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Here are a few pictures from our farmhouse visit. If you click on them, they will take you back to my Flickr website, where you can enlarge them to see them better.

The first one…. This is NOT the best photograph that was taken that day, but it is the one that I am most thrilled about, for two reasons: One, I had identified this bird as the shikra to my unsuspecting friends…but just now, I suddenly had a doubt and referred to my Grimmett, and since I believe, when in doubt, ask an expert, I emailed and yes, I was right, it is the Peregrine Falcon! Two, Kallu tells me that's the fastest bird in the world...wow!!

Actually, after this, posted that it might be a Eurasian Hobby (that's NOT a Afghani stamp-collection, but a bird of prey!), and we got a third input from Abhijit Menon-Sen of Delhi stating emphatically that it was a Red-Necked Falcon. And now everyone is agreed, that is indeed what it is; probably a juvenile, as the crown and nape of the bird are not reddish enough yet.

So…here is the Red-Necked Falcon!

<IMG height=333 alt=”IMG_0118 peregrine falcon” src=”http://static.flickr.com/73/199437949_6157b148fc.jpg” width=500>

It was really far away and it took all Mohan’s ingenuity and his zoom lens to capture it!

Here's a pied kingfisher.... <IMG height=333 alt="IMG_0114 pied kingfisher" src="http://static.flickr.com/58/199438379_e3d6ba81b0.jpg" width=500> and here's a red-wattled lapwing, in flight and on the ground.... <IMG height=333 alt="IMG_0125 red wattled lapwing" src="http://static.flickr.com/65/199438028_0f286a2806.jpg" width=500> <IMG height=333 alt="IMG_0132 red wattled lapwing" src="http://static.flickr.com/57/199438328_8836737f1f.jpg" width=500> and here are weaver birds' nests, complete and under construction..... <IMG height=333 alt="IMG_0143 weaver birds' nests" src="http://static.flickr.com/59/199438192_6e5429ff43.jpg" width=500> <IMG height=333 alt="IMG_0141 weaver bird's nest under construction" src="http://static.flickr.com/66/199438120_51a7b2cd3a.jpg" width=500>

Photography is a very time-consuming hobby, I must say….posting these photos has taken me so much of time! Where on earth do my software-developer friends find the time to do all that they do, AND post-process and post their photos? I haven’t post-processed anything at all….I am soon going to learn, though!