Another weekend went by without me touching the camera. Believe me, I had wanted to, especially with the first real signs of winter out there. It’s just that other (not always pleasant) obligations have kept me from exploring the natural world around me for three consecutive weekends. The good news is I expect to be out again next weekend, and if the weather forecast is right (which it hardly ever is…) it will still be winter. Actually, it is snowing right now outside of my office window. So back to the archives it is. Here’s another one from the recent trip to the UK.
We found a flock of Turnstones and a few pairs of Common Teals (Anas crecca, Wintertaling) at a small pebble pool along the Norfolk coast. The Turnstones did not care about our presence at all, but the Teals took a bit longer to get used to the new humps in their territory. After about an hour lying down on the ground (which kept us out of the fierce wind), they decided to come closer and continue their feeding routines. Only when they got close to us, did I notice how tiny these beautiful Teals are. The males feature beautiful reds and greens on the head, that subtly change hues with the change of light. Very nice!
Common Teal couple; Canon 1D Mark III w. 500/4 and 1.4x; 1/640s at F5.6 and ISO400; lensfoot on ground.
