little crake

Seen yesterday in Brenne, a marsh area in the centre of France. You can see this one is moulting.

Little crake looking for food

After many years of trying to get close to migrating Little Crakes on Lesvos, this year we timed it right as a very animated male and female, were foraging amongst the reeds, near the track around Metochi Lake. The female proved to be the much more confiding of the two.

Little Crake (Porzana parva) around Kookherd Iran

Little Crake on Bust e Gez Dam Lake SOuth of Kookherd

A lifer for me, and one of the highlights of our holiday on Lesvos

Their breeding habitat is reed beds in Europe, mainly in the east, and just into western Asia. They nest in a dry location in reed vegetation, laying 4-7 eggs. This species is migratory, wintering in Africa.

courtship by Little Crake

tripod; 0.00 EV; 1/400s; f/8; ISO 400 An obliging bird for one minute - it offered some closer views, but I prefer this one because it shows well its habitat and feeding behaviours ... hope you like it as well

a frog was jumping in the water when the little crake was looking for something to eat. after the frog's jump, he escaped

Photo of a male Little Crake taken from a distance of less than 4 meters.

a little crake was reflecting himself in the water

a little crake during his bath..

This crake came even too close to the hide sometimes I'd like to have a zoom lens

she is looking around for something to eat..

she is looking to find something to eat...

I had this nice uninspected surprice to observe this little crake in valle cavanata

No Hiding Place!

tripod; -0.33 EV; 1/400s; f/6.3; ISO 400 One of those lucky captures: one shot and it flew away ...

handheld; -0.33 EV; 1/250s; f/8; ISO 400 Something moving very close to my hide on my right handside ... I remove my lens from the tripod and cautiously push it forward out of my side window: there it is, foraging unaware! I snap a first shot, just to check histogram and test its reaction ...

Little Crake

tripod; -0.33 EV; 1/320s; f/5.6; ISO 400 Mid afternoon. After a tiresome and not very productive morning, I decided to have a coffe at the visitors' centre. While relaxing a few minutes on the veranda upstairs, I noticed a swift movement on the pond below, then nothing. So I grabbed my kit and...

A bit of a rarity for Switzerland, this, but young ones do turn up from time to time. The problem is finding them.