emace's photostream  

Another example of how long the legs of an eagle really are.

I wish there wasn't a shadow line on this bird's face from its wing but I really dig it when they do this before dropping down for a fish. It really lets you see just how long their legs really are.

On our way home yesterday we noticed a juvie RTH that had been hanging around on the wires along 97 was now hovering right over the shoulder of the road not 15 off the ground. MK stopped for a minute and I rattled off a bunch of snaps. This was the best of 'em.

Oh what a difference a clear sky can make. This is the same bird I posted the other day in the same place but with vastly better light. I'm definitely gonna go back to hang with him again the next time I get a chance. They just don't get any better than this guy when it comes to posing for pictures.

Yesterday MK and I drove up to Emiquon to see if we couldn't find the cooperative male kestrel I'd found on my way to LD14 last week. He had been hanging around the pond near the entrance of Dickson Mounds but the morning I found him the light was crap and I didn't have the time to wait for it to get better. Yesterday, though, the light was awesome all day long so we headed back up there. On our first pass through the area we saw no sign of our quarry so we drove around and explored a couple of roads we'd not driven before. When we came back, lo and behold, there was the male and, just a short distance away, was this female. She turned out to be very relaxed with us as well as the male and provided me with ample opportunity to get several pics but, at first, she was so unconcerned with us that she spent most of her time looking over her shoulder. MK had to honk the horn to get her to look back over my direction and that's when I got this look. Since she was so close to the male and hunting the same space I am guessing that the two are a mated pair and getting prepared for the imminent breeding season.