Lake birds

[paulmurphy]

Now that summer is here, the lake in Leazes park is full of birdlife, here are some from this week that I hope you like

Tufted duck



Some of the swans now have cygnets



My favourite of this week - preening Swan




Best wishes

Paul

[Dr. Harout]

The 3rd one is in one word wonderful. Can you provide some info, please?

[aster]

How wonderful!

Lovely shots, all of them. The second and the third is amazing with their richness of details in the feathers. The colour of the water and the reflections are tantalizing in the second. The cygnets are very cute and the tufted duck looks as if it's sculpted with that posture.

Thanks for sharing, Paul. Great to see your work again.

Yildiz

[sury]

Paul,
Very nice set. I loved the second one most for the reflection conveying the state of the
water. The rich details of the third one is very impressive. I like how sharp and separated the
ribs(?) of the feathers unlike mine which usually are a just a "blob" of white.

With best regards,
Sury

[Greg Beetham]

I looked at em all three times and can't decide if I like any one better than the other, they're all so good.
Greg

[paulmurphy]

Thanks for the comments all, the shooting info was A700 + Sigma 70 - 200 APO II Macro HSM for all pics.

Here a couple more from the same location with the same camera lens combination

The birds get very territorial at this time of year and this Canada Goose flew in to challenge one with a lot of noise and splashing but was sent packing in very short order with even more noise and splashing.

Hope you like them





Paul

[Greg Beetham]

Ha ha good one Murph, he went in like a lion and went out like a lamb, executing a very neat u-turn.
Greg

[aster]

Territory saved indeed!

Paul, nice sequence of the encounter. Reminds of some of the scenes I see around the roofs here from time to time, but the splashing yet frozen water drops and the neatness of the shot is amazing.

Yildiz

[david antony]

All great photos Paul.
The encounter is simply amazing, best I
have seen.

[paulmurphy]

The baby birds are growing fast, today there were a few families out of the water and walking the edge of the lake

Adult and Juvenile Coot



Juvenile Coot




Adult and Juvenile Canada Geese




Best wishes

Paul

[Birma]

Very nice shots Paul - I've never seen a baby coot (a coot-ling? ) so that was a very interesting shot for me.

[aster]

I like the funny walk of the juvenile Canadian goose alongside its mother. : )

Coot is a very interesting bird, never saw one this close. Definitely has a sharp edged beak structure unlike other lake / water birds that have rounded ones.

Thanks for sharing,

Yildiz

[paulmurphy]

Some more lake bird shots from this morning.

There are all stages of the mating game going on now.

Some couples are just forming, like these mallards



Some birds are squabling over territory, like these coots



Others are raising their offspring



Hope you are not bored with this series yet

Cheers

Paul

[aster]

Hi Paul,

These are marvellous! Bright and clear and colourful like genuine crystal... I like the activity that's framed in each shot. Creatures are so unpretentious and therefore pleasing to watch.

Thanks for sharing and please keep shooting! : ))

Yildiz

[Birma]

Not even close to bored yet Paul I like the way that there is some interaction between the birds in each shot.