Sedge warbler
Nikon D7200, Nikon 200-500mm f/5.6
f/6.3, 1/640s, ISO 640, 480mm
This was one of my first wildlife photos taken with my Nikon 200-500mm back in 2016.
I’d just left a bird hide and was walking on a boardwalk through the fen. I heard some cheeping sounds coming from behind me and I turned just in time to see this bird land in the reeds and call out to its chicks to be quiet. Instantly, the noise stopped, I took one shot and moved away so it could go to the nest and feed its young.
I later tried to identify the food in its beak. The white insect is probably a White Plume Moth (Pterophorus pentadactyla) which fits with the location. The orange insect I never discovered.
Thank you.
Yes, they are tricky, especially once they have chicks to protect. I’m lucky that I live in an area with lots of opportunities to see warblers and other reedbed species which increases the odds. I also admit to being a glutton for punishment in regards to small birds. I spent more than a few hours on my last holiday trying to photograph gold crests lol