American Kestrel's Favorite Perch

American Kestrel (Falco sparverius), Ridgefield Wildlife Refuge, Ridgefield, Washington, USA

Kestrels are typically very skittish when cars approach them on the refuge. They typically perch on the signs and fly off well before you can get a shot off…this guy seemed to be unafraid of my approach. I could not have been more than 15 feet from him/her. Would love to get a shot with a more natural perch…but you get what you can.

Specific Feedback Requested

An comments appreciated.

Technical Details

Is this a composite: No
Fujifilm GFX 100, 250mm + 1.4, 1/100 sec @ f/5.6, ISO 100, hand held.

Processed in C1 with cropping and straightening.

2 Likes

:clown_face:…These guys are a fav of mine. Sadly, we rarely have them visit our area.
A fun candid take here, David… :sunglasses:

Pretty sure it’s a him. Fun perch! And great to get so close – around me they are more skittish than frogs.

I brought the exposure up a bit:

3 Likes

Wow! That’s such a beautiful bird! Love the colors and the spots. Looks like he might be the park ranger on patrol! :slight_smile:

1 Like

Hi,

Bumping up the exposure has brought out more of the shadow details. I have not had much luck with getting one within range. Well done…Jim

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Thanks @Diane_Miller bumping the exposure really helps.

Good job on this guy, David. I agree that the exposure boost helped. I think this is the third winter this one’s been hanging out there. At least there’s been a very cooperative one the last couple of winters.

Thanks Dennis. There were two Kestrels there on Saturday. Both kind of cooperative, but both perched on those darn signs. I think I’ll head back there this Saturday for another run. The water levels are pretty good and quite a bit of activity. Only one Red-Tailed Hawk and no Bald Eagles, but hey…

Thanks for the EP.

The increased exposure helps. Excellent detail and colors; you caught the beauty of these birds. They must like these signs; I think I have a similar shot from a refuge in California. How come predatory birds are more skittish than non-predatory birds???

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Beautiful catch here David. I believe we have them out East here, but have never seen one close up. Detail and colors are very pleasing. May I share this with our local National Wildlife Refuge staff, credited to you of course! They’d get a kick out of seeing the kestrel on the sign.
Jim

Hi @Jim_Lockhart, sure no problem with sharing it. If you would like a larger version, just PM me.

Cheers,
David