OT The Red Kite and the Cat

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qprbeth said:
Col my eldest daughter worked as an apprentice at St Tiggywinkles for a year. I had one glorious visit after hours with her. Cuddled a badger and then watched as she fed a red kite who had lost the top of his beak and broken his wing in a car accident. Two of the most memorable moments in my life
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Car strikes are the main cause of injuries to Red Kites. They get hit as they swoop down on road kill. Huge birds when you get up close aren't they?
 
qprbeth said:
Huge yes, but beautiful beyond belief
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They are. So beautiful in flight to. The way they use their tail as a rudder makes them so agile. Few birds of prey can match their agility. On a bright day, the way the sunlight catches their red and white colourings is quite stunning.
 
rangercol said:
That's a great spot Dave. I don't know a lot about birds of prey that aren't from Britain, but I think Griffin Vultures are usually seen around Portugal and Spain.
They can occur in the South of France too. Massive bird.....8' wing span. You should be able to see lots of Red and Black Kites in France and Spain too. Out of interest, how did you know what the Vulture was?
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I asked as i was driving around a remote mountain road in Northern Italy on the way to Torino there was one in the road eating a dead kid and it took off ... I thought it was a beast
 
A little aside from the main thread. But I remember watching a documentary on the earth's most efficient predator. It was between a shark, a cheetah and a sparrow hawk. The sparrow hawk won easily.
 
Sooperhoop said:
Used to play golf at Falconwood Golf Course in Surrey and remember regularly seeing the falcons hovering static about 100 feet up and then swoop down to pluck a rabbit out of the rough. Birds of prey are truly an awesome sight to behold...
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I once pluck a hare out of my arse ............ or should I say, hair ........... sorry!
 
QPR999 said:
A little aside from the main thread. But I remember watching a documentary on the earth's most efficient predator. It was between a shark, a cheetah and a sparrow hawk. The sparrow hawk won easily.
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Missed that one mate. Quite amazing if true. The Sparrow hawk is a ruthless killer. They tend to rip off their prey's head as soon as possible. Also, if you ever see a circle of bird feathers on the ground, that's usually where a Sparrow hawk has decimated a pigeon!
 
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