Paradise flycatcher!

Hello – this morning I discovered a pair of mating hawkmoths sheltering on leaf in the garden. Just as I was photographing them, the female lifted the male, who is attached to her, into the air. As she flew clumsily (I guess he was rather heavy), I waited for them to land again so that I could continue photographing them.   basiothia_coplr1.jpg Suddenly a flash of angry red cut through the air. It seized the pair of moths and settled in a bush. Stunned, I moved forward to see what it was – a Paradise Flycatcher – one of the most voracious and beautiful birds in Kenya. The flycatcher seized the moths and gulped down the male first.  The female managed to break free…  flycatcher_hawkmothlr1.jpg   But not for long…   flycatcher_hawkmothlr2.jpg The bird pursued her swiftly up into the trees, grabbed her and then after beating her against a branch to remove some of the hairs covering her fat body, gulped her down whole!  flycatcher_hawkmothlr3.jpgflycatcher_hawkmothlr4.jpg 

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