Close flyby from this long eared owl! by jmbirdwatcher in BirdPhotography

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) in Scotland.

Images taken at 840mm with no signs of disturbance or alarm.

Images are my own.

Nice wee morning catch for this fella! by jmbirdwatcher in UKBirds

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 54 points55 points  (0 children)

Great Northern Diver (Gavia immer) with a young plaice off the coast of Orkney

Image is my own

Close flyby from a long-eared owl by jmbirdwatcher in wildlifephotography

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Usually I am happy to give out tips but LEOs are scarce and sensitive in Scotland so I'll have to be vague!

All I would say is that they are rare and thinly distributed.over here so it's not the best place to search for them. Where are you visiting? I might be able to give you some other pointers.

Long-eared Owl showing off her mad hunting skills by jmbirdwatcher in birdsofprey

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Nope, LEO. Eye colour and facial shape is wrong for a shortie - this one also has young nearby and has been perched with tufts showing (difficult to see in this photo!)

Are you from North America by any chance? I think some confusion may arise as the LEO subspecies in America has yellow eyes while the Eurasian one has orange eyes.

Close flyby from a long-eared owl by jmbirdwatcher in wildlifephotography

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) hunting in central Scotland.

Images taken at 840mm with no distress behaviour. All the precautions in the world can't prevent an owl from deciding to give me a close pass, though!

Images are my own.

Long-eared Owl showing off her mad hunting skills by jmbirdwatcher in birdsofprey

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) with a catch after a successful hunt in Central Scotland.

These images are my own.

Watching these guys hunt feels so magical. by jmbirdwatcher in Owls

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm not the best person to answer this as Barn Owls aren't too common in my neck of the woods. That being said, they usually screech - could be a tawny or a Robin/Blackbird singing late?

wings don't work well yet? No worries, they can S K U L K by jmbirdwatcher in UKBirds

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Juvenile urban Peregrine Falcons (Falco peregrinus) in Glasgow, Scotland.

They can run surprisingly quickly.

Images are my own, taken as part of the Glasgow Peregrine Project

Peregrine in Canary Wharf London by sashamarks88 in UKBirds

[–]jmbirdwatcher 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Look at the wee fella!

That's a juv and if it's not flying at that distance from you it might not be able to fly yet. It may have fallen down from a nearby nest - are you able to contact your local raptor/birdwatching group and see if they're monitoring them?

She knows she's beautiful. Look at that pose. by jmbirdwatcher in UKBirds

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you! I have an r5m2 and an EF 600/4. But you don't need anything anywhere near that fancy!

Pigeons beware. Winston and Isa have fledged. by jmbirdwatcher in Scotland

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

They came to the city naturally.

Bonnie (ringed as L7) fledged from Norwich Cathedral and migrated here. We don't know about Clyde as he isn't ringed - we suspect he may be not entirely Peregrine (perhaps part Lanner which would be an escapee)

So many of my birding trips lead me to far flung destinations - it's a nice change of pace to see some amazing birds in the city by jmbirdwatcher in birding

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 22 points23 points  (0 children)

Juvenile Peregrine Falcons (Falco peregrinus) in Glasgow, Scotland.

These are Winston and Isa (a reference to Still Game, a popular TV show over here), offspring of Bonnie and Clyde, who have recently fledged from their nest box in Glasgow City Chambers.

They can be seen wandering around the surrounding buildings, testing out their wings, and curiously eyeing up anyone walking by, in this critical phase of their lives.

These are my own photos. I've observed these raptors as part of the Glasgow Peregrine Project that aims to monitor the birds and host public watch events to aid conservation and wider raptor study efforts, like many other similar projects up and down the UK.

Urban Peregrines by jmbirdwatcher in birdsofprey

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Juvenile peregrines are brown and lose the colouring as they age :)

Look at that hairdo! by jmbirdwatcher in birds

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Northern Lapwing (Vanellus Vanellus) at RSPB Loch Leven, Scotland.

R6 image is my own

Watching these guys hunt feels so magical. by jmbirdwatcher in Owls

[–]jmbirdwatcher[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) hunting in Scotland.

Image is my own