This male American Kestrel preened for me for some time as he enjoyed the security of his favorite perch.
1/1000, f/7.1, ISO 640, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc, natural light, not baited, set up or called in
He really worked over those tail feathers especially. He took each one in his bill several times and ran it through in order to “re-lock” the hooks and barbules to make them more effective for flight. As you can see, they definitely were in need of some attention.
But at some point in the process…
1/1000, f/8, ISO 640, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc, natural light, not baited, set up or called in
he apparently got something in his mouth that didn’t taste good and he stuck out his tongue repeatedly in an effort to somehow deal with the disagreeable taste.
I remember chuckling at the poor birds misfortune. Heartless of me…
Ron
And heartless chuckles from me too. Gorgeous bird, wonderful images. Thank you.
Thank you so much everyone, for your thoughtful comments. Life got ahead of me today and I just haven’t been able to respond individually to comments on this post but I want you, all of you, to know that they’re appreciated. I always feel honored when anyone takes time out of their busy lives to leave a comment here.
The first one is a winner Ron. I would submit that to a photo contest of some some sort. It’s A+ in light, pose, colour, you’ve got a winner here.
Great photos, and the last one made me chuckle, too, much as I feel for the poor bird. We’ve spent a lot of time watching the pair nesting in our neighbor’s palm tree and we’ve seen a lot, but unfortunately they are usually too far away to see them in such great detail. Your photos help to increase my already great appreciation for American Kestrels. They are very interesting birds to observe.
Love these! I chuckled at seeing them too! We forget that there’s a curious world in which they live in, and find expressions to exhibit, just like us 2 legged folks do! Thank you for sharing your amazing photos!
What amazing shots of a beautiful little bird! Thanks for sharing Ron!
Beautiful….I love the colors on this bird. So often your posts remind me of experiences with the same bird. The American Kestrel is probably the earliest recollection I have of a bird when I was quite young. My parents had found an injured kestrel and they nursed it back to health. I remember them putting meat on a piece of wood and watching the kestrel pull the meat apart. I hope it recovered. Then just last night I was looking through some old photos and saw a picture of me when I was about 15 years old with a kestrel perched on my hand. I do not even remember this occasion, but it had to have been an injured bird. Thanks for the memories and the beautiful photos.
It’s rare that I ever see a Kestrel in any pose except that prelaunch pose for a split second and then flying away from me. I’ve yet to be able to sneak up close enough to one to see any natural behavior other than “escape”…I envy your experience with this one. Thanks for sharing it with us.
Great shots Ron. I love the behavioral side of your images. We don’t see that type of shot very often, so keep em coming, much appreciate the change!!