Four nearly full-frame images of a very cooperative Merlin.

For most of the summer and Fall, several of us had been stalking this Merlin. A few photographers got some good shots, mostly from a distance. I had only gotten my first shots of it about a week before these shots. At that time, I and two others were surprised by the Merlin as it landed in a tree some five meters behind us and about seven meters up. It then seemed to have just fed and was in no hurry to leave until after it had completed its preening.

Presently, I found the Merlin perched about six meters above a narrow road. (see my previous posting at http://www.pbase.com/image/131823309). A few other photographers joined me after I had already taken quite a few shots. The Merlin changed perches a few times, but at all times stayed quite close to us.

In this sequence of shots, the Merlin had landed on a horizontal branch beside the road, about 2.5 meters above the ground,{almost at eye-level). It then took three steps on the branch directly towards me as I was standing about three meters from it. Then it stopped, made a right hand turn and after a few moments flew off to a slightly higher branch. This is definitely the closest that I have been to a Merlin.

Top image: The Merlin looks me over as it faces me.


The Merlin looks directly at me. Perhaps it was eying my furry hat as it starts to walk towards me.


One slow step at a time. At this point I wasn't quite sure what to expect; however, .....


....the Merlin stops, makes a right turn, looks around and then takes off to an other close-by branch.