{"id":36961,"date":"2016-01-26T05:46:56","date_gmt":"2016-01-26T12:46:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.featheredphotography.com\/blog\/?p=36961"},"modified":"2016-01-26T06:06:24","modified_gmt":"2016-01-26T13:06:24","slug":"female-american-kestrel-feeding-on-a-vole","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/2016\/01\/26\/female-american-kestrel-feeding-on-a-vole\/","title":{"rendered":"Female American Kestrel Feeding On A Vole"},"content":{"rendered":"

This pretty little female kestrel enjoyed a vole breakfast yesterday morning\u00a0along the causeway to Antelope Island. I’ll spare you most of the gory details but raptor feeding behavior is one of the many behaviors that I find interesting.<\/p>\n

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\"american<\/p>\n

1\/3200, f\/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II,<\/em> Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n

She had already consumed some of the vole when I found her on an ugly sign next to the road. She was obviously acclimated to the traffic and paid it and me little attention as she worked on her meal. Regular readers know that I really don’t like perches like this but she obviously has no problem with them so who am I to complain? Besides, behavior is behavior…<\/p>\n

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\"american<\/p>\n

1\/3200, f\/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II,<\/em> Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n

By now the anterior portion of the vole had already been consumed – here we see only the tail and the rump.<\/p>\n

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\"american<\/p>\n

1\/2500, f\/8, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II,<\/em> Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n

I believe they often choose signs as a feeding\u00a0perch because compared to a tree branch their width provides a more stable platform. It’s difficult for them to maintain balance when they’re pulling meat off prey and even here she had a hard time keeping her balance so she often had to flare her beautiful\u00a0tail as a balancing aid.<\/p>\n

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\"american<\/p>\n

1\/4000, f\/7.1, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II,<\/em> Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n

I’ve seen kestrels swallow vole pieces as large as what’s left of this rodent in one piece but this dainty little lady preferred smaller bites. She was in no hurry to finish her meal but when another vehicle came by on her side of the road she…<\/p>\n

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\"american<\/p>\n

1\/6400, f\/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II,<\/em> Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n

moved to another nearby sign\u00a0but at\u00a0least this one wasn’t bright blue. I missed the takeoff shots when she lifted off because a phone call came in that I had to take. Terrible timing…<\/p>\n

She’s a beautiful little bird but like most falcons she sure could look fierce. As many of my readers can attest, kestrels are the epitome of the phrase “having an attitude”.<\/p>\n

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\"american<\/p>\n

1\/6400, f\/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II,<\/em> Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n

This may look like she’s screaming but in reality she’s only swallowing a piece of meat. A tight crop of this image reveals…<\/p>\n

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\"american<\/p>\n

1\/3200, f\/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II,<\/em> Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0a couple of interesting things:<\/p>\n