For the last few days we have heard what sounds like fish jumping in the slough beside the property.

The local Thais had cleared all the grass off the top recently and spent two weekends netting anything bigger than 2 inches out of there. They actually gat a couple of decent size cats and one or two what looked to be Gaurami. The rest was basically fodder for curry or som tom.

I knew they had pretty well cleaned the place so this wasn't likely a fish. Minnows and fry don't usually jump unless being chased by something bigger and if they do they sound more like a mosquito fart.

This morning while checking the garden and the orchids I had my camera with me. PLOP there it was. I caught a glimpse of a bluish flash out of the corner of my eye and that was it.

OK I says to me, lets get this sucker . I spent quite awhile trying to find this devil and then suddenly he landed just a few feet away.



Maneuver as I might I couldn't arrange a photo without dead foliage in the way. Even this doesn't degrade the brilliant plummage of this Kingfisher. What a spectacular little creature.

I watched it quite awhile trying to get a better shot but each time he dove he was off to somewhere else.



Finally I found him, backside to but there he was about 40 meters away. You wouldn't think with the coloring they would be that hard to spot but this is a telephoto 4meg shot cropped so you can imagine.

Here's another view front on that shows it quite well, wish I could have gotten closer to take this one.



Again telephoto cropped and magnified.

Morning at Rancho El Gibbon

E. G.