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Birds of Prey
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It’s not often that killers get featured on Royal Mail stamps, but this issue features two of Britain’s best known and best loved (although not by the wildlife that they pursue) birds of prey.
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The barn owl and the kestrel represent Britain’s birds of prey which hunt by night (the barn owl) and by day. Each bird is featured in a strip of five first-class stamps depicting the natural beauty of their flight.
These breathtaking stamps are the result of a collaboration between Stephen Dalton, one of Britain’s best-known bird photographers, and designer John Gibbs, whose previous issues include Prince Edward’s wedding and HRH The Queen Mother’s 100th Birthday.
The birds were photographed in darkness by Dalton at his studios in Sussex, using four home made, high-speed units capable of flashing at 1/20,000th of a second.
Dalton set up a single light beam at one end of the studio. When the bird broke the beam it triggered the flash units, creating the huge amount of light needed to take these beautiful pictures.
Birds have a long and noble history on British stamps, stretching back to the British birds issue of 1966 and including issues to mark the centenary of the RSPB in 1989 and Endangered Species in 1998.
The stamps and the birds
The Barn Owl (Tyto Alba) The Barn Owl stamps show the bird in its landing motion.
With its white, heart-shaped face with black eyes, the Barn Owl is one of the most striking birds in the British countryside. There are some 4,000 breeding pairs seen all over the country apart from northern Scotland.
Owls, or course, are renowned as nocturnal hunters. Barn owls have excellent night vision and phenomenal hearing which allows them to locate and catch prey they cannot see in long vegetation. small mammals, such as mice and voles, are their favourite prey.
However they also hunt in daytime in winter and when there are young to be fed.
Kestrel (Falco Tinnunculus) The Kestrel stamps depict the bird taking off for flight with characteristic deep wingbeats.
Think heraldry and mythology and you will soon think of the kestrel. With long pointed wings and a long tail, the kestrel is one of the most common birds of prey in Britain – there are some 51,500 breeding pairs.
Main characteristics include a habit of persistent hovering and a high-pitched “kee-kee kee-kee” call.
Although they are most often seen on farmland, kestrels are in fact found in all sorts of open country. They are common in built-up areas including large cities and are perhaps most often noticed along roadsides, including the busiest motorways. Favoured prey includes small mammals, insects and small birds. |
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