Far Eastern Curlew Numenius madagascariensis Critically Endangered in Australia, Vulnerable in Victoria May 14th, 2017 Rhyll, Phillip Island, Victoria, Australia Canon EOS 1D X Canon EF 600mm f4L IS II USM lens Canon EF 1.4x III Extender I can't begin to describe how excited I was to finally get a decent image of this species after a few failed outings. The pair that frequented the inlet were so skittish! All it took was a new lens & several hours lying in the mud & freezing water. Thankfully I couldn't feel a thing when I had these beauties in the viewfinder.. although thinking about it now I may have also been numb from hypothermia :p Totally worth it! And when the gust of wind blew in from behind the bird & fanned out its feathers while it was inspecting a shell, I couldn't believe my luck! These Far Eastern Curlew are the largest of all of the waders that visit the Australian shores, & definitely my favourite wader species. I mean just check out the size of that bill!
Ruddy Turnstone in partial breeding plumage Arenaria interpres Vulnerable in Victoria June 16th, 2017 Killarney, Victoria, Australia Canon EOS 1D X Canon EF 600mm f4L IS II USM lens Canon EF 1.4x III Extender These little shore birds are very well camouflaged amongst the seaweed
Black-shouldered Kite Elanus axillaris June 3rd, 2017 Werribee, Victoria, Australia Canon EOS 1D X Canon EF 600mm f4L IS II USM lens Canon EF 1.4x III Extender Finally managed a decent image of this species with this rather obliging Kite. I even managed to climb up onto the roof of my truck to get a better angle.
