Kingfishers on the doorstep.....

Yes yes I know, the Kingfishers are getting a bit repetitive now and this blog is suppose to be mainly about owls, but currently I can't find any? At the moment here in Leicestershire we are experiencing a very wet and windy period, all I can say is the owls don't like it and have gone to ground! Therefore, rather than pursue a species (owls) that don't want to be seen at the moment I thought I'd go and watch one that does......the Kingfishers.

In my previous post I introduce you to my new and second Kingfisher site, it was accidentally found when I had a wander down to the local river in my Landrover. I have now made my second visit and it was with a bit of purpose. After making the tiresome 2 minute drive I set about rummaging through the undergrowth looking for some suitable branches to erect as hunting perches for the Kingfishers. The branches I sought needed to be, A) long enough to hang out over the water, B) not too heavy otherwise securing them to the bank is a problem and, C) they had to look nice! 

I went about my task and after half an hour I'd scavenged a couple of branches that fitted the bill. Now all I had to do was decide where to erect them? This stretch of the river where I can access it in my Landrover is around 500 yards, but only on one bank. Initially there is a confluence of the main river and a small brook, after they merge they meander through a small copse and then off along the side of a crop field. There are five overgrown Willow Trees that offer good cover and natural hunting locations for the Kingfishers but for photographic reasons they are far too snaggy. In between two of the Willows is a straight section of around fifty yards, it was between these two trees that I selected. My reasoning was that the birds would have plenty of time to see my branches hanging out over the water no matter which direction they were flying. The o in and the major influencing factor was the light levels were pretty good here too. 

I am not going to apologies for posting yet more Kingfisher images, I am having a whale of a time (if sometimes frustrating) with this very challenging species.

A very short post as my time is better employed camped out on the riverbank waiting for the Kingfishers to put in an appearance, catch up with ya all later!