Last year I came across a pair of Black-shouldered Kites in an area which appeared to be a suitable breeding site. I spent quite a few hours watching them on several occasions, as they perched in their favourite trees and hunted the surrounding fields. The food supply seemed adequate as the birds returned to the trees with small rodents after a short hunt. When I arrived this time, I saw two Kites in the trees but they looked different, very different. Both these birds were juveniles and it may be that the pair I watched last year, have in fact bred nearby. Today's watch taught me a little more about these beautiful small raptors. One of the adults was soon seen hunting a nearby field and performed its classic hover as it searched the ground below. The piercing red eyes and the yellow feet show well on the adult birds. The underside is white with black primaries. Into the hover and watching for prey. I turned my attention back to one of the juvenile Kites. The back is grey as in the adult but the feathers are tipped white, which gives a scaly appearance to the back. The second thing I noticed was the eye which was yellow as opposed to the adult's red eye. What followed next was a real surprise for a raptor, this Kite performs a tail-flicking gesture. Given that the undertail is all white, the flash is really visible at a distance and I assume it is done to attract the parent. The tail-flicking was performed regularly until the parent flew closer and a shrill 'begging' call followed. Note the trace of an ochre collar on the breast. Juvenile preparing to land. The second juvenile Kite. Yesterday near Lagoa. Visiting an area of reedbed, I came across a flock of Waxbills and took the opportunity to photograph this Waxbill. Where is the bright red bill that gives the bird its name? Well, it's a juvenile Waxbill and the bill is a dark brown colour, slowly changing to red. One of five Marsh Harriers in the area together. A long way off, a Peregrine unsuccessfully annoying an adult Bonelli's Eagle.
I couldn't ignore this beautiful Monarch butterfly! Comments are closed.
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