A sting in the tail: One young swallow gets ready to take a bit of a wasp from its mother
These are the incredible pictures which show three baby birds filling up on some fast food as they grab tasty morsels from their parents' beaks as they swoop past.
The usually elusive swallows were spotted as they waited hungrily for their supper in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
Wildlife photographer Roeselien Raimond had been hoping to take some pictures of birds in flight but was delighted when she stumbled across these birds' dinner time.
She said: 'There were three youngsters and both parents were feeding them.
'The little birds sat on the fence, patiently waiting for mum and dad to come back to them.
Its my turn! One swallow looks on as his sibling gets fed some fast food by its parent
'But when the parents did come back, they didn't hang about for long - they zipped past and the chicks whipped the food straight out of their mouths.
'Usually barn swallow are very elusive, unpredictable and fast which makes them a real challenge to capture.
'I was lucky, because the new born babies aren't very fast, and can't fly well, so it was easier for me to take some pictures.
'So they sit on the fence and if you approach them very calmly they will stay there.
'If you keep enough distance the parents won't be disturbed and will just go on feeding the youngsters.
'I was so pleased I managed to capture such a lovely family scene.'
Ouch! This fish meets a spikey end when a bird spears it using its beak
This hungry bird has given a new meaning to the term spear fishing after she turned her unlucky prey into a kebab.
The Anhinga bird spotted the fish swimming in a river near Miami, Florida. She then chased it through the water after setting her sights on it for dinner.
Down the hatch: Photographer Alfred Forns captured the amazing tussle near his home in Miami
Watch the birdie: The hungry Anhinga shows off its catch to the camera
After taking a dip, the beautiful bird expertly skewered the fish with her beak. But the predator then shook it free before throwing it into the air and catching it in her mouth, swallowing it down in one.
Open wide: The crafty Anhinga can swim like a U-boat with its body submerged below the waterline and only its neck protruding like a periscope to creep up on its unsuspecting prey before spearing its target with a sudden thrust
The crafty Anhinga can swim like a U-boat with its body submerged below the waterline and only its neck protruding like a periscope to creep up on its unsuspecting prey before spearing its target with a sudden thrust.
The incredible scene was caught on camera by Alfred Forns, a 64-year-old dentist also from Florida.
The hunt: This tiny fish had his chips after being speared by a hungry Anhinga bird in a saltwater lake in Florida
Gulp: The predator shook its meal free before throwing it into the air and catching it in her mouth, swallowing it down in one
A peck on the beak: This fearless common gull launched an attack on a white-tailed Sea Eagle in the skies above Norway, before stealing some feathers and escaping the bird of prey
They're a common sight wheeling through the skies above seaside towns, swooping on unsuspecting visitors and swiping bags of chips.
But this common gull clearly has bigger ideas, after tackling a full grown white tailed eagle in Norway.
The plucky bird swooped on its not-so eagle eyed victim and pecked at its head during an astonishing aerial duel.
This is a hoot: This image of a Great Grey owl was taken in Tornio, Finland
And it was the gull that came out on top as it managed to steal some of the eagle's feathers before making its escape.
This photo was one of many taken by Markus Varesvuo, 45, has part of his new book Birds: Magic Moments.
They are the product of scrupulous planning and hours of waiting for the right shot.
Peckish: This bright orange Hoopoe was pictured after catching an insect in its beak in Pusztaszer, Hungary
Mr Varesvuo told Metro: 'At worst I sit doing nothing for days, when the birds never come.
'Or I sit 24/7 by the computer wading through hundreds and hundreds of pictures. 'It is rewarding, exhilarating, and can offer the purest kind of beauty quite unexpectedly.'
He does not use a flash, relying on natural light to capture his images.
The bearded reedling male expertly straddles who reeds to catche a cranefly in shallow waters
This bearded reedling has found a clever way to catch its lunch, and have a drink to wash it down as well.
The reedling was photographed in the Netherlands clinging precariously to two stems in a bid to grab a passing snack.
A master of balance, the bird, also known as a bearded tit, was spotted by Dutch photographer Edwin Kats.
With his camera at the ready, he watched as the bird grabbed hold of two reed stems, positioning itself expertly over the water.
When a tasty cranefly flitted by the reedling was able to dip down and catch it in one swift move.
Mr Kats then watched as the bird took a sip of water from the reedbed to wash down its lunch.
Duck: This clever bird was spotted by Dutch photographer Edwin Kats looking out for a snack
He said: 'Reedbeds in Holland and in the UK are a natural habitat for these birds.
'These images were shot in a beautiful natural area of the Netherland called The Veluwe.
'I've been working with these birds for about four months and it took lots of effort to finally get the image which was already in my head long before the start of this project.'
Clever: Mittu the parrot speaks in Urdu after growing up in Bradford
Clever: Mittu the parrot speaks in Urdu after growing up in Bradford A bilingual parrot has started speaking Urdu after learning Islamic phrases from growing up in Bradford.
Two-year-old African grey Mittu can say the traditional Muslim greeting ‘asalaam alaykum’ and speak other religious passages meaning ‘in the name of Allah’ as well as the more customary ‘who’s a pretty boy?’
Friends: Mittu 's owner Ghaffar Ahmed says his beloved bird can say 'come here' and 'hello, how are you?' in Urdu along with other religious words
His owner Ghaffar Ahmed, from Stourbridge, West Midlands, says his beloved bird can say ‘come here’, ‘hello, how are you?’ in Urdu along with other religious words.
The 36-year-old said: 'He speaks Urdu and English - I don’t know how many bilingual birds there are in the UK but there can’t be many.
'He says a few words including ‘'asalaam alaykum'’, ‘'bismillah’', which means ‘'in the name of Allah'’ and ‘'shabaash'’ - which means '‘well done'’.
'But he also barks like a dog and makes the noise of the refrigerator alarm, so he likes making all sorts of noises really.'
-The more times bustards performed their 'flirting' mating ritual, the more their fertility declined
By Daily Mail Reporter
See video below...
'Booming': Scientists have found a link between sexual behaviour and ageing among Hubari bustards, which flare their feathers in a distinctive mating ritual
Indulging in overt sexual behaviour could lead to premature ageing in men through 'burnout', according to scientists studying fertility patterns in birds. A 10-year research programme into the sex lives of bustards, birds with a very flamboyant mating display, showed a dramatic decline in the quality of sperm among the more 'showy' males.
The mating display of the male Houbara bustard, known as 'booming', sees striking ornamental feathers flare up before the bird runs around while making a low-pitched call.
The study of more than 1,700 North African Houbara bustards showed that the more times male birds performed the ritual, the more the quality of their sperm declined for what the scientists believe is an age-related reason.
'Over the age of six years they began to produce much smaller ejaculates with immobile and frequently abnormal sperm,' lead researcher Dr Brian Preston Preston told the BBC.
'But the key finding was that males that had invested most effort displaying to females in their earlier years experienced the onset of this age-related decline in fertility at a younger age.
'They effectively seem to "burn themselves out" sooner.'
In the mood: As per the video below, this bustard is flaring its feathers at the beginning of its mating ritual
The birds, a threatened species, were bred in captivity in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, as part of a programme designed to boost their numbers in the wild.
Bustards are ripe for the study because they live for so long, and the study examined birds aged from one to 24.
The males can 'boom' for as much as 18 hours a day, six months of the year.
Dr Preston, who is based at the University of Burgundy in France, led his team in measuring the length of time each male spent 'booming', and then compared that with changes in fertility, which is usually associated with ageing.
The more time the birds spent 'booming', the more dramatic was the decline in their fertility.
Dr Preston said that genes which cause birds to deteriorate with age would usually be 'weeded out' by natural selection and the fact that it does not happen is a significant anomaly.
Evolutionary biologists advance the theory that animals - unsure how long they might live in a world where they could be picked off by predators - can 'overspend' their energy.
In a biological trade-off, they exhaust their energies in early life, leaving themselves unable to properly maintain their bodies as they get older.
Victim: Sea turtles are among the endangered species killed by plastic bags
It is a beautifully simple plan in which everyone wins.
Shoppers are charged 5p each for plastic bags, raising £50million a year for charities and cutting the number of bags issued by 90 per cent.
Sadly, at the moment it is only going to happen in Wales. The scheme will be introduced on October 1 with the backing of all political parties.
Danger: A Pacific Green Turtle suffocating on a plastic bag after mistaking it for a jellyfish
The Government has been urged to roll out the idea across Britain and provide a lifeline for thousands of charities whose existence is threatened by savage funding cuts.
James Allen of the National Council for Voluntary Organisations, which represents 8,500 charities, said: ‘We know that plastic bags create unnecessary waste.
Banish the bags: The Daily Mail's 'Banish the Bags' campaign, launched in 2008, has been pushing for efforts to tackle the waste
Sneaking in: Grenville steals from the Upper Crust bakery up to three times a day
Usually only shops in the roughest areas have to hire bouncers to ward off thieves.
But a bakery in the seaside resort of Newquay in Cornwall has had to take this drastic measure to tackle a shoplifter who visits three times a day.
However, no security measures have yet been enough to stop this persistent thief - Grenville the seagull.
The cheeky bird waits at the door of the Upper Crust bakery and hops behind the counter to grab pasties, sausage rolls and sweets which it drags outside.
It has a particular taste for crisps and has been known to scoff entire chocolate bars in one sitting.
Worker Martine Hawkes said: 'It's getting ridiculous. He paces up and down all morning until our backs are turned or the shop is empty before walking in bold as brass and helping himself.
Caught red-beaked: Granville's favourite food is crisps, but he is also partial to pasties and chocolate
'It was quite amusing at first but it's become a bit of a pain as he's stealing quite a bit of stock. He's gone for everything, including pasties, and we've even seen him eat a whole Crunchie bar one day.
'There's nothing we can do. We've tried shooing him out, hiding the stock, even putting up plastic barriers but he always finds a way.
'We know it's the same bird as he has a distinctive red eyebrow, which we think must be dye of some sort. Grenville's become quite a celebrity, with shoppers regularly coming in to take pictures.'
Hungry: Granville open packaging with his beak and eats his ill-gotten gains in front of the shop
The bird has been targeting the shop for over three months, and visits up to three times every day.
Staff reckon he has cost them hundreds of pounds by walking out with a bag of crisps, sweets or pasties before brazenly tucking into them in the street.
The shop has now tasked one member of staff with patrolling the front door at all times.
Shop assistant Ammii Downing added: 'He is a lovely seagull and it was funny to start with, but it's starting to get irritating.
'It's costing the shop a fortune.'
Persistent: Even installing a bouncer hasn't deterred the shoplifter
Open wide... not that wide! The young cuckoo demands more food
It is one of nature's cruellest tricks... a cuckoo manages to lay her eggs in another's nest, fooling them to carry the burden of raising her offspring.
And these incredible images show just how determined the tiny duped birds are as they doggedly try to feed their giant 'baby' bird.
These photos of a reed warbler feeding a baby cuckoo were taken at Slimbridge Wetland Centre in Gloucestershire.
Little and large: The reed warbler offers up small morsels of food for the greedy bird
James Lees, the reserve warden who took the photos, said: 'I felt very excited when I saw it as I had never seen a baby cuckoo and it was amazing to see the two parents flying around desperately trying to provide it with enough food.'
Cuckoos lay their eggs in other birds' nests, fooling them into believing the chick is one of their young.
At the appropriate moment, the hen cuckoo flies down to the Reed Warblers' nest, pushes one reed warbler egg out of the nest, lays an egg and flies off.
The whole process is achieved in only about 10 seconds.
Please mum, I want some more! The reed warbler tirelessly hunts for food for the intruder
And the baby cuckoo clearly takes after their sly mother hatches first and then quickly disposes of any competition by kicking any other eggs out of the nest.
Mr Lees said there was a huge audience as the small birds tried to feed their intruder, who has a seemingly insatiable appetite.
'There was quite a crowd of visitors watching it as it was happening right next to our main playground, Welly Boot Land,' he said.
'A cuckoo is about the size of a dove, so it would weigh about five times more than a reed warbler.
'They also take twice as long to fledge as a warbler, so these poor parents are stuck feeding them for longer.'
Cuckoos are on the decline in the UK so when two pairs of parents arrived at Slimbridge earlier this year, staff were hopeful that they would produce some young.
The common cuckoo is a brood parasite, which lays its eggs in the nests of other bird species, particularly of Dunnocks, Meadow Pipits, and Eurasian Reed Warblers.
The common tern has laid its eggs on a tiny island of salt in the middle of the calm lake
This house-proud seabird might not be able to walk on water - but has set up home on it instead.
The common tern has crafted an unusual nest in the middle of a calm lake, using just a tiny island of salt.
The mother seabird has laid two eggs in the middle of the sparkling salt, which rises gently out of the water in a small mound.
The mother seabird's home is in the middle of a salt factory in Atlit, Israel
The peaceful home, in the middle of a salt factory in Atlit, Israel, allows her to watch over her precious eggs - and the reflection even provides a useful mirror to admire herself in.
The beautiful scene was captured on camera by wildlife photographer Amnon Eichelberg, a 45-year-old economic consultant from Israel.
He said: 'The birds have set up nest in a salt factory near the town Atlit in the salt pools of the plant.
'The type of nest they are building there is a very unique and unlike nests on the ground - they use grains of salt on top the water.
'This common tern has two brown eggs in the nest, which she guards carefully for most of the day.
'She has a break ever hour or so, for 15 minutes at a time.
The bird has two brown eggs in the nest, which she guards carefully for most of the day
The reflection in the peaceful lake even provides a useful mirror for the bird to admire herself in
'One the day I took the photos, the conditions were excellent - it was about an hour before sunset and there wasn't any wind.
'I made sure I was hidden under cover so that I didn't disturb the birds, and all of a sudden this bird glided over the nest.
'It was almost as if she wanted me to take her picture with the beautiful reflection, so I hope the finished product is to her taste.'
The common tern - Sterna hirundo in Latin - is a seabird known to live in temperate and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia and east and central North America.
It migrates to coastal tropical and subtropical regions in the winter and breeds in colonies on coasts, islands and freshwater lakes.
Birds of a feather: Bert the budgie (left) reunited with his best mate Lola after being feared lost forever
Seeing his opportunity to escape from captivity, the jailbird decided to make daring bid for freedom.
Bert the budgie sneaked through a two-inch gap in his cage while it was in the garden and made his getaway – leaving two young children distraught.
But Bert obviously had second thoughts. Because six days later, he handed himself in – at an RSPCA rescue centre a mile away from his home in York.
Helen Brown, 30, had been feeding two-year-old Bert and his playmate Lola when the pet made his escape, in as daring a manner as Rocky the Rooster does in the film Chicken Run.
Great escape: Rocky the Rooster in a scene from the film Chicken Run, a homage to POW camp escape movies
With her children Sam, nine, and four-year-old Lucy crying for his return, father Martin made several desperate attempts to catch the bright blue bird as he flew into a tree before landing on a neighbour’s porch.
But Bert managed to evade him and was feared lost for ever.
Seeing double: The kingfisher produced a perfect mirror image when it dived headfirst into the River Alde in Suffolk
Diving effortlessly head first in to the water, this kingfisher appears to become two as its reflection is revealed in breathtaking detail.
Photogapher Paul Sawer spent five weeks watching a family of Britain's most fascinating birds at the River Alde in Rendham, Suffolk.
The 39-year-old captured this extraordinary sight after setting up a glass tank full of fish in the water to attract the birds, with their images reflected in the glass as they dived into the river.
His shot shows the kingfisher's reflection with such clarity that, at first glance, it appears as if the bird has collided with another in the water.
Mr Sawer, from Saxmundham, Suffolk, said, 'Reflections are a particular favourite of mine and I wanted to capture the dive in reflection.
'For this I submerged a glass tank in the river, popped in some fish, set up the flashes and focused the camera on the centre of the tank.
Feeding time: Photographer Paul Sawer set up a glass tank containing fish to attract the birds
Heading for the water: Photographer Sawer captured the kingfisher's every move as it prepared to plunge into the river
'I pressed the shutter just before the bird entered the water.
'There is a lot of luck involved as to the position of the bird and I had several near misses.
'But opportunities were frequent and it wasn't too long before I had secured the image I had hoped for.
On reflection: The kingfisher's image was mirrored in the glass of the fish tank Sawer had placed in the river
'I spent around 150 hours on the project during 5 weeks and didn't tire of the kingfishers once.
'Not only are they one of the UK's most colourful birds they are among the most fascinating to watch and I feel privileged to have observed this family at close quarters.
'I am thrilled to finally have the dive added to my portfolio.'
Time-consuming: Sawer spent over 150 hours capturing the perfect photos of the kingfishers
Stunning shots: The reflections of the birds are captured in breathtaking detail
Steven Seagull: This feathered film star stole a video camera and inadvertently shot a video of its flight over Cannes in the South of France
The term bird's-eye view has never been more appropriate.
A video has emerged of a seagull supposedly 'stealing' a video camera and carrying it off through the skies.
With the camera recording at the moment of lift off, the feathered directer accidentally records a video of its flight over Cannes in the south of France, home of arguably the world's most famous film festival.
Shot from above: The seagull recorded its flight to the top of Cannes Castle, capturing images of the roads and streets below
The video begins with an unseen cameraman creeping through the garden of a large house at night, and then placing the camera on the ground.
An inquisitive seagull walks up to the camera and seemingly lifts it up with its beak, before flying off.
The cameraman can be heard making his protests with a rather feeble 'Hey. HEY!' but is not glimpsed as the gull files up above the streets and houses, with cars visible on the roads below.
After a short flight - punctuated by some rather amusing honks and squawks from the seagull - our star comes in to land on top of a building.
The gull pokes around at the camera with it's beak, turning it over a few times, before it settles on a view of another building with a fellow seagull visible - perhaps the leading lady in seagull circles.
The pair have a brief squawking session before the camera fades to black.
I'm ready for my close up: The seagull casts a beady eye over its shiny electronic booty, while in the background is a tower on which he soon finds a friends
'Seagull stole my video camera in Cannes France. I found it on the castle wall, where I had to climb,' wrote opica1983, the YouTube user who posted the video online. The question of quite how opica1983 knew where there camera had come to rest is unanswered.
One also has to wonder what the original cameraman was doing prowling around in the garden of a large house at night in the first place.
The video is entitled 'Seagull stole GoPro', which refers to the brand of camera.
GoPro make small cameras that are often used by sports people, sometimes mounted on helmets or even attached to surfboards to capture video from unusual angles.
The company has previously marketed its cameras with viral videos, including a snowboarding and surfing short that has so far been watched more than 3million times on YouTube.
In fact, GoPro has made something of a name for itself in that area and has previously been praised for its viral video advertising by the likes of Mashable, the internet and social media news website.
Perhaps after seeing the success it has enjoyed in viral videos the company has decided to spread its wings into viral video advertising.
Or perhaps there actually is a seagull out there with a desire to be in the movies...
The gannet is stuck 100feet down the 400foot cliff face, trapped by a fishing wire which is wrapped around its beak. It was later rescued by the RSPCA
Rescuers risked their lives to save a bird dangling helplessly 300ft up sheer cliffs. The gannet was spotted with a fishing line wrapped around its beak and was stranded next to the chalk cliff face with no way of escaping.
But a specialist RSPCA team carried out a daring four-hour rescue operation – one of the most dramatic and dangerous of its kind ever attempted in the UK.
Ignoring their own personal safety, the three-man abseiling team managed to reach the bird, tangled up in a fishing line around 100ft from the top and at an overhanging section of the cliff that was difficult to reach.
A rescuer lowers himself down the sheer cliff face to get to the trapped bird at the Bempton Cliffs nature reserve near Flamborough Head on the East Yorkshire coast. The whole operation took four hours
One of the rescuers managed to put the flapping bird into a special bag before carrying it back up to safety.
After being checked by a vet, the gannet was later released back into the wild, apparently none the worse for its ordeal.
The operation took place in fading light last Wednesday evening at the Bempton Cliffs nature reserve near Flamborough Head on the East Yorkshire coast.
The dramatic cliffs are home to 200,000 birds during the summer months and large numbers of birdwatchers flock there to observe the wildlife.
The RSPB, who run the nature reserve, called in the RSPCA when the bird was spotted dangling part way down the cliff face.
Geoff Edmond, the RSPCA’s wildlife co-ordinator, said: ‘The bird was dangling on the end of about a 100ft length of string from its nest site on the cliff ledge.
‘We could not determine if the line was attached to its beak or neck, but it was obviously distressed and in a life-threatening position.
‘It could not have been in a worse place at the highest point of the cliffs, and rescuing it was going to be almost impossible.
‘The only way it could be reached was for somebody to go down the cliff face, but that was fraught with danger because of the overhang.’
The specialist abseil team arrived from its base in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne at 6.40pm and decided it was safe to go down.
Team leader Trevor Walker said: ‘We decided two of us would go down to approach the bird from either side because it could not be seen directly from above because of the overhang.
‘Geoff had to position himself further along the cliff top, from where the bird could be seen, and guide us in by radio.
‘There were a lot of safety issues, but thankfully we managed to reach the stricken bird at about 10pm, cut it free, and take it to the cliff top in a special bag.’
The nylon string, used in fishing, had been attached to the lower part of the bird’s beak for ten hours, but it did not appear to be seriously injured.
Mr Edmond added: ‘I have been an RSPCA inspector for over 20 years, and it must be the hardest rescue that I have ever co-ordinated.
The animal welfare team later released the gannet back into the wild after the protracted rescue mission
‘Despite the almost impossible task of reaching the bird, there was also a great deal of pressure and emotion involved.
‘There was so much relief all round when the gannet was finally brought to safety and it just shows how worthwhile it is to develop specialist rescue teams.
'We can’t choose which animal or bird needs rescuing, but we will always pull out all the stops to try to make it successful.’
During the winter anglers dangle lines from the cliff top to fish and one of these is believed to have somehow became entangled around the bird’s head.
Ian Kendall, manager of the Bempton Cliffs reserve, praised the rescuers. He said: ‘It is brilliant the team were able to save the bird because it is something we couldn’t have done ourselves. They have also probably saved the life of the chick that it is still feeding.’
Hawk-eyed: Rufus starts eyeing up his surroundings as his owner Wayne Davis prepares him for duty
This is one Hawk-eye that is never wrong.
For pigeons flying around Wimbledon, Rufus, a three-year-old bird of prey, is a feathered fiend. But for fans, organisers and players alike he helps keep the place clean and prevents distractions on court.
Keeper Wayne Davis said: 'He provides more of a deterrent really, and keeps the pigeons away from court and stops them nesting rather than eating them. 'He can do though, he'd eat half a rabbit if he could.'
Rufus is a Harris hawk, a US species, and is a firm fixture around SW19, even having his own pass showing his job title: Bird Scarer.
Mr Davis, 48, and Rufus arrive every day at 5.30am and work for four hours. The hawk flies around the massive footprint of the south-west London tennis capital, keeping more timid birds at bay.
The pair then go to other jobs: keeping pigeons off Westminster Abbey and Hampton Waterworks among others.
Bird's-eye view: Rufus is a Harris Hawk and even has his own pass for Wimbledon which reads: Bird Scarer
Rufus might terrify other birds but he attracts admiring looks from tennis fans who always ask Mr Davis to stop for a picture.
Mr Davis said: 'He is very popular. People are mesmerised by birds of prey. And in this context, people are often surprised to see Rufus.
'But he's very good. I trained him to be used to people and all the things he would encounter in his work.'
Mr Davis, a father of six who has helped protect Wimbledon from pigeons since 1999, said working with Rufus is sometimes tricky. The bird, which is fitted with a radio transmitter, likes a bit of independence and sometimes flies off.
He has sometimes not returned and has stayed the night at Canary Wharf and Northampton, tempted back to domesticity with a rabbit. Recently Rufus fled to a residential garden in Wimbledon.
Mr Davis tracked the bird and had to explain on the householder's doorstep why he wanted to come in and have a look round the garden.
'It can sound a bit dubious: can I come in and look round your garden because I've lost my bird? But they were relieved when they saw him.'
Important role: Rufus has to ensure that no birds nest and catches vermin during Wimbledon and regularly patrols Court 1
High profile: Mr Davis also takes Rufus to keep pigeons away from Westminster Abbey and Hampton Waterworks
A sting in the tail: One young swallow gets ready to take a bit of a wasp from its mother
Its my turn! One swallow looks on as his sibling gets fed some fast food by its parent
A sting in the tail: One young swallow gets ready to take a bit of a wasp from its mother
Its my turn! One swallow looks on as his sibling gets fed some fast food by its parent
