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Seabirds Flying Together
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| [Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note |
Seabirds Flying Together
Please check out yesterday’s photo. This is a couple of the many thousands of birds ‘working the fish’.
The one on the left is the common seagull:
Red Billed Gull / Larus novaehollandiae scopulinus - Maori: Tarapunga
Note this one looks like its bill isn’t red – it could be the distance from the camera or it could be a juvenile Red Billed Gull with the brown beak and legs.
And the one on the right is the most common tern in New Zealand:
White-fronted Tern / Sterna striata - Maori: Tara
They feed in large flocks on small fish by plunge diving. Shoals of small fish and pilchards which have been driven to the surface by larger fish are easily caught by the terns, which also scoop up the surface-shoaling fish as well.
This was the sight I saw when I arrived home late one afternoon last month. All I could see out on the water were thousands and thousands of birds, ‘working the fish’.
By the time I grabbed the camera and got over to the wharf at Murrays Bay, they had slowed down - some were sitting, some flying, and some were diving into the water.
I was only there for 10 minutes, and then the birds all began to fly again. What a sight they were. And suddenly then they all seemed to disappear around the cliff and out to sea. |
Argus, eqshannon, eng55, marhowie, peter_stoeckl has marked this note useful
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- Argus
![Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3819 W: 190 N: 11368]](http://i1.treknature.com/misc/g-g-g.gif)
(35041) - [2008-05-28 1:06]
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Hello Janice,
A delightful composition in this in-flight capture of these seabirds. I like the wing positions and how they relate to each other and the sharpness is great against the blue sky.
TFS this beauty,
Ivan
I agree with Ivan...the wings make a beautiful pattern in the sky. The third OOF makes for super sense of depth. A fine image Janice...worthy!
Bob
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- eng55
![Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1139 W: 32 N: 1164]](http://i1.treknature.com/misc/g-s-g.gif)
(3582) - [2008-05-28 9:13]
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Hi Janice,
This one is also interesting and well caught.I liked exposure against the sky,lighting and composition very much.
Thanks for posting.
Nice inflight work Janice..
This on has capitalized on the theory of diminishing returns, with the three categories of viewer distance to subject :)
Interesting comp mf..and everything's better X three :}
Howard
Hi Janice,
marvellous capture, great rhythm of motion, perfect depth!
With thanks, and best regards,
Peter
