I’ve bitched and moaned for years about how difficult kingfishers are to get close to but yesterday morning this amazingly cooperative female made me feel guilty about badmouthing them for it.
The sun was just beginning to reach the trees on the other side of the stream right next to the road so I was driving very slowly in case there were songbirds in there. I’ve photographed warblers, catbirds and others there before. But when I first spotted this bird I literally thought to myself ” That almost looks like a kingfisher but it can’t be because it let me get too close and it’s too calm. A kingfisher would be long gone by now”. It took me a few seconds to accept the fact that it really was a kingfisher.
And hot damn, she didn’t even fly off when I stopped my pickup!
Her distance from me is misleading in this photo because it was taken at only 85mm. She’s a little soft because I was in a hurry to switch back to one of my other cameras with a longer lens so I didn’t take the time to check my settings. My shutter speed was only 1/320 and I was hand-holding my camera but despite the softness I wanted to include the photo to show my readers what I saw at pretty close to “normal” focal length.
1/5000, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM, not baited, set up or called in
She really was close, especially for a kingfisher.
It was obvious that she wasn’t actively fishing because she never watched the water below her. I’m thinking that she had already had her fill of fish for the moment and was just warming up in the sun. After all the temps were in the high 20’s while I was photographing her. The downside to her inactivity was that she gave me very little pose variety but I’m not going to complain much about that with her this close for so long. I’ll even grudgingly accept that shadow on her side.
I do have to wonder about the right side of her bill.
To me it looks like it’s been somehow abraded and some small pieces of the edge of her upper mandible appear to be missing or at least worn in an unusual manner.
1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
This is just about the only other pose she gave me.
The left side of her bill doesn’t seem to have the same abraded appearance as the right side. The apparent difference between the left and right sides of her bill seem a little unusual to me but maybe it was caused in part by a difference in light angle and reflection off of the bill. Whether or not her bill is anomalous she appeared to be healthy and when she eventually took off I wasn’t particularly happy with my takeoff shots so I’m not including them.
Kingfishers along this same stream have been eluding me all summer so to have this pretty lady allow me so unusually close without showing one bit of nervousness was completely unexpected.
With birds you just never know…
Ron
Kingfishers! Such a wonderous bird. They’ve always captured my attention since my first encounters with them as seen from my kayak (built by my father) on the Russian River during our summer vacations.
I had one pose for me about a year ago, at a saltwater lagoon, for quite a while.
And me without my camera!
Nice going with this beauty.
I’d be without my camera too if I were in a kayak. At least with my big lens attached. Thanks, Dave.
I was about 8 years old when I remember my first kingfisher encounter on the river.I rarely used the family Brownie camera and certainly wouldn’t have been trusted with it anywhere near water.
I am always amazed when I read of photographers who take to small craft with their cameras, I don’t think I’d have the guts to try that, even with my modestly priced 200-500mm lens. Though I have been tempted by a few local spots!
She’s wonderful! Good things come to those who wait.
Sometimes…
I so seldom see that bird here. I’m glad you had the opportunity to get in some great pics of the bird.
Thank you, Jean.
Pretty, pretty girl! So glad you were able to spend time with her. I remember the “sticky” Kingfisher from a few years ago — perhaps she’s a relative.
If they’re related they sure live far apart for family!
She was messing with your mind. Something which birds do incredibly well. I suspect if you were to come across her again she would make greased lightening appear slow as she evaded your view finder.
I wonder what caused the issues with her beak – and am so glad she appears to be healthy.
EC, if that’s what she was doing I’ll pay that price. Any day!
Gotta love that spiky crest and wonder at its function. Thanks for the nice closeups.
I wonder about that too, Lyle.
Beautiful photos. This is still one of my nemesis birds when it comes to a photo. I’m sure that loud rattling call really means “Ha… You missed me again” That right side of the beak does look damaged. It’s almost as if it bit down on something hard. Perhaps a fish broke free or a fisherman cut the line with the hook still in its mouth and the kingfisher was unlucky enough to capture it. Wild guessing here. If that’s the case, the bird look fine so it didn’t swallow the hook. In any case, I envy your opportunity to get such marvelous photos.
I think they’re almost everyone’s nemesis birds, Dan. They sure were for me for a good long while and decent shots of them are still few and far apart for me. Thanks.
Her abraded beak was the first thing that caught my eye. I guess that’s a result of my years in falconry, always looking for anything that’s not right or out of the range of normal. It could also come from years of racing. I always do a quick scan of the car, check my tires and look for fluids under the car that shouldn’t be there–that sort of thing. Anyway, makes me wonder if she feaked (rubbed) her beak on something a little harder (more abrasive) than normal? It should right itself as her beak grows out more.
I’m just delighted that she was so patient with your presence! Kingfishers are also among my favorites. I used to spend a lot of hours watching a pair around White Rock Lake in Dallas until the raptors showed up and my gaze/attention followed them.
Thanks, Laura. I thought about the possibility it was caused by feaking but I dismissed it for two reasons – it’s asymmetrical and it’s so far back on the bill.
Since kingfishers dig out their nests in river banks, couldn’t it be caused by a rock or unusually hard root while building the nest?
Stunning. I have never seen a kingfisher that close – she must have felt safe with you. Thanks much for sharing another wonderful series.
Kent. if she felt safe with me I sure wish the rest of her kind felt the same way.
They have huge eyes, they really don’t like to be looked at by humans. . the only good luck I have had has been with juveniles.
Good work!
Thanks, Martha.
Incredible series Ron! CONGRATS! Thanks for sharing Ron!
Charlotte
Thank you, Charlotte.
Ron,
Great shots of a really cool bird that I would know nothing about if it weren’t for following your blog. Terrific detail. These are cute little creatures that I thought were much bigger when I first heard the name… KING Fisher!. Live and learn. Were you up in the canyons for these shots?
Stephen
Thanks, Stephen. Yes, I was in the mountains.
The left side looks like peeling to me. I don’t know if that is normal though. Pretty bird.
Arwen, I don’t know either but I don’t remember seeing it in other kingfishers in the past.
Very interesting and great photos Ron. We don’t have them here in the summer. They leave us and have just come back for the winter. Saw my first female just five days ago. I got a couple decent shots from a distance, but of course as I quietly and slowly as possible moved in for a better shot she took off like an F18 launched from a carrier.
Thanks, Everett. They do that occasionally don’t they… 🙂
This is the most difficult bird to get a picture of. They are so fast.
Yup…
YES! 🙂 Even if you didn’t get a wide variety of poses what you did capture is beautiful. The right side of the bill does seem a bit damaged tho left side still seems to have a bit of a notch in it also……. Not much melting yesterday – cleared off last night and is +10 at the moment – BRRRRR!
Thanks, Judy.
I guess we both should be glad we don’t live in Cut Bank. Or Browning. Or Heart Butte!
That’s for sure! 😉
Beautiful shots, Ron. I’d have been so happy to get that close to these active birds, never mind get a good photo!
It was unusual indeed, Joanne. Thank you.