You might never see this again!

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(Edited)

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We encountered a Pied Kingfisher hunt today and here's the full story.

Nothing was going to keep us away from the beach today. We have always visited a deserted part of the beach and we knew that there would be no other people, so we would not endanger anyone. After some 60 plus days of lockdown that was downgraded to level 3 today, we saw no reason not to visit the beach.

Alcohol was also unbanned today and the cops had their hands full with the very long queues of people at the bottle stores, so why would they worry about two sober people on an isolated beach.
Just as well we went, come look at this hunt!

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Oh yeah, this guy was very proud with that big fish!

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Sitting on a high pole mounted with a security camera with his catch!

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Let's watch his hunt for that fish!
Pied Kingfisher's are of the few bird species that can hover in the same position.
This excited the first helicopter designers, as they copied the design.

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Ever higher he rose above the shallows of the ocean!

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Here you can see the dizzying heights that they can rise to and needless to say that their eyesight is exceptionally sharp!

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Oh that dive is so fast that I had no hope of getting it on camera, but at least I got his plunge into the water.
Now realize here that I was on my extended zoom and to retract, or extend the zoom to catch his dive is almost impossible.

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He got something, but his wings covered it in flight and I had to wait for him to turn, as I knew where he was going!
Problem was that the seagulls at times tried to catch him in order to get his fish, but he was way too fast for them.
I took some photos of a seagull chasing him, but this post will be too long if I also include the photos.
Save it to say that the seagulls should rather think about taking up the game of golf, instead of trying to catch a racing kingfisher hahaha.

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Yep! As he turned there it was! He got himself a fish!

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Safely he arrived back at the post with the fish that you saw in the first 3 photos of this post!

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So, it was late afternoon and after they had eaten the fish, they dived down into the fresh water of a river inlet to rinse the sea salt off their bodies!

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They even had time to play with each other, to the amazement of the Egyptian goose nearby!

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Finally, just a shot here of one of my favorite places, the beach and the ocean!

Here is some information about this "Olde World Bird"

"The pied kingfisher was one of the many bird species originally described by Linnaeus in the landmark 1758 10th edition of his Systema Naturae, who noted that it lived in Persia and Egypt. He named it Alcedo rudis. The German naturalist Friedrich Boie erected the genus Ceryle in 1828. The name is from classical Greek kērulos, an unidentified and probably mythical bird mentioned by Aristotle and other authors. The specific epithet rudis is Latin for "wild" or "rude".

"The pied kingfisher is the only member of the genus Ceryle. Molecular analysis shows it is an early offshoot of the lineage that gave rise to American kingfishers of the genus Chloroceryle. The pied kingfisher was initially believed to be descended from an ancestral American green kingfisher which crossed the Atlantic Ocean about one million years ago. A more recent suggestion is that the pied kingfisher and the American green kingfishers are derived from an Old World species, with the pied kingfisher or its ancestor losing the metallic colouration afterwards".
Source

What a wonderful feeling is to feel the soft beach sand between our toes. To hear the sound of the ocean and the crash of the waves.
Sounds that opens the curtains of ones mind and the sea air with it's salty taste cleanses ones soul.
That way that it was, is and will continue to be into the millennia.
Our beautiful untamable ocean, a gift to all mankind!

Note: All photos are my own and this is an original post.
Bird specie information was duly cited with the source.
Camera used: Canon Powershot SX60HS

We hope that you have enjoyed the photos and thank you for visiting a post by @papilloncharity

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38 comments
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Watch out for birds, they like to attack!

Posted via neoxian.city | The City of Neoxian

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I thought that I had replied to this already?
But it doesn't show, so here we go again.
Thank you for the visit and birds have to attack else they cannot eat lol.
Take care my friend!

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That is a beautiful "catch" you made there @papilloncharity! Capturing all of this for us in your post. What a marvel it is when we can observe closely how "fearfully and wonderfully made" all of creation is around us, leading us to glorify its Creator.

Loved these images, as you obviously have a nice camera. We do not see birds like that in my part of the world. Here we see belted kingfishers, although they are not all that common.

Reading about the gulls attempt to "profit" from the work of another bird brought a smile. Reminds me of far too much of what we see in our society here ... 😉

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What a great comment here and we think alike my friend.
All to His Glory.
Your Kingfisher on that great site looks very similar to our Pied that I have here.
I also have the Giant Kingfisher and the Malachite Kingfisher photos somewhere in my files.
We have 7 Kingfisher species here in South Africa, but they live in different parts of the country.

I never knew that Pied Kingfishers also hunt in the ocean and it is the second time now that I got them in the sea.

Glad that you liked the post.
Blessings and take care!

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Hello @papilloncharity!
This is a great post!! We really appreciate your work and efforts.


To support your work, we have also up-voted you using our @dna.steem Curation Trail ✅!
(You can join our curation trail by clicking the link above to support other posts like yours!)
Please do join our Server: DNA if you haven't joined already. It's the place where all the action happens 😀! Our project will not be able to operate without support from people like you.
Our curators liked your post!

FROM THE CURATOR (@barbara-orenya):
great post and captures of this kingfisher !

We hope, you'll keep up the good work, and continue posting such articles in the future as well!!
Have a nice day!

Best,
Team DNA 🧬
(Densifying Nature-Appreciation)


By the people ⚪ For the people
You can also consider supporting us with a small delegation / donation.
We are non-profit 😊.
It helps us keep the project alive and running!

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A kind thank you for the support.
Blessings and take care!

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Great pictures. I know we have our own blue kingfishers around here, but I have only ever caught a brief glimpse of one flying past. Would love to see one catch a fish.

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You see?
First you tell me that when you are running there's no time to stop and take photos of the great sights that you see.
Now you tell me that you would love to see the spectacle of a Kingfisher catching a fish.

I think that you should schedule in some space between your runs to go out there and take photos of all the things that you love to see Sir Steve lol.

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You are right of course. I should take some time to sit and wait for nature to perform. I saw some guys out with big cameras on one of my recent runs. The problem now is that lots of people are out during the day and it can get busy around the river. I may try to get out one morning to see what I can find.

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Yeah, I know that you are forever busy with something, but taking a bit of time out with a camera will certainly offer you some serenity!

Btw. Have you seen our latest "combination" post?
Hoping that you will become one of our endorsers.

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I went for a walk with my camera this morning. No kingfishers, but lots of other things to see.

I tipped the @combination post. Good luck with that.

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Thank you Sir Steve and glad that you know us and that you know it is a genuine effort. I saw and commented on your great post.
Could I perhaps also list your name in a endorsement list that we are drawing up for Combination?

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By all means add me to the list. Hope it does well.

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Thank you my friend. We can only try and if it does, then we will start a community.

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Gulls golfing hahaha.
He/she shared that fish with the mate/offspring? How fun to see that, and to capture the playtime when they are well fed and feeling fresh and clean from their bath!
I am so happy you got to spend time at the beach and hope you are both feeling fresher, too!
Fantastic photos! Thanks for sharing them with #featheredfriends! ❤️

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Thank you kindly and no, they don't share as each catch their own fish and there's more than enough to go around.
At first afterwards, as they plopped into the river, I thought that they were also fishing, but their games showed me their cleaning and playing process.
We both now have our tanks full of sea air and it will last for a while dear friend.
Blessings and take care!

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Your posts really are exceptional - many thanks, it's quality posts this that makes this platform the best. And Canon cameras are brilliant!

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Yep! That's that famous zoom lens right there my friend.
Wish my camera still looed this nice, as it is now old from all the wear, but I have grown attached to it and it's ideal for nature shots.
Thank you for the kind words, be blessed and take care!

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Fantastic shots! What a treat it must have been to witness this! Well done :-)

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Thank you my friend. You must have had an equal experience with the Heron kids.

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Wow! This is truly an amazing sight to see! And thank you for capturing it so beautifully.. 😍 The pictures are so vivid that we could see their every move. ❤

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A great comment here my friend. Thank you!
Glad that you liked it and take care!

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Thank you and take care too. 😊

Have a beaitiful weekend ahead.

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Wow awesome action shots. I love the markings on this guy.

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Thank you and not often that one can catch them fishing in the ocean.
I was so surprised when I saw them the first time.
But then again, I also saw some Egyptian geese doing their thing in the sea.

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So glad you are getting out on the beach again, catching some amazing bird photos! Love the one of them playing!
Thanks for sharing! I feel inspired again to get some bird photos here!

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I remember so well the shot that you got with the birds on the moon.
It gives one, me at least, such a feeling of comfort and pleasure whenever I get a great shot. The amazing thing is that it always happen so unexpectedly. Especially if one's focus is elsewhere and all of a sudden a head turn, or a turn around and there it is! Bang!

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Yes! I'm finding every day is a photo adventure day!

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