Grey Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea) - Devon, UK
Canon 7D
Canon 300mm F2.8 IS plus 2 x Extender
1/320th
F5.6
ISO 500
Tripod
AV Mode, Evaluative Metering dialed to -1
Text adapted from - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grey_Wagtail
Their breeding season is April to July and the nest is placed near fast running streams or rivers on an embankment between stones and roots. The male in display, makes short flights up into the air and descends slowly with fluttering flight accompanied by a rapid series of chipping high notes. In Europe the nests are often made in holes in manmade structures. The clutch consists of 3-6 speckled eggs and multiple broods may be raised with declining numbers in the clutch in subsequent broods. They live for a maximum of 8 years in the wild.
In some parts of the its range the White-throated Dipper nests in the same habitats as the Grey Wagtail and there are some records of interspecific feeding of dipper chicks by nesting wagtails.
They feed on a variety of aquatic invertebrates including adult flies, mayflies, beetles, crustacea and molluscs. They also forage along roadsides in winter, flushing with a sharp chi-cheep call and flying up further along the road but after some distance turning back to return to the original location.
In winter, they roost in small groups. Wintering birds have been known to return to the same sites, sometimes a small urban garden, each year
Location: Devon_UK