Terns are exquisitely graceful, when I’m watching them I feel as though their aerial dances should be accompanied by classical music.
Whiskered Tern (Chlidonias Hybrida)
1/2500, f/10, ISO 1600
A small group of these terns were foraging over one of the Western Lagoon ponds at Werribee’s Western Treatment Plant. They were catching insects on the wing and also skimming for insects and shallow diving into the water for small fish.
These images show Whiskered Terns in breeding plumage; they have black crowns, white cheeks, white sides to their necks, deep red bills and legs while their underparts are slate grey.
Whiskered Tern (Chlidonias Hybrida)
1/3200, f/10, ISO 1600
Whiskered Terns are quite small, measuring about 24cm and weighing about 80g. They are stocky and their bills are stout which, along with other features, helps to identify them from similar terns.
Whiskered Tern (Chlidonias Hybrida)
1/3200, f/10, ISO 1600
Another helpful identifier is their slightly forked tail, as shown in the image above. In the other shots the birds’ tails are more fanned. I especially like the backgrounds to these images as they are beautifully blurred while still showing enough detail to give context of the water, reeds and grasses.
I shoot manually so am constantly checking my exposure and shutter speed. Shooting black and white birds can be tricky and I wanted to ensure that the depth of field was sufficient to cover the species wingspan, which is about 65-70cm. They fly so swiftly that I used shutter speeds of up to one thirty-two-thousandth of a second – camera technology is truly amazing!
Happy birding
Kim
PS the lirralirra exhibition has been extended until the end of February at The Chosen Bean, Mountain Gate, Ferntree Gully – new images now on display
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Delightful. Thank you.
Thank you Meredith 🙂
Hi Kim,
Great pics, capturing any flying bird is difficult BUT these guys never fly in a straight line, they dart all over the place.
Can you explain where they got the name “Whiskered” from, they don’t seem to have huge whiskers on their faces??
Bruce.
I cringe when I hear people being interviewed constantly saying ‘good question’, but I said it when I read yours. In the Australian Bird Guide it says the name refers to the white ‘whiskers’ through the cheek – which is a very liberal descriptor I’d say.
Thank you for your great description of how these terns fly, you made me wish I’d included that in the post.
Just glorious.
My heart flies with these charmers (which is as close to grace as I get).
Thank you so much.
Grace of the heart is a very moving concept, I like it a lot
They are such beautiful little birds – great captures!
They are mesmerising to watch, imagine that freedom of movement!