Eating Egg – Shells
The moment a birds eggs hatch is a very dangerous time for lots of birds especially Hawks, Owls and Nightjars. Any egg-shells left around the nest would give the nest away to predators like Crows and Foxes. The incubating bird does not want to leave its newly emerged young so there is only one alternative – eat the egg-shells! Over the years I have witnessed this event many times with Owls, Hen Harriers and even this weeks Nightjar disposing of the unwanted egg-shell. Click here to see the Gallery.
Whilst on the high tops this week I came across this small party of Red Grouse. The date was the 10th August and I wonder now how many of this group are still alive after the commencement of shooting on the 12th.
During this shortened breeding season I have spent many hours in the hills, mainly waiting for Long Eared Owls to perform. In wildlife photography there are lots of surprise encounters while you are out in the wilds – all unplanned. This weeks Gallery is devoted to just such encounters. It includes a Skylark resting o a dry-stone wall showing us the length of its hind claw. A male Partridge escorts his female on an early morning feeding trip. A Curlew guarding its young with a Snipe on a dry-stone wall nearby. The piercing stare of a Little Owl and a stunning Fragrant Orchid are also included. 
The easing of lock-down came just as all our Kingfishers were feeding their first broods of young.The exceptional weather that we had during lock-down ensured that very few, if any, lost their first broods to flooding which is more than can be said for the second broods. The pair from this weeks photos lost their second clutch of eggs as soon as incubation started when their tunnel was completely flooded. A sad end to many of our Kingfishers these days due to the torrential downpours and flooding that we tend to get nowadays.
Well after months of waiting here it is – a hunting male Long Eared Owl has just landed on a post that I put in especially for it and he has even raised his ear-tufts for the perfect picture. Normally the ear-tufts lie flat on his head and are not readily visible. In fact this male landed on the post earlier when it was overcast and although his ears are not visible the red eyes are more impressive – check the gallery photo. I can now retire a happy man!! 
Whenever you are photographing breeding birds of prey the ultimate photo that you are after is the food-pass. It is the split second when the prey is being passed from the adult to its young. You have to be quick and yet, surprisingly, it is seldom the best photo of the series. What happens is that at the split second of the pass a membrane closes over their eyes as a protection in case of mis-timing. These membranes are clearly visible in this weeks blog photo and if you check the gallery photos there is a far more impressive photo taken a split second after the pass.