CONGRATULATIONS TO ROBERT WIENAND FOR WINNING THE AUGUST 2011 THEME OF THE WEEK CONTEST WITH THIS INCREDIBLE PHOTO OF A SHOEBILL!

 SHOEBILL BY ROBERT WIENAND

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PEREGRINE FALCON BY RYAN SHAW

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE A LARGER VIEW, OR MORE OF RYAN'S PHOTOS, PLEASE CLICK HERE >

About the photo...

Ryan says...

This female was hunting Sanderlings for a while without success. I later found her with the remains of a young Glaucous-winged Gull. She flew off with it, when I captured this image.

About the bird species...

The Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) is a widespread bird of prey in the family Falconidae.  The Peregrine's breeding range includes land regions from the Arctic tundra to the tropics. It can be found nearly everywhere on Earth, except extreme polar regions, very high mountains, and most tropical rainforests; the only major ice-free landmass from which it is entirely absent is New Zealand.

While its diet consists almost exclusively of medium-sized birds, the Peregrine will occasionally hunt small mammals, small reptiles, or even insects.

Source: Wikipedia

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..and The Theme of The Week for this week is ..."Stretch!"

You can submit your photos in either the Trekkie's Forums or in the relevant GBT Flickr Group Discussion . Remember a winner is selected each month end.



Purple Heron 5218 by jackie.during, on Flickr

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SOUTHERN DOUBLE-COLLARED SUNBIRD BY LEON MARAIS

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE A LARGER VIEW, OR MORE OF LEON'S PHOTOS, PLEASE CLICK HERE>

ALSO TO READ LEON'S BLOG, CLICK HERE >

About the photo:

Leon says...

This photo was taken in the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens in Cape Town, a great place for bird photography. Especially when the plants are flowering in Spring (August and September). I was leading a couple of other photographers around and we cane across a Leucospermum bush in full flower, with several sunbirds feeding and defending 'their' flowers. it was just a matter of being patient and waiting for the right moment to fire off a string os shots...

About the bird species:
Southern Double-collared Sunbirds are endemic to South Africa. In the west they are found in quite dry regions, but in the east they occur along the escarpment in moister habitat. They are fairly common, but not always easy to photograph, feeding on nectar, spiders and other small insects. They are vocal and highly active.

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