Reaction time.
Jan 27th, 2010 by Duncan
One of our resident Common Bronzewings was feeding quietly about fifteen metres away when I took a three shot burst at approximately four frames per second. The shutter noise startled the pigeon which started to fly but then thought better of it and resumed feeding.The first two frames showed the bird head down feeding, the third shown below shows the tail widely fanned and the wings just starting to spread for take off. These birds are extremely wary, and it shows how little it takes to alarm them and how quickly they react to perceived danger. It’s also interesting to note how they spread the tail widely before the wings come into play. I wonder if it’s to give them lift or if it contacts the ground with a slight leverage effect. Click to enlarge.
