ML295322691
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Observation details
In the comments for this trip, I mentioned a certain terrifying moment dealt to us by the birds... and here, I'm sorry to say, are the culprits. Frankly, I find these events almost inexplicable; of course, there is an active nesting sight in the area, but I was always a very long way off. The closest I got was on the opposite side of the dunes, which are of course very large, but it didn't matter if I was there or right down the far end of the dunes and the land behind them. It's not like this is a typical thing either, considering the colony at Scamander hasn't cared less about me. No... the Fairy Terns of the Bridport area have gone completely savage!!! It happened very, very suddenly; one minute I was walking along photographing Stints, the next I looked behind me just in time to see the little white bullet of a Fairy Tern no more than an arm's length away, hurtling straight for my eyes!! This was a deliberate aim on its part; it wanted me to panic... but I wasn't about to give up, so I kept on going, knowing I was nowhere near the eggs and chicks. Up leapt some fifteen Terns, and they proceeded to follow me around for the next twenty minutes or so; if I moved, I only had to deal with their incredibly irritating cries, which are at just the pitch to set ones teeth on edge. But, every time I saw a Wader worthy of note, the bombardment would begin; I have no doubt that if I hadn't have kept moving far more than I'd have liked, passing up many interesting Waders, blood would've been drawn. The roar of the air as they skimmed my hat was astonishing, but the onslaught frankly left me wondering why anyone wishes to conserve such annoying, even detrimental creatures, getting in the way of proper admiration of their Waderly betters!! Still... their beauty left me thinking things could be worse, and it was very nice to watch them when they calmed down and started fishing, hovering for all the world like tiny, silvery Kestrels, coming back unerringly to the same spots where the fish were at their best!! What's more, given last trips' ratios of Littles to Fairies, I have no idea why the numbers have totally flipped around... there was only one Fairy last time, and swarms of Littles. Now? Now, it's the opposite!! I'm sure someone could answer that question, if they were willing to endure the onslaught...
Technical information
- Model
- COOLPIX P610
- ISO
- 100
- Focal length
- 125.4 mm
- Flash
- Flash did not fire
- f-stop
- f/5.6
- Shutter speed
- 1/800 sec
- Dimensions
- 1600 pixels x 1200 pixels
- Original file size
- 955.94 KB