# Owls & Birds of Prey



## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

Some photos of some Owls & Birds of Prey from a conservancy in The New Forest :2thumb:


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)




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## connor 1213 (Apr 6, 2009)

They are all stunning!!!!!!!


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## CWD (Feb 11, 2007)

WOW Stunning Birds !!


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

Thanks, they were all very loud, some owls were hooting at me and some making some strange clicking noises!

My BF said they all didn't like me, because as soon as I would walk past any bird they would all scream or call at me, was VERY weird, maybe they didn't like my perfume? LOL.


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## becky89 (Nov 24, 2009)

Lovely! I want that bald eagle!


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## exoticsadmirer (Oct 22, 2009)

xvickyx said:


> image


They're all gorgeous but this one catches my eye what species is it?


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## diamondlil (May 7, 2008)

Brilliant photos!


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## LoveForLizards (Apr 20, 2008)

Lovely photos 



xvickyx said:


> Thanks, they were all very loud, some owls were hooting at me and some making some strange clicking noises!
> 
> My BF said they all didn't like me, because as soon as I would walk past any bird they would all scream or call at me, was VERY weird, maybe they didn't like my perfume? LOL.


Hissing and clicking just means they're wary, that's usually what happens when people insist on tethering Owls and certain other species'.


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

exoticsadmirer said:


> They're all gorgeous but this one catches my eye what species is it?


I have no idea, but he was also making lots of noise, and doing a funny dance flicking his head back hehe, I have a video of it, will try and upload later hehe


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

LoveForLizards said:


> Lovely photos
> 
> 
> 
> Hissing and clicking just means they're wary, that's usually what happens when people insist on tethering Owls.


Thats really sad  they did look very wary, but were not tethered, but I have to say, was a pretty small enclosure


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## Woodsman (Aug 12, 2008)

exoticsadmirer said:


> They're all gorgeous but this one catches my eye what species is it?


 It's a Crested Caracara-Polyborus plancus. A bird of prey which quite often scavenges,and spends a great deal of it's time on the ground.


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

Cool thanks


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## exoticsadmirer (Oct 22, 2009)

I wish I'd seen one or could keep one but no I can't plus my garden is way too small.


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## laurencea (Aug 28, 2009)

lovely shots

i adore birds of prey and am slightly jealous of loveforlizards' Harris' Hawk. i had a 'hawk walk' with one a couple of years ago and it was amazing. such a playful bird.

it's incredible how small kestrels are when at roost. merlins are just dinky!

i had the privilige of seeing a Hen Harrier a little while back. such an elegant bird, it almost defied the laws of physics as it drifted over a hedge-line.


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

laurencea said:


> lovely shots
> 
> i adore birds of prey and am slightly jealous of loveforlizards' Harris' Hawk. i had a 'hawk walk' with one a couple of years ago and it was amazing. such a playful bird.
> 
> ...


Beautiful aren't they, I love seeing birds of prey in flight, they are amazing, makes me emotional watching them, hahaha I am so sad!!! They are just so amazing..... :flrt::flrt::flrt:


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## rottweiler81 (Apr 6, 2009)

*hi*

yeah they are just wary with the clicking its a warning off lol my owls used to do it when they did not know someone , i love the bald eagle and the tawn eagle


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

A legless Ural Owl!!! :gasp:

:lol2:


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

Zoo-Man said:


> A legless Ural Owl!!! :gasp:
> 
> :lol2:


:lol2:


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## LoveForLizards (Apr 20, 2008)

Zoo-Man said:


> A legless Ural Owl!!! :gasp:
> 
> :lol2:


Aren't they all legless? :lol2: I held one when I was younger and he was absolutely gorgeous, the feathers under their wings feel like the fur of an Afghan Hound to me! :flrt:


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## jonodrama (May 7, 2009)

Cracking photos

Has anyone been to the Hawk Trust near Andover, Hampshire???
The best flying displays ever. worth the trip.


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

LoveForLizards said:


> Aren't they all legless? :lol2: I held one when I was younger and he was absolutely gorgeous, the feathers under their wings feel like the fur of an Afghan Hound to me! :flrt:


I must admit, I think Ural Owls look a bit odd, I think its due to their colouring & face. hehe


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## LoveForLizards (Apr 20, 2008)

Zoo-Man said:


> I must admit, I think Ural Owls look a bit odd, I think its due to their colouring & face. hehe


Aww! I think they're adorable! They look like Furbies. :lol2:


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

LoveForLizards said:


> Aww! I think they're adorable! They look like Furbies. :lol2:


Mmm,.....I think Furbies are pretty...............unsettling! haha

I much prefer the looks of Burrowing Owls, White-Faced Scops, & Barn Owls.


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## Woodsman (Aug 12, 2008)

Zoo-Man said:


> Mmm,.....I think Furbies are pretty...............unsettling! haha
> 
> I much prefer the looks of Burrowing Owls, White-Faced Scops, & Barn Owls.


 What about the Great Greys.....their eyes give me the creeps!!


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## Zoo-Man (Apr 12, 2008)

Woodsman said:


> What about the Great Greys.....their eyes give me the creeps!!


Great Grey Owls are awesome!


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## Crab Man (Oct 3, 2009)

Those are some great photos :no1:
I just love any birds of prey. This year I'm making it my mission to get some shots of the ospreys, of which we have quite a few in the summer. 
We have a wee fishery locally that I visit if in need of a quick fix of flyfishing. This place must be like an all you can eat buffet for these guys - they never fail to make an appearance (and often catch more than me :blush. It's just spectacular to see them swoop down and then fly off with a nice big fat rainbow trout :flrt:


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## laurencea (Aug 28, 2009)

Crab Man said:


> Those are some great photos :no1:
> I just love any birds of prey. This year I'm making it my mission to get some shots of the ospreys, of which we have quite a few in the summer.
> We have a wee fishery locally that I visit if in need of a quick fix of flyfishing. This place must be like an all you can eat buffet for these guys - they never fail to make an appearance (and often catch more than me :blush. It's just spectacular to see them swoop down and then fly off with a nice big fat rainbow trout :flrt:


ospreys you say!! i think an RFUK birdwatchers outing is on the cards. i've seen one and failed to get any pics as i was just staring at it with my mouth open! :gasp: like that, really.


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## LoveForLizards (Apr 20, 2008)

Zoo-Man said:


> Mmm,.....I think Furbies are pretty...............unsettling! haha
> 
> I much prefer the looks of Burrowing Owls, White-Faced Scops, & Barn Owls.


:lol2:

White-faced Scops Owls look so wise :flrt: I got dive bombed by one when we were watching a display at the midlands fair a couple of years ago! I have to agree on the Barn Owl front, they so ugly as chicks but they grow into one of the (if not THE) countries most beautiful birds. :flrt:


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## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

Woodsman said:


> What about the Great Greys.....their eyes give me the creeps!!





Zoo-Man said:


> Great Grey Owls are awesome!


I've just uploaded a photo on another bird of prey thread - I think he looks like he's got the troubles of the world on his shoulder :lol:



LoveForLizards said:


> I have to agree on the Barn Owl front, they so ugly as chicks but they grow into one of the (if not THE) countries most beautiful birds. :flrt:


I agree - they are the weirdest, ugliest, little critters when they are chicks.


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

LoveForLizards said:


> :lol2:
> 
> White-faced Scops Owls look so wise :flrt: I got dive bombed by one when we were watching a display at the midlands fair a couple of years ago! I have to agree on the Barn Owl front, they so ugly as chicks but they grow into one of the (if not THE) countries most beautiful birds. :flrt:


+1 they are stunning birds :flrt:


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## Crab Man (Oct 3, 2009)

laurencea said:


> ospreys you say!! i think an RFUK birdwatchers outing is on the cards. i've seen one and failed to get any pics as i was just staring at it with my mouth open! :gasp: like that, really.


That could be a pretty cool idea 
Have a wee look here:

The RSPB: Loch Garten

This is about 10mins drive from my house. Bit of a privilege to get to follow the bringing up of the chicks so closely. 
You'll not believe the amount of missed photo opportunities I've had with these birds. Seen them catching fish countless times, one time was from a boat while flyfishing. Was casting to a rising trout about 10 metres away, but the osprey beat me to it. Never saw that coming...swoosh...SPLASH....:eek4::notworthy:. 
Have enjoyed the bewildered looks on the faces of fishermen who've had their prized catch snatched from the bank behind them. 
Oh - and the ultimate honour - I was indeed divebombed by one as it heeded the call of nature in mid air. I was carrying my 2 year old daughter and we both got caked in osprey poo :whip:.

Definitely up for the idea of an outing. I'm by no means an experienced bird watcher, but up here even a numpty like me can find an osprey


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

Ahhh wow, Ospreys are beautiful, you are so lucky see one!


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## ricardo1 (Jan 16, 2010)

i live down in suffolk and fish on the broards there is a pair of marsh harriers the nest some were on the far bank they are amazing birds


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

Wow that is awesome


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## Breadrun (Mar 1, 2007)

I've never seen them so will have to do a spot more fishing this year coz i would love to see some  I remember once when i was driving down a country lane near mutford there were 2 owls just standing in the middle of the road and i had to wait 5 mins for them to fly off the cheeky buggers!



ricardo1 said:


> i live down in suffolk and fish on the broards there is a pair of marsh harriers the nest some were on the far bank they are amazing birds


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## ricardo1 (Jan 16, 2010)

yeah mate if you fish down fishes row you should see them in the spring and summer stunning looking birds


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## Breadrun (Mar 1, 2007)

Wheres fishes row? soz i aint been fishing on the broads for ages coz im more into my sea fishing now (still got my broad fishing gear somewhere lol)


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## Ozgi (Jun 1, 2008)

I saw a Golden Eagle when I was skiing in Italy over Christmas.

My gf was feeling unwell and couldn't ski so I went out on a birding walk on my own. I walked about 5 miles into the woods outside the town we were staying in.

I came to quite a steep hill and walking on snow is bloody hard so I questioned whether to go for it or not! I decided what the hell and as I was walking/climbing/falling I thought to myself "this had better be bloody worth it".

When I got to the top I had a quick scan about but didn't get anything other than a few Marsh Tits and millions of Alpine Chough. Then I looked up right above me and I was in the shadow of a huge bird of prey!

I instantly knew what it was, but a quick check in the book confirmed it!

It circled above me for a few minutes giving me amazing views, then just glided off into the valley.

I couldn't get over how big it was, they are bloody huuuuuuuuuuuge!


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

Ozgi said:


> I saw a Golden Eagle when I was skiing in Italy over Christmas.
> 
> My gf was feeling unwell and couldn't ski so I went out on a birding walk on my own. I walked about 5 miles into the woods outside the town we were staying in.
> 
> ...


WOW that is crazy!!! so lucky!!

They are truly awesome birds, and they are mahoosive!!!!! :flrt::flrt:

Love them :flrt:


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## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

We watched a white tailed sea eagle hunting over Loch Sunart when we were on holiday up there a few years ago. Fabulous site.

The people whose croft we were on said they'd seen it and managed to read its tag and it was a 'teenager' from Mull, I think they said it was a 2004 chick, who'd struck out on his own.

The year before we'd been on Mull and found where one of the nesting sites on Mull was (not the one with the proper hide in the forestry that was featured on TV - this was in a different area) and used to go with our sandwiches and flask and just sit and watch for them coming and going.

We also knew a popular place for seeing Goldens and used to go there too!


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## [email protected] (Jan 9, 2009)

xvickyx said:


> Some photos of some Owls & Birds of Prey from a conservancy in The New Forest :2thumb:
> 
> image
> 
> ...


nice pictures


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

Thanks


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## [email protected] (Jan 9, 2009)

xvickyx said:


> Thanks


 
thank you for putting the pics on here :lol2:
thought id say again 


could you take more and pm them to me if thats okies


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## jamestheball (Apr 28, 2009)

tbh i get more of a kick out of seeing buzzards on fence posts than tropical species confined aviaries, imo if you keep birds of prey (i help out with a local falconer during the hunting season) you should let them hunt naturally as much as possible.


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## xvickyx (Jul 21, 2009)

I don't keep them?!?..... They were photos taken from a conservancy?..


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