Trapped in a Tawny’s Talons

Hi all…so I guess I am being brave today because the photograph I am sharing with you all today is another bird of prey. I am pretty sure that I know what this one is this time though so hopefully Phil will agree with me that this is a beautiful Tawny Eagle. This Tawny has a poor little striped field mouse in its talons. It may sound really horrible but I really love this photograph because of the sheer look of terror on the mouse’s face. I guess if I had that view of a giant needle-sharp beak pointing right at me and was surrounded by massive talons that rip into flesh like serrated blades, I would also have that look of terror on my face. I love the colouring you can see in the feathers and the few rays of sun coming from behind them, hitting the back of the mouse’s head and eagle’s legs. Above all of this, I think I like the eye-contact between them the most. It makes this image so menacing because you realise that the eagle has all the power in this situation and the mouse seems to be pleading for his life in his last few minutes before he becomes this eagle’s late afternoon snack. The grass is getting longer around here now which means that there are a lot more bugs, birds, mice and smaller prey scuttling around. Again, for those that are interested, I took this shot with my Nikon D700 and Nikon 600mm lens.

Take a look and I hope it doesn’t upset too many of you but hey…this is the way life is out here…

Cheers til tomorrow…