Encounter with a crested kingfisher

October 10, 2020 Last Tuesday was a beautiful morning, so I grabbed the camera and cycled to Tempai Dam lake. A few days before, I had caught a glimpse of a Crested Kingfisher,(Yamasemi) so I was returning in hopes that it was still hanging around. I arrived just as the rising Sun was bathing the clouds in glowing orange. I set up at the same spot where I had photographed the colorful Mandarin Duck, (Oshidori). See December post, 2015.

For the first hour or so, there wasn’t much activity, except for a lone bullfrog, (ushigaeru) just below me warming up in the morning rays. Then, I heard the call of a Crested Kingfisher just before it landed on a limb just up and to my left. I could see it partially through the branches and leaves about ten meters from where I was sitting covered with camo cloth. I had to take the camera off of the tripod to get it in the viewfinder. The shutter clicked as I took the first picture, and the bird immediately looked directly at me. I guess it could see the lens poking out of the camo and perhaps my eyes, which was the only part of me visible. Thinking it would fly away soon, I took a few more pics before it did so, but then it returned and landed on a different branch closer and with less foliage blocking the view. I couldn’t believe my luck! I suppose it was curious about me and the strange shape I presented covered by the camo cloth. It peered at me intently for a while, and then started preening. It didn’t seem to mind my presence anymore, even with the shutter clicking away. Eventually it flew off, so I packed up my stuff, said farewell to the bullfrog, and gave thanks for this fantastic encounter.

Thanks for visiting. Get out and enjoy Mother Nature.

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