by asqwerth
That eye.....

Re: Wildlife wallpapers

Posted: Sun Apr 15, 2018 1:15 pm
by Jerry3904
Now one of my standard 4 desktops

Did anybody else read H is for hawk?

Re: Wildlife wallpapers

Posted: Sun Apr 15, 2018 2:24 pm
by ChrisUK
Jerry3904 wrote:Now one of my standard 4 desktops

Did anybody else read H is for hawk?
I've heard of the book, but I can't say that I've read it (I think the author is in one of the forums that I frequent). Most of my time is spent observing and photographing wildlife - much of my remaining time is spent processing pictures. I have a bit of time for wildlife forums and a bit for Linux forums... I don't have much time left for reading a book ;)

I'm glad that you seem to appreciate Raptors, they have a hard time in many parts of the world. There's still people that feed the birds yet bang on the window to scare off a Hawk if one shows up. I've been fortunate to watch Sparrowhawks at close range for years, not the breeding/nesting, but the hunting/ambushing/subduing prey/feeding etc.

I've done it again... wandered off-topic into Nature... I'll stop now. I'll try to find some interesting Sparrowhawk pics, maybe blur the unpleasant parts of the image while still showing the behaviour. I'll test out the images on my wife, as she's squeamish - if she doesn't scream or run away the pics will probably be OK to upload ;)

Re: Wildlife wallpapers

Posted: Sun Apr 15, 2018 4:23 pm
by Jerry3904
I have a breeding pair of redtails in the ravine next to my house, hear and see them all the time.

Re: Wildlife wallpapers

Posted: Sun Apr 15, 2018 6:53 pm
by arjaybe
We have kestrels (sparrow hawks) and merlins (pigeon hawks) that visit the yard. They keep the birds at the feeder alert. There are larger hawks that patrol the nearby fields -- cooper's, red-tailed, etc -- they keep the voles alert. Bald eagles and osprey lurk over the river, keeping the fish alert. Golden eagles live on a nearby bluff. I recently watched a standoff between a merlin and a squirrel. Too bad I don't take pictures, eh?-)

Re: Wildlife wallpapers

Posted: Mon Apr 16, 2018 1:37 am
by ChrisUK
Jerry3904 wrote:I have a breeding pair of redtails in the ravine next to my house, hear and see them all the time.
Must be great seeing them, especially the flight displays during the breeding season.

I'm one of very few that feeds the birds in a very urban setting (people here hate greenery and love concrete). The first year Sparrowhawks seem to find my garden each year - as their territories overlap, I likely get birds from different nest sites. They are very inexperienced when they first show up, often taking minutes just to subdue small prey that wasn't killed on the strike, whereas the experienced adults take seconds to subdue and start eating prey up to about the size of a Starling. (As you probably know, Hawks, unlike Falcons, don't have the ability to kill instantly (although some learn to kill quickly) they start to eat as soon as they pin down the prey).
arjaybe wrote:We have kestrels (sparrow hawks) and merlins (pigeon hawks) that visit the yard. They keep the birds at the feeder alert. There are larger hawks that patrol the nearby fields -- cooper's, red-tailed, etc -- they keep the voles alert. Bald eagles and osprey lurk over the river, keeping the fish alert. Golden eagles live on a nearby bluff. I recently watched a standoff between a merlin and a squirrel. Too bad I don't take pictures, eh?-)
That sounds like a great area. If your Merlin is the same size as ours, it's lucky that the Merlin flew off - an adult Squirrel is quite formidable with those claws and teeth. The only Hawk that we have that takes Squirrels is the Goshawk. Even large female Sparrowhawks won't tackle a Squirrel, although they will stand their ground and look menacing for as long as possible.