My favorite Kestrel photos are from a couple of years ago - we're currently waiting by the window with fingers crossed in hopes they will use our Kestrel house again this year. When I went back to review and refine photos for this post I stumbled across this picture that appears to be a completely different species of Kestrel - soft and cuddly. This little guy has spread almost every single feather from each other - if you zoom in you can see how the spots appear at the end of the feathers - incredibly beautiful.
The following is a series to show how a slick hunter can appear a docile fluffy aviator.
On a May afternoon this male - paired with the female from the previous post - landed on our Shepard hook with a vole...and looked directly at me.
He gave a short cry over his shoulder then began to shake - much like we do when we shiver.
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| 1/800 of a second was not fast enough to slow down the shivering wings |
A few milliseconds of "shivering" and he has gone from a sleek, slate colored killer to an adorable fluffy bird - still holding a vole.
The photo series of his "shiver" lasted less than a second - quite the transformation in slow motion. Finished, he gave me one more look, a cry and then flew off to finish his meal...and kept hunting.
Less than 5 minutes later he reappeared with a lizard who - with all apologies to the lizard - looks like he is smiling for the camera. And yes that lizard has a blue underbelly - and yes I had no idea that those kind of lizards existed in our area.
I hope you enjoyed today's post and the rare chance to take a close look at the fine feathering of this incredible Kestrel.
More to follow...
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