Moments From Nature's Secrets

Monday, May 19, 2014

Mikepércs: Terns

Becoming excited on my last successful photography at the pond I was anxious to make a visit there again. The first lights appeared already when I arrived at the pond, and I could see clearly by the moonlight the flock of coots sleping in a corner of the pond. I even passed them and they observed me just when another bird started to run away on the other pond.
At the last occasion the whiskered terns settled on the top of my hide with pleasure, so I placed a branch especially for them in front of the hide. I didn't have to wait too much for their first landing on the branch. But when another came the first one left:

Whiskered Terns

Many terns were flying above the water, sometimes swooping down to pick out something of the water, but it wasn't easy to catch them only when they moved in a more calculable way:

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Meanwhile the black-winged stilts appeared too, they even mated a few times:

Black-winged Stilt

Black-winged Stilt

Black-winged Stilt

Black-winged Stilt

The black terns appeared as well, having an even more rapsodic flight then the whiskered terns, so I was unable to take a decent shot of them, as they didn't land.

Whiskered Tern

Preening:

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Whiskered Tern

Later the duck hatchlings appeared with their mother, but didn't come close this time. However they grew a lot during one week, and I considered with delight that all of the 12 ducks were there.
The ducks kept the distance, once however a ferruginous duck came closer, so I made a few exposures ...:

Ferruginous Duck

... and made it fly onwards a little.
Unfortunately I didn't manage to take backlight shots as I did last time, although I really counted on it. I
will another time. This is a kind of activity, where you generally don't get what you count on.

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