Constant Rain, Kingfishers and Buzzards...........what a start to the year

The weather so far this year has consisted of rain, rain and more rain.  In fact, the rain has been so bad that much of January and February so far, has seen severe weather warnings for floods here in S W France.  Needlees to say, even though I am happy to put up with severe conditions myself, the wildlife has far more sense and has been sheltering from the rain and my camera lens.  Of course, I always work on the basis that if I am not outside searching, then I am not going to shoot anything!

Having spent the best part of last year, trying to get a decent shot of a Kingfisher, 2021 got off to a cracking start, when I visited a friends lake again.  With my 'pop-up' hide erected close to the 'perches' that I put in the lake last summer, I was fully prepared to just sit and hope that something might show up on the land that surrounds the lake.  In the past 12 months, this location had given me shots of Kingfisher, Buzzards, Coypu, Foxes and Deer, so on a cold winters morning, even a distant sighting of anything would make the day worthwhile.

After 3 hours in just 3 degrees temperature, I must admit that I was beginning to think that maybe, it was time to call it a day and promised myself 'just 5 more minutes'. It's a routine that I often use in the hope that 'fate' will intervene and reward me with something to shoot before I pack everything away.  As usual, I started the countdown in my head........1, 2, 3.......

Around 3 minutes in to the count, the 'peep peep' sound of a Kingfisher reached my ears and I sat up and searched through the hide opening to see if I could find it anywhere close by.  There it was, on the far side of the lake sitting in a small tree.  Distant, but nonetheless, my first Kingfisher sighting of the year.

A long way off, but a wonderful sight, on the far side of the lake.

Reinvigorated by this, I decided to stay put and see what would happen next, and it did not take long for it to start fishing.  The first few dives produced nothing but just to prove the saying, "if at first you don't succeed", its next attempt produced a Newt, which it chose to bring across the lake to a perch around 30 metres away to my left.....Here is a shot of it with the poor Newt.

Although it was still some distance, it was getting closer!

Much to my amazement, and having consumed its lunch, it then flew up on to the perch directly in front, and just 10 feet away of me, where it happily posed for this sequence of images.

Although I spent the next few days in the hide, when the Kingfisher did arrive at the lake, it kept its distance.  However, there are a pair of Buzzards that have started to build their nest nearby, so it has been a pleasure watching them interact with each other and occasionally come a little closer to my location.

Over the coming weeks and months, I hope to record their actions and the fledging of the youngsters when they arrive.  In the meantime, here are some recent shots, taken from around 40-50 metres distance.

 

In the coming weeks, I will be spending a lot of my time on this project and hope that I will be rewarded with some interesting images to share with you.

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