Kingfishers

[wend5000]

I am really keen to get some Kingfisher shots.

Where and when is the best place to catch Kingfishers. (I am in somerset)

I think nesting is march-april time.... But i have looked on here and seen some lovely shots by Jeffh with them in snow....

Thanks (in anticipation) for your help!

Wendy

[Brian Phipps]

Hi Wendy,
I`m from Somerset also, I`ve had success on the River Huntspill, plenty of Kingfishers on there and nothing for them to land on, so a branch pushed in gives them an ideal platform to fish.

Send me a PM if you like and want soem more help.

Cheers
Brian

[BillyPilgrim]

Hello and welcome, Wendy.

I'm afraid I'm nowhere near Somerset so I don't know the 'where' bit, but as for the 'when', in my limited experience I've found that anytime when its light is probably the answer.

I really struggled to get them to come close until I provided them with a perch. Since then they have used it regularly and are happy to pose at a very close distance.

As well as the perch you need a bit of cover. Although you don't need to be totally concealed. Just keep still when they land you should be ok. Luckilly I was able to put my perch in front of a hide so I had the job done for me.

Then you just sit back and wait. If the perch is along their usual fishing route then I'm sure they will use it. It took about 2 weeks before they started using mine but since then they have become very keen. I can usually count on a visit each time I go to the hide. They stay for between a few seconds and (the record) 11 minutes.

All the Kingfisher shots in my Gallery are taken from the perch I installed -

BillyPilgrim Gallery - Wildlife Photography

[JeffH]

Originally Posted by wend5000

...Where and when is the best place to catch Kingfishers. (I am in somerset)
I think nesting is march-april time.... But i have looked on here and seen some lovely shots by Jeffh with them in snow.... Wendy

Hi Wendy and welcome to WAB.

I'm afraid I can't help with the "where" bit of your question as I have no knowledge of Kingfisher territories in Somerset.

As for the "when", I find that Kingfishers are generally at their most active soon after first light when they're out and about looking for fish.

Kingfishers typically pair up in early to mid-February and have a long breeding season, sometimes running through to September/early October and with 3 broods. However, I'd recommend that you avoid searching them out in this period for fear of causing them disturbance at or near their nest which can be a criminal offence if "intentional" or "reckless" and done without the appropriate licence from Natural England. Sadly, disturbance at nest sites is becoming more of a problem as more and more photographers join the quest to get some good Kingfisher shots, though all too often without due regard for the birds' welfare and sometimes without even realising that they're near a nest site

Incidentally, my snow photos were taken on Easter Sunday of this year when our local pair were already nesting.

There's lots more information about their behaviour in my Kingfisher Diary forum thread - Kingfisher Diary (with photos)

I hope this is useful.

Jeff

[Jim Ford]

A good tip is that kingfishers often give a single high-pitched call as they fly, so you often hear them before you see them.

Jim

[RoseStones]

This may be complete twaddle but I though I heard Bill Oddie say on Autumnwatch that 'fishers make their way to the coast at this time of year, returning in the spring to nest. This would seem to be backed up by a recent 'kingfishermongous' estuary boat trip that a friend of mine was on a few weeks ago in Sandwich, Kent (which is obviously on the coast).

On that basis it may be a good idea to head to the Levels and Slimbridge (says me from East Anglia that's never been there)?