In May-June 2006, Liu Jianzhong a.k.a Jz was in China, driving through the Five Colours Bay (五彩灣) when he stumbled upon the nest of the Long-legged Buzzard (Buteo rufinus) (above).
The nest was on a cliff by the desert and there were two newly hatched chicks covered with downs (top row, left). Inside the nest were carcasses of a raptor(?) and a snake (top row, right). Other food brought back for the chicks include possibly a hedgehog (bottom row, left). Apparently the adult managed to return with a variety of preys to feed the two chicks from the surrounding desert.
Two weeks later when Jianzhong returned to the scene, there was another carcass in the nest, possibly that of a sandgrouse (bottom row, right). The chicks were still covered with downs but wing feathers were beginning to develop.
All images by Liu Jianzhong.
This post is a cooperative effort between www.naturepixels.org and BESG to bring the study of bird behaviour through photography to a wider audience.
