Giant monitor lizard found in Egypt

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/as_philippines_giant_lizard
This one was photographed 7/4/10 and is over 9ft long its tail is over a meter
making it bigger than the one found in the Philippines

Moor hen

My first sighting of the

Wryneck, Jynx torquilla 8/4/10

I see you and I am off.

Young Night Heron

Took me ages to find out what this heron is. its not in the book so I went for the eye colour
they are so completely different to the parent. young night heron are brown with streaked underparts.

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Night heron adult,

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Striated Heron in Flight.

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Pied Kingfisher about to do a left turn

Herons fishing.

first the Night Heron.

Now then! not too close, and I will show you how its done.

First keep an eye on the target that's if this log keeps still.

as soon as its in striking range dive in.

OK not exactly what I had in mind. but I got it and I very rarely miss.

I will be OK once this log stops rolling . i will get it in position and then down in one.

Now I will show you how its done. the Striated heron is about half the size of the Night Heron.

OK you lot make way I will show you how its done

Jees" call them fish

Look at them two, master fishers eh"

There,s one

Wow that a big un scariee

Whasup that was scarie

OK here goes watch this

ready steady

and here we go. King Pied fisher watch and learn.

missed it didn't you. told you I was good. a clean strike

Look! I said a clean strike right through the head. dead as a doornail

Ok now all we have to do is get it in between my beak

that's it enough do not mind showing you how to catch your lunch

but i am not going to show you how to eat it.

The Squacco Heron this is a migrating bird to these parts of the ,leaves all through the winter from around October up until end of march, last week I saw the first of season and today I saw many not sure which is the male but the one in flight is a bit larger than the one with the blue beak. both are in full breeding plumage.

Not sure if they are being inquisitive about this big camera, I have never got this close to them before.

Water pipit, Anthus spinoletta.

The things I have to do to get wildlife photos for you guys. no its not a buffalo cow pat its a whole area of cow dung. this is the mud flats opposite the dollar hotels on the West Bank of Luxor the first photo besides the one of my shoeless feet. shows you where I am. I saw a rare migrant bird heading in this direction so I followed it into the wetlands. and so pleased I was there was so many birds in this area most I have seen and photographed before but not with my new lens, I saw and photographed 3 more species to add to my collection of Nile Birds. bringing the total to date to 67 and that is only here in the Luxor and outlying area of 40 kilometers the black-winged stilts being the furthest. I saw those last week , plus another in flight flock today. as I show the photos I will give the link to that species for more photos.

Temminck's Stint, Calidris temminckii.

Little White Egret with its lunch

Spur-winged plover.

Spur-winged plover

Grey Heron

Collared pratincole, Glareola pratincola

Water pipit, Anthus spinoletta.

At first sight I thought they where Larks once i put the photo on the computer and looked in the book they are my first sightings of the pipit. I will have to go back to the area I saw them tomorrow to get better shots.

Night heron in flight

1 white egret, 2 squacco herons, 3 night herons + the rubbish that is littering the whole of the Nile valley.

below a different angle on the 3 night herons.

pied kingfisher on the hunt

Little white egret

Squacco heron all todays birds where on the west bank of Luxor on my walk along the Nile river

Yellow wagtail

Normally I can not get close to this bird but now I have my new 100x400 lens
he came close enough to take a shot with on ordinary lens. he flew in did a bit of looking about and caught what it came to get and off it flew ,