?? Birds of Prey

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VAS
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?? Birds of Prey

Post by VAS »

Last year I was driving around looking for WINTER type pictures and I noticed that Birds of Prey were everywhere. Is this normal for winter time or are they there all the in equal qty time but unseen.

Are there any tips for winter time Birds of Prey BIRDING? This is a good way of keeping busy while the HERPS are sleeping the Winter away.

Areas better than others ..type?
Time of day?
Equipment dos and dont's...O know long glass but what else?

Just looking for tips nobody's secret spot.

I'm hoping for more Owls.

Scott.
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chrish
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Re: ?? Birds of Prey

Post by chrish »

Birds of prey are easier to find in the winter because they perch more conspicuously, at least down here in the southern states. I know there is good Owling in MI during the winter.

Generally open grassy areas are good places to look, if there are prairies around you. On cold mornings you can sometimes approach them pretty closely with a car and shoot out the window.

It was a brisk 12° when I shot this Ferruginous Hawk. He had clearly spent the night on this fence post and you can see the frost on his feathers still.

Image

I used a 400 mm lens for this shot. You aren't going to get many raptor shots without at least a 300 and a 500 is better.
Matt Buckingham
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Re: ?? Birds of Prey

Post by Matt Buckingham »

In the winter raptors are not nesting, this means a couple of things: 1) they are not putting effort into being inconspicuous, and 2) they are able to focus their time towards foraging. So the birds you see perched in the open are spending the majority of their time hunting.

What kinds of species are you looking for? The easiest habitat to spot raptors in is open habitats like prairies, fallow fields, etc. They don't necessarily have to be high quality prairie habitats, but that will certainly increase your diversity. Here you'll find a variety of Buteo hawks (depending on where you're at), kestrels and other falcons (depending on where you're at), and shrikes. You'll see harriers here too, but they don't often perch. If you're looking for owls, most will be in forested habitats. If you're looking for them during the day, it's just a matter of luck. Short-eared owls are often diurnal, and utilize open habitats, but they are also aerial hunters, though they do perch more frequently than harriers.

As for time of day, most species with the exception of owls are active throughout the day in winter. You can sometimes see owls perched in open areas at dawn and dusk. Like Chris said, you'll be able to get closer in your car than on foot. I would also say 300mm is a minimum, and the more the better. a window mount might not be a bad idea to keep the camera stable.
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VAS
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Re: ?? Birds of Prey

Post by VAS »

Thanks guys.

I see alot of Red tailed Haws, Red Shoulder Hawks, Rough Legged Haws and American Kestrals here during the winter. And most were approached fairly close while within a moving car. Once you slow down and stop they become a little nervous. Once close getting out of the car is out of the question.. there gone.

When driving the place I see them the most is along the side of freeways and expressways. The side of the hightway is all grass for 100ft on each side and 100ft between East bound and West bound but no place to pull over but they are everywhere.

Been using a Nikon 70-300VR lens but its just not enough but the VR helps. Looking at the Tamron 200-500 or a Sigma 50-500.

Scott.
sstaedtler
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Re: ?? Birds of Prey

Post by sstaedtler »

Without all the leaves on the trees, I find from November to about early March to be the best time to see birds of prey since they are much more visible. Also, in the winter, there are limited food sources, so birds like Bald Eagles and Ospreys will gather around large lakes where this is food (fish)
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