Osprey

 Believe it or not, I have been quite restrained when selecting pictures for this post. I have more images of this beautiful Osprey but have held back a few. Enjoy the pictures and then see the story below...

I had gone to Utah Lake State Park to visit a farmers market, with no expectation that I would see anything remarkable given the noise from the PA system and the large number of people that were around. The market itself was a disappointment and had I not been waiting for other family members to arrive I would most likely have left pretty quickly without even venturing to the waterfront. However, I did have to wait and I was so glad because I was treated to a wonderful display as this majestic Osprey was flying over the marina and even fishing alongside pleasure boats allowing me the opportunity to get a few decent shots. 

I have only seen an Osprey once before in the UK and even then it was at a distance due to restrictions around the nest site (and although last year one did land on the beach close to where I live, I only heard about that after it had moved on). So, I was very excited to see this one up close and seemingly unperturbed by the large gathering of people. It made a few passes before flying off to find another fishing spot and perhaps to get away from the pesky Kingbird that was harassing it. 

These images were shot on my Canon 5D mk4 with Canon 100-400mm F4.5 - 5.6L IS ii USM plus 1.4x iii converter. The shutter speed was 1250/s and I think I should have used a faster speed for crisper images. I'll know for next time...

Fly Past

 This incredible bird's piercing cry could be heard every day as it flew along the valley in search of prey.

Most often it flew some distance away but occasionally it came close enough to get a good look and just once I had my camera ready for the shot as it swooped overhead. Not only did I hear its cry but also to powerful rush of air as it flapped its wings above me. 

Soaring

Today I am posting my 1500th blog post!  That is something of an achievement and when I realised yesterday that I was going to reach this milestone I wondered what I would be able to share, I hoped to find something special in my portfolio but as it happened the three images I have fopr you were taken today and they are a fitting choice.

I have had a busy day today but I found time this afternoon to visit Burton Mere. I wasn't really expecting to see very much but there was quite a variety of species to be seen and with it being the hottest day of the year so far it was good to get out and soak up some sun.

Towards the end of my visit I spotted this buzzard soaring overhead, this was quite a surprise and I didn't have the settings quite how I would have wanted but as it swooped and soared above me I managed to get a few shots the three above being the most usable.

I had snapped a Sparrowhawk earlier in the day but it was too far away to be any good, and just after the buzzard flew by a Marsh Harrier also took a low pass but it was too quick for me to get anything other than a snap as it disappeared in the distance.

Although it would have been great to get pictures of all three the fact that I saw them all in such a short space of time was enough to put a smile on my face.

Cool Kestrel

Hopefully you saw the pictures I posted a couple of weeks ago of this beautiful kestrel at Brockholes reserve. Today I have chosen to post a few more shots of the same bird, firstly perched on top of a post that he had visited for food and the other two as he sat at the top of a wicker arch surveying the landscape. He was acutely aware of my presence but as long as I didn't approach too close or too quickly he was quite content to sit and pose for me.