The past week we spent in the south of France. Though temperatures tend to be hot, and the ‘birding season’ is almost over, the camera came along nevertheless, however ‘in the back seat’. The first hotel we stayed in, had all it promised: WiFi, a nice pool and pleasant gardens. What the website did not tell us however, was that they also had a family of Hoopoes (Hop) living in the vicinity. Extremely shy, they showed themselves only briefly in the early morning (hence mostly in the shadows) and disappeared as soon as the hotel came to life. Still, it was great to see a family of four, and very interesting to see the little ones imitating the food search method of the parents! Another family living in the gardens was one of Jays (Gaai). The young bird in the pictures was often calling for food and looking around curious in his new world! In another B&B on our way back to the Netherlands, the hostess pointed out (when seeing me carrying the camera) a nest of Red Black starts (Zwarte Roodstaart). Four young birds inside a hole in the wall, and a single parent feeding them. Another great and unexpected treat to watch, and to frame !
Grampy
27 Jul 2012What a great combination of textures in the redstart image. Feather, Rock, and nesting material. Nice job.
Remco
28 Jul 2012Hallo Hans,
Super gaaf moment man van de de Hoppen. De jonge Hop wordt gevoerd en hebt het vast kunnen leggen. Erg cool om te zien. Ik kan daar uren van genieten van deze vogels. Ook de Zwarte Roodstaart met nest is toch ook wel een uniek moment wat je niet dagelijks tegenkomt. Erg fraaie serie uit het zonnige France!!! Als elke trip zo eindigt dan beloven er nog mooie foto’s aan te komen.
Groeten,
Rem
ps. nog bedankt van je reactie op mijn blog. Moet inmiddels alweer een nieuwe maken, het is alweer 2 weken geleden ofzo.
Olivier Esnault
28 Jul 2012Very interesting post. The young hooppoes are very cute. Nice pictures.
Regards,
Olivier