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Taste of Revenge
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Taste of Revenge

by Wayne Willison

Gallery: AvianPosted December 9, 2010117 views7 comments
This is the last in a series of Great White Egrets fighting. In the prior image, one egret stood on and stomped the other until driving it below the floating foliage. The sunken bird might have drowned in tangled vegetation and water, yet after what seemed forever its yellow bill slivered out of the dark, and then in a desperate thrust, clamped onto the aggressor’s neck.

This last ditch maneuver eventually won freedom for the original victim, and after much flailing of wings, the now slumped over choked bird took its turn beneath the foliage. A few seconds later it reappeared, no doubt sporting a brand new attitude.

For anyone wishing to review the previous four images in this series, just click on Gallery.

D700 300mm 2.8 w/1.4 TC f/5.6 1/2000 ISO 640

Comments

7 comments
Comment posted by Barbara Graham on December 9, 2010 at 11:27 AM
Wayne, this series has been really disquieting for me, but it is great work on your part. I mean, you even got the entire long stretched-out wing here, and I've loved the lighting on all of them.
Registered on July 27, 2010, 1310 Posts, 5035 Comments
Comment posted by Harry Harris on December 9, 2010 at 11:43 AM
Wayne, I have been watching the development of this story and I love it. Your narrative and shots are outstanding. I find the exposures of all of the series to be what I am striving for. Great Job
Registered on August 2, 2010, 169 Posts, 741 Comments
Comment posted by Giorgio Gregori on December 9, 2010 at 12:41 PM
Well, it's really hard to say what is the climax of the action in this series, and what is the best. Congratulations on the title that describes very well the image .
Giorgio
Registered on November 16, 2007, 87 Posts, 793 Comments
Comment posted by Howard Cheek on December 9, 2010 at 10:31 PM
And the winner is! :smile:
What a great series Wayne, I enjoyed each & every post :toast: :toast:
Registered on July 24, 2008, 1201 Posts, 10758 Comments
Comment posted by Sally King on December 10, 2010 at 9:38 AM
Wow, that is some action you have caught. I assume this must happen frequently in nature but I have not seen it document with photos before. Well done.
Registered on December 2, 2008, 416 Posts, 4450 Comments
Comment posted by Steve Balke on December 10, 2010 at 5:47 PM
Quite an amazing series of captures, Wayne. It's interesting that both egrets survived all this despite what looks like potentially fatal techniques. I find this final image to be the most startling of all. I like the lighting in the series too and how well the birds stand out from the background. :toast: :toast:
Registered on June 18, 2009, 229 Posts, 2915 Comments
Comment posted by Mia McPherson on December 11, 2010 at 7:14 PM
I've loved this series Wayne! It shows these birds behaving as they naturally do under some circumstances. The behavior has made this series fascinating.
Registered on June 25, 2007, 491 Posts, 12566 Comments