Where are you going Ma? I hadn't finished.
Heron Fights Back
Yesterday evening as I was topping up the seed feeders I could hear a lot of cawing. Looking up I could see a heron being chased by three crows or rooks. The corvids mobbed the heron for quite a while until they disappeared out of sight. Unfortunately I didn't think to fetch a camera as what happened next would have been worth videoing. When they came back into view there was just one corvid and the heron. Next thing I knew the heron had turned round and was facing the corvid. Amazingly they both hung in the same place in the sky, only their wings flapping. I didn't realise that they were able to hover. They must have stayed like that for well over a minute before the corvid beat a hasty retreat,
That bottom picture of the foal laughing, it looks like a donkey! is that an insult to a horse?
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you carried the camera and lens with you as the resulting photos are well worth it! Very cute indeed! Very interesting observations of the heron and crows and too bad about the camera being inside - that's so often the way though isn't it.
ReplyDeleteTut tut Matron. I don't think mother would think much of her little darling being likened to a donkey ;) Though it did remind me of a donkey braying. I think it was yawning as there was no sound at the time.
ReplyDeleteHello Mick. It was worth the effort. I wanted some decent photos as there are so few horses around the village these days.
ReplyDeleteI have seen crows chase a heron several times but I had never seen the heron turn on them before yesterday and it was fascinating watching them hovering in the sky facing each other,
Good morning :) Wonderful photos of mare and foal, and it was helpful that they finally came into the picture! That last photo does lend itself to a caption all right, (and it does look like it's braying...LOL)
ReplyDeleteInteresting about the heron and corvids. At least you were able to see the interaction without having to grapple with a camera ~ amazing about the hovering. Time must have stood still for them for a moment as they sized each other up!
Good Morning Glo. I was pleased to get some decent photos in the end. Such a rare sight these days compared with, say, twenty years ago.
ReplyDeleteIt was not as though there was much wind to keep the birds in one place so they must have been hovering. Something I have never seen a rook, crow or heron do before. It would have been great to capture that on video but such are the ups and downs of nature photography,
Have a restful weekend. Raining this morning so I have a good excuse to put my feet up.
Lovely shots of the horse and foal John. That last one is a great capture.
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting observation of the Heron and the Crow/Rook. Those corvids behave like air police at times, chasing everything away. Good to hear the Heron stood his ground. lol
Thank you Keith. It was difficult to find a time when the foal was away from the mare to get some solo shots.
ReplyDeleteThose corvids don't scare for long do they? I can scare off a dozen from the garden but within a couple of minutes they are back.