(Original Post) This may be a common occurrence, but I have never witnessed one. This took place at the San Bernard NWR near the upper Texas coast. The GBH attacked and killed the Grebe in about 48 seconds. The swallowing process took a little over ten minutes. Canon 40D, ISO 400, Evaluative metering, EC +1, f/5.6 @1/1600 sec, 500 F4 + 1.4 TC, BLUBB, Heavy crop - subject 100 yards from vehicle.
(Post #2) At this point, I didn't dream the GBH was going to try to swallow the Grebe whole. I wondered how it could position prey this size for head-first swallowing?? I will post several images of the process.
(Post #3) After a great deal of GBH tossing expertise, the Grebe was finally in position for lunch. Next came the hard part.
I have never witnessed this kind of behaviour before. The lighting is good as are the pose and the details in his feathers. Taking the heron out of the center was a good move. This gave him some extra space to "look into", thus avoiding a constrained feel to the photo. I would run some NR on the BG.
I've been following this series with interest, David. This is a terrific, and unusual, behavioral sequence. It's amazing how large of an object these birds can swallow.
Grebe Falls Prey 3 (Graphic)
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