John Gryphon
Well-Known Member
Headed off at 4.30 AM this morn on foot,there was enough moon in the clouds to not have to use a dreaded torch as torches obviously are a dead giveaway. About a K from home a deer went downhill away from dog and I without honking and after another 400 yards uphill I arrived at a large dam on the bush edge. I knew I should have gone under the dam wall but the going is full of obstacles to stumble over especially in crap light so I walked across the dam wall and a few hundred yards ahead I could see three 'shapes' out from the bush edge...ooh they will be stags for sure building up reserves with last minute top ups on the clover.
Then a loud as frig qwaarck qwaarck as two blackie`s (ducks) lifted off the water with their alarm calls followed by a mob of woodies, then walking a few more metre`s a big splash from a platypus sounding an alarm slap with its tail made even more noise. The biggest of the deer immediately walked into the bush...####!
I left old dog on the dam bank to try for a closer encounter.
The other two deer took their time but I still couldn't close the gap to ID them. Number 1 was the one to look at i`m sure.Mature Sambar stags dont hang around at the first untoward sight or sound.
I then headed off to the fox den another 400 yards further but I was fearing that the vixen had moved her cubs from the den and yep sure enough they were 200 yards uphill away from the den and frigging around on the bush edge. I would reckon I had upset the adults by being near their den. My dogs would probably find an old log they could be camping in now.
A slow sneaking 40 minutes later and having stalked into 80 yards for some video the frigging vixen took her cubs into the bush. Bugger! a lot of stalking for no pics taken. So I headed back to the dam wall to pick up the dog that had been waiting 50 odd minutes for me and then set up my tripod for Mrs Platypus and over 40 minutes took 169 pics of the puss on the surface but had all sorts of problems with the camera dithering between focusing on the puss and the tree reflections in the water. Yeah right,I scrubbed 168 pics and wont be keeping the one below either.
The value of the 4 k walk makes me feel better about the unlucky morning.
Same dam three years ago using a different lens/camera.
Then a loud as frig qwaarck qwaarck as two blackie`s (ducks) lifted off the water with their alarm calls followed by a mob of woodies, then walking a few more metre`s a big splash from a platypus sounding an alarm slap with its tail made even more noise. The biggest of the deer immediately walked into the bush...####!
I left old dog on the dam bank to try for a closer encounter.
The other two deer took their time but I still couldn't close the gap to ID them. Number 1 was the one to look at i`m sure.Mature Sambar stags dont hang around at the first untoward sight or sound.
I then headed off to the fox den another 400 yards further but I was fearing that the vixen had moved her cubs from the den and yep sure enough they were 200 yards uphill away from the den and frigging around on the bush edge. I would reckon I had upset the adults by being near their den. My dogs would probably find an old log they could be camping in now.
A slow sneaking 40 minutes later and having stalked into 80 yards for some video the frigging vixen took her cubs into the bush. Bugger! a lot of stalking for no pics taken. So I headed back to the dam wall to pick up the dog that had been waiting 50 odd minutes for me and then set up my tripod for Mrs Platypus and over 40 minutes took 169 pics of the puss on the surface but had all sorts of problems with the camera dithering between focusing on the puss and the tree reflections in the water. Yeah right,I scrubbed 168 pics and wont be keeping the one below either.
The value of the 4 k walk makes me feel better about the unlucky morning.
Same dam three years ago using a different lens/camera.
