Sunday, November 05, 2006

Sunday crowd

3.30 pm, pelican feeding at The Entrance.
It's been raining on and off since Friday - and more on than off. But during one of the short respites we had today I caught these pelicans gathered on the quay in the hope of catching one of the fish thrown to them. The pelican feeding, apart from being one of the best free attractions north of Sydney, provides a chance to spot, catch and treat those birds who are sick or injured (hooks and fishing lines in their gullets, wings or necks are the most common occurence). More about The Entrance pelican feeding here...

Il fait gris et pluvieux depuis vendredi mais entre deux gouttes j'ai réussi à saisir ces pélicans au "pelican feeding" à The Entrance. Il y a vingt ans, le personnel d'un restaurant de poissons avait pris l'habitude de jeter les restes aux pélicans. En cas de retard, ceux-ci traversaient la rue pour venir réclamer leur dû. Aujourd'hui c'est une association locale qui a pris le relais, pour la plus grande joie des touristes. Mais c'est aussi l'occasion de repérer, d'attraper et de soigner les oiseaux malades ou blessés (les hameçons ou lignes de pêche pris dans leur bec, leur cou ou leurs ailes sont fréquents). En savoir plus...

25 comments:

Kala said...

this pic is soooooo artsy - I like! =D

Sally said...

Nathalie - that is OUTSTANDING! A really superb photo! I'm in awe :-)

Olivier said...

Superbe cette manifestation de pelicans. histoire trés amusante.

Superb this demonstration of pelicans. history very amusing.

JaamZIN said...

this French girl living in Sydney takes wonderful photos!:) I am glad that you know already how to prounance my name.

Bill said...

I like this a much as your ealier Pelican post :)

Mostly Harmless said...

Fantastic! You should get this archive printed and framed.

Pierre said...

Incroyable image! Quelle concentration de pélicans tous dans la même position d'attente... Excellent, bien photographié... et très drôle!

Lachezar said...

So beautiful, post some more please!

Paul Murphy said...

Wonderful photo Nathalie.

Ben Nakagawa said...

Impressive!

Anonymous said...

This could have been useful to make a menacing scene in Hitchcock's movie. What a difference the setting can make?

Anonymous said...

Thanks all for your kind comments, very much appreciated. I was lucky that the weather was so bad: spectactors were very few so I was able to come really close to the birds. It's a very popular attraction and you generally see lots of human heads too.

bv said...

Excellent catch Nathalie Blogging. National Geographic wouldn't have done better...

Eric said...

Nathalie...I noticed this photo on the portal and clicked right away. How marvelous the symmetry, subject, and story. Not your ordinary pack of pelicans!

Andreea said...

this is so interesting. and such a great photo.

Kate said...

Great shot! Everyone agrees that it is creative and a wonderful capture!

Anonymous said...

Whoa, looks like their marching...

Brian Mc said...

Incredible imagery!

Pod said...

great!

Anonymous said...

Love those yellow eyes.

Alex said...

How did you manage to have such an armada of Pelicans and to get so closely! Cette photo est sublime et tres artistique. BRAVO!

Kris said...

they seem like army of clone pelicans. how do we differenciate! Wonderful photo nonetheless :)

Marcyś said...

no words to explain my admiration

Unknown said...

I love this shot of the birds. Very nice. And the lines look very cool.

Reflex said...

Excellente photo :D C'est quand même amusant que les pélicans aient pris cette habitude.