First wild bird shot ever

[chorleyjeff]

Taken for something to shoot while testing the focus on the lens - problem it only focuses sometimes and then only near to infinity. Edited in PS Touch on my IPad

It is a red kite that spent an hour or so floating around above my son's garden and roosting at the top of a conifer in next door's garden. The population of red kites seems to have exploded.

Also I want to check if I can post images ok on this forum.

Jeff

[annie]

I wish that was my first wild bird shot ever......!

[chorleyjeff]

I wish that was my first wild bird shot ever......!

No skill needed at all.

Just happened to be there and had plenty of time.

Jeff

[JohnP]

Nice capture. Red Kites almost became extinct in Britain, I believe there were only around 30 pairs left in Mid Wales in the mid 1970's, They had be persecuted by farmers and gamekeepers, quite why I don't know. They mainly eat carrion and worms and they will occasionally take small mammals. Reintroduction has seen numbers rise to around 1600 breeding pairs but they are still on the amber list which is only one below red.

[chorleyjeff]

Nice capture. Red Kites almost became extinct in Britain, I believe there were only around 30 pairs left in Mid Wales in the mid 1970's, They had be persecuted by farmers and gamekeepers, quite why I don't know. They mainly eat carrion and worms and they will occasionally take small mammals. Reintroduction has seen numbers rise to around 1600 breeding pairs but they are still on the amber list which is only one below red.

That's what I understood. But they seem very abundant in the Chilterns near Marlow. At Marlow Bottom there were quite a few to be seen most of the day and they could be heard pretty well all day.

I read that they are scavengers and were very common in London. Around Marlow Bottom they circle above the houses and away from the houses frequent hedgerows and the edges of woodlands. The cat from next door was confident to bask in the sun on the house drive while red kites circled over so it seems cats are not prey. Do they take rabbits of which there are many?

[JohnP]

 Do they take rabbits of which there are many?

 

The Chilterns was one of the areas selected for reintroduction and they have spread quite a lot now, when I was working I used to drive to London sometimes several times each week. There were always Red Kites over the M40 at the cutting near Stokenchurch. They would probably take a small rabbit if it was sick and easy to catch, it was amazing to see them come down onto the motorway between the traffic to pick up road kill. Although they look as big as a Buzzard (which does feed on Rabbits) Red Kites are actually quite a bit smaller, it's the longer narrow wings that make them look larger than they are. The body mass is about 2/3 of that of a Buzzard. An adult Red Kite has a wingspan of around 1.8 metres.

[Leon]

if you like red Kites have a mooch upto Harewood house, Harewood Hillclimb is about a mile away and I see them every time I go.... bring a 500mm+ lens though!

[ChrisLumix]

Cracking shot.

[NannyFerret]

Welcome! and well done on your first bird shop. It's brilliant.