Shikra with Kill

[Roopak Gangadharan]

Making the kill can sometimes be physically extracting for birds of prey and they might not be able to defend it immediately after the kill which makes them to try and hide it as quickly as possible to avoid mobbing and also drawing the attention of other predators.This shikra was visibly panting after bringing down the barbet and it immediately took the prey into a well covered area. .. also the reason why I didn’t wait for it to start feeding as human presence can in turn draw the attention of other creatures…I hope it enjoyed its meal.

500D, 55-250, 250mm, AE , F7.1, ISO 400, SS 1/250 -0.7EC. Shot at Arrikulam my native village in North kerala near Calicut. Cropped image –I have cropped it quite close as there is a lot of clutter around the bird.

Rgds
Roopak

[Abhirup Dutta Gupta]

Super capture..........

[Saktipada Panigrahi]

Nice image. Looking at the eyes of the Shikara and the large kill at its feet, it comes to my mind that some hunter dressed like a soldier is standing with the dead tiger after the shoot. Thanks for sharing.SaktiWild

[Sabyasachi Patra]

Nice natural history moment. Watching it is a blessing. I agree that at times crows - who are supposed to have a good intelligence level, scientists says equal to that of a 7 year old kid - follow people and mob the Shikra. So better to leave it in peace. Thanks for sharing.
Cheers,
Sabyasachi

[Mrudul Godbole]

Nice to sight it with a kill of a barbet. The eyes can be seen in look out for any other predators. Liked the way it has hidden the barbet in the branches. Nicely captured. Thanks for sharing.