King Rail with Fiddler Crab

[Geoffrey Montagu]

From recent trip to Hudson River inlet. This mother was very determined not only to capture the Fiddler crab, but made sure she had cleaned all the mud off. C&C welcome.

D700, Nikon 500mm + 1.4 tc, 1/1250, f 5.6, ISO 2000, hand held, Gitzo tripod, Wimberley Gimbal Head.


Geoffrey

[Richard Flack]

Super image Geoffrey! Love the outstretched leg and muddy environment. Great detail on the bird and awesome that it is completely out in the open. The only improvement I would suggest is to try and get a lower angle next time as this may help remove the mud bank in the BG. TFS

[Bill Dix]

Great purposeful pose, and the catch is a real bonus. Nice job getting her to clean the crab first. In all of my frames of her with prey, the food item was indistinguishable from the mudflats. Nicely exposed and sharp under difficult lighting, and her color stands out well against the drab mud. Too bad the site didn't allow a lower POV, but with a rare species like this King Rail, you take what you can get.

[Doug Brown]

I really like the way the plumage stands out against the muddy BG. Nice feeding behavior and striding pose. Good sharpness too.

[Geoffrey Montagu]

Thanks Richard, Bill, and Doug for your comments. Richard I should have mentioned that we were on a foot bridge with no access for a lower point of view.




Geoffrey