English man trains birds to fly to him, eat off his hand
A man from Foolow, England, has spent time in his backyard over the last three years getting various birds to warm up to him. Now, they fly to his hand while he hand feeds them. See the incredible moment!
A man in the U.K. used enormous patience to lure backyard birds to fly to him and eat out of his hand — and has been rewarded with stunning pictures.
Wildlife photographer Villager Jim, as he is locally known, is from Foolow, England, deep in the heart of the Peak District in central England. He spent the last three years in his garden watching various types of birds build nests. (SEE the photographer with the birds in the video above this article.)
He’s been offering them food for years, he told SWNS, the British news agency — hoping one day he would be able to snap some pictures in the moment.
"It’s been impossible to juggle my camera while these birds are sitting on my hand to get any good pictures," he said.
The birds in his garden include blue tits, great tits and robins — and they follow him wherever he goes, SWNS reported.
After finally managing to entice the birds, the photographer now has the tiny creatures eating out of his hand — and out of his wife's hand as well. (SWNS)
Now, Villager Jim can hand-feed the birds, as they have taken quite the liking to him and his wife.
"My wife has been trying to gain their trust, too, and only managed to do so this week, which is how I [am] able to now take these photos," he told SWNS.
Stunning images show that a photographer has struck up an unlikely friendship with wild garden birds, who now eat out of his hand. (SWNS)
Villager Jim has even nicknamed the birds.
The great tit is named Georgie, the blue tit is called Deirdre and the robin is Bobbin.
"It does feel quite special."
"There’s about four or five blue tits, great tits and robins, which will come to sit on my hand now," he said.
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Although successful in his bird photography, he said he spent lots of quiet time around the birds in order to get them accustomed to his presence and then get them to trust him enough to feed from his hand, SWNS reported.
Villager Jim was able to capture the birds landing on his wife's palm after they took a liking to her, too. (SWNS)
"Now, I can sit in my garden or walk up my driveway, and they are just there," he said.
The birds tend to come to him more often when they are nesting during breeding season, as they tend to be "desperate to feed their kids," Jim noted.
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As for the incredibly rare photos, Jim said he must shoot on multiple frames due to the quick movements of the birds.
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"It does feel quite special," he said of the experience.
