ross blackford Posted May 2, 2010 Share Posted May 2, 2010 :), Now that I have your attention, I saw these two at Deniliquin Airport last Wednesday afternoon. They were being rather publicity shy, as could be expected but I managed to shoot them (with my camera that is) without scaring them off. Oh, and by the way these Raptors are Aussie natives. :), Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
GreyGhost Posted May 2, 2010 Share Posted May 2, 2010 Pretty Birds, thanks for sharing the photos, Ross ... :) Gregg Quote Link to post Share on other sites
roym Posted May 2, 2010 Share Posted May 2, 2010 Nice pics. Nice birds. Nice for a change! Thanks. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mongo Posted May 2, 2010 Share Posted May 2, 2010 And considerably prettier and more graceful than that ugly thing that calls itself a jet... What kind of bird is this? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
GForceSS Posted May 2, 2010 Share Posted May 2, 2010 There were only two in the tree due to budget cuts and cost over runs. Nice photos. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
A-4Silverfox Posted May 2, 2010 Share Posted May 2, 2010 ........."beautiful plumage"............ ........."migratory habits?" Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ixgr1 Posted May 2, 2010 Share Posted May 2, 2010 Magnificent birdies - should be more birds of prey around. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted May 3, 2010 Author Share Posted May 3, 2010 , G'day Mongo, I'm not really sure what kind of birds these are except that they're hawks of some kind perhaps ospreys or nankang kites. A4Silverfox, Yes they do have beautiful plumage, especially when they're on the wing. No they don't migrate. These two share a territory with a magpie pair and a peewee pair, which in itself is a bit unusual. The peewee pair had a nest in the tree above my head with one bird on the nest when I was taking these picks and that's also unusual for birds to be breeding coming on winter. From what I felt while I was down there I think it's going to be a cold winter this year after several years of very hot summers and mild winters. It was wonderful seeing the maggies and one peewee foraging on the ground while these two sat top cover. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
madmike Posted May 3, 2010 Share Posted May 3, 2010 Very nice Ross! We have a few Wedgies near my parents-in-laws who regularly circle the freeway area looking for a quick bite to eat. MikeJ Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Wayne S Posted May 3, 2010 Share Posted May 3, 2010 (edited) :D, G'day Mongo,I'm not really sure what kind of birds these are except that they're hawks of some kind perhaps ospreys or nankang kites. , Ross. Black Shouldered Kite or Black Winged Kite. Thanks for sharing the pictures Edited May 3, 2010 by Wayne S Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted May 3, 2010 Author Share Posted May 3, 2010 , G'day Wayne S, Many thanks for identifying these little raptors. They aren't that big, between a peewee and our magpie in size. When I get home from work in the morning I'll put up a couple of pics of the peewees. One thing I can tell you is a peewee's nest is much neater than a magpie's. The maggie's nest is a rough looking, jerry built, tatty structure of twisted sticks that looks like it was just thrown together in 2 minutes whereas the peewees are real architects. I don't have any pics of magpie nests but they don't compare to the neatness and symmetry of the peewees' home. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mingwin Posted May 3, 2010 Share Posted May 3, 2010 your lucky to have thoses beautiful birds in australia! (and many others) thanks for the pics! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HOLMES Posted May 3, 2010 Share Posted May 3, 2010 BEAUTIFUL Birds... STUNNING TO see them Soar.... I think this is a WHITE BELLIED SEA EAGLE.. http://www.raptor.org.au/hleucogatser.html Quote Link to post Share on other sites
The_Animal Posted May 3, 2010 Share Posted May 3, 2010 Definitely a Black-Shouldered Kite as WayneS said. Elanus axillaris Beautiful bird. Makes ya wish you had a telephoto prime lens. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted May 4, 2010 Author Share Posted May 4, 2010 B), It sure does Animal. These shots were taken with a 100 - 400mm zoom lense at full zoom, and they were only across the road and up about 30' in the tree. Here's a couple of the peewees, one in the tree over the road and one on the nest in the tree above my head. , Ross. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Wayne S Posted May 4, 2010 Share Posted May 4, 2010 Nice shots bud, Really glad Spring is here for these kind of things. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ross blackford Posted May 4, 2010 Author Share Posted May 4, 2010 (edited) :), Ah, sorry Wayne, it's autumn here. That's what's so unusual about the peewees nesting. I have no idea what's going on there, although their nest is in a tree right outside a rice mill. Maybe that has something to do with it. The magpie family that lives near the hospital where I work get up at about 0400 and come and feed on the crickets and grasshoppers and other insects that are attracted to the external lights, so perhaps there's enough food around the rice mill at Deni for them to be able to breed out of season. Who knows, I certainly don't. Mind you, those magpies that live near here also get fed by members of the local population including me. I love watching their individual traits, they all have there own personalities just like us. , Ross. Edited for typo. Edited May 4, 2010 by ross blackford Quote Link to post Share on other sites
twhite80 Posted May 4, 2010 Share Posted May 4, 2010 They even have a radar cross section the size of a small bird! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jward Posted May 4, 2010 Share Posted May 4, 2010 They look nice and all, but the weathering on those raptors is all wrong! The landing gear looks out of alignment and the lack of external stores really hurts your chances with the judges. :lol: Jim Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Qian Posted May 4, 2010 Share Posted May 4, 2010 WOW! Nice shots bud. That's what I call a RAPTOR! :lol: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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