Red-footed Falcon - Falco vespertinus
Canon 800mm f6.3 for 1/200th @ iso800
Not native to the UK - however one turned up in Staffordshire and stayed around for a few weeks. These rarities do not normally have me setting off on a journey to see them - this bird was though only two junctions down the motorway and both Steve and Ian where paying it a visit and so it was once the throngs of those who have yearly lists of birds to tick off and then repeat the process ticking off the same birds the next year had moved on - we made the journey down the M6.
Most of the time it sat on the wire and did little else.
These birds come from eastern Europe and Asia their numbers are dwindling but coming to the UK they dwindle even quicker - full story as reported by the BBC here.
I think we made two trips to photograph this bird hoping for something more than a bird on the wire. Ian even brought his son James with him - he (James) needed something from the car which was parked within a few paces of the five barred gate we stood at. James acting on strict orders to lock the car after retrieving whatever he had wanted from it - did exactly as he was told and locked the car door when he had finished - the problem being he had left the keys in the car when locking it - this being a couple of years back before keyless entry had come onto the market. Ian's wife then had to make the journey down the motorway with the spare keys !!!
Not native to the UK - however one turned up in Staffordshire and stayed around for a few weeks. These rarities do not normally have me setting off on a journey to see them - this bird was though only two junctions down the motorway and both Steve and Ian where paying it a visit and so it was once the throngs of those who have yearly lists of birds to tick off and then repeat the process ticking off the same birds the next year had moved on - we made the journey down the M6.
Most of the time it sat on the wire and did little else.
These birds come from eastern Europe and Asia their numbers are dwindling but coming to the UK they dwindle even quicker - full story as reported by the BBC here.
I think we made two trips to photograph this bird hoping for something more than a bird on the wire. Ian even brought his son James with him - he (James) needed something from the car which was parked within a few paces of the five barred gate we stood at. James acting on strict orders to lock the car after retrieving whatever he had wanted from it - did exactly as he was told and locked the car door when he had finished - the problem being he had left the keys in the car when locking it - this being a couple of years back before keyless entry had come onto the market. Ian's wife then had to make the journey down the motorway with the spare keys !!!