The Birds of Tanzania

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Tanzania has an incredible species list, with 
both animals and birds.

Our group was extremely fortunate to find some amazing 

looking birds. Here we have one of the most common, and the most

beautiful, the Little Bee-eater.  This cute and colorful species
is smaller than a robin, and bigger than a
goldfinch., so relatively small.

They are reasonably comfortable with people, most are approachable 

within 30 feet via vehicle, and maybe 35-40 feet on foot.  They
 seem to have their favorite perches, so when they
venture out for a hunt, it is normal to see them return
back to the same location with a meal.  

I have found them to usually perch low in the area where 

they are hunting, so they can look up to see their prey against the 

sky.  Butterflies, bees, dragonflies appear to be the most
 likely targets on the menu.  

One of the cool and interesting notes concerning photographing 

these bird would be the head angles. Since the Bee-eaters 

are very active, they are constantly hunting.  I find them
 to be quite still on their perch, but they are always twitching
their heads looking for the next target above the perch.

In flight, the colors are spectacular, a speedy dart for a 

chase, and quick return to kill the prey and swallow it whole.

More images soon!

You may check the extra large files here on my pBase site,

2560 x 1440 prepared for iMac monitors.

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