Tag: Tim Melling

This is the same species of Dipper that occurs in Britain but is of the Tibetan and Chinese subspecies Przewalski.  I posted it for interest because it does look subtly different from European Dippers.  This one has a wholly dark belly, lacking the brighter orange band that we have on British Dippers..  I’m finding it…

Crested Kingfisher (Megaceryle lugubris) ranges from northern India, across China to Japan.  They seem to occur at pretty low density on large, fast flowing, clean rivers.  They perch on wires, branches and rocks  but they do not hover.  Like most Kingfishers they excavate nesting tunnels in river banks.  I photographed this one with its tail…

This wild Leopard Cat (Prionailurus bengalensis chinensis) was photographed at night by torchlight, but with no flash.  I spotted him in a roadside tree as we were driving past at Labahe in China.  I managed to shine a flashlight on him long enough to capture a photograph.  About the size of a domestic cat but…

Forktails are a family of birds native to SE Asia that inhabit rivers and streams.  I have seen several different species (always a treat to see) but the Little Forktail surprised me by being really tiny.  Also it does not have the exaggeratedly forked tail that the others have.  In fact its scientific name Enicurus…

This beautifully ugly creature is also known as the Tibetan Sand Fox (Vulpes ferrilata).  They live on the high Tibetan Plateau where they feed on Plateau Pikas, which are superabundant in the area.  If you look just to the right of the fox you can see a Plateau Pika peeping out.  I took this one…

I first encountered this species in the Tien Shan Mountains of  Kazakhstan about 15 years ago when I thought it was the most beautiful species I had ever seen.  It reminded me of a Lilac-breasted Roller, but in miniature as it is even smaller than a Willow Warbler.  It is in the same general family…

If you search Red Panda for images on the internet almost all are captive “zoo” animals.  So it would appear that photos of genuine Red Pandas taken in the wild are pretty rare. The Red Panda has been classified as endangered by IUCN since 2008 because there are fewer than 10,000 mature individuals and the…

Tim writes: It is an amazing experience making eye contact with a wild Puma. This was photographed just outside Torres del Paine National Park in the south of Chile which must be the best place in the world to see these elusive animals. This one was creeping stealthily towards some Guanaco (a South American Camel…

Tim writes: What amazing headgear this tiny Malachite Kingfisher has. Looks like it is dressed up for Ascot Ladies’ Day. Malachite Kingfishers are only about two thirds the size of the British Kingfisher but they have much longer crest feathers and have a different shade of blue on their backs. They are common and widespread…

Tim writes: Clouded Yellows (Colias crocea) have a small proportion of females that have a white ground colour instead of yellow, and this form is known as helice. This is one such female but there is a problem, as this isn’t a Clouded Yellow. This is an African Clouded Yellow (Colias electo) photographed in Ethiopia…