Golden oriole. The last bird. Part one of three films on bird photography in Bulgaria.

Many years ago when I was still a teenager I created a list of all the regular British birds. The resident species, summer and winter visitors. Then I declared I was going to photograph them all.
50 plus years later and I still have one to go. The Golden oriole.
Today it would not be on my list as it is now classed as a Passage bird in the U.K and not a regular summer visitor.
I have been to Bulgaria many times and known Emil Enchev for years. With his help and two guides who work for him, Miro and Nikki I went to try and photograph the last bird on my list.
Emil runs tours for wildlife photographers to Bulgaria and Greece and his web site is cometobg.com/
Mike Lane wildlife photography www.nature-pho...
Music by Bensound.com/free-music-for-videos
License code: G8T6IZGNE1VTSDPA

[@northdevonwildlifewithandy788]

Fantastic achievement Mike. Well done.

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Many thanks!

[@andymok7945]

Hurry up and wait. Very nice looking bird. Here in North America, we have the Baltimore and they weave a really neat nest. Quite amazing.

[@stevemurnan1702]

Super images and video Mike.

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Thanks

[@VuPhamRainstorm]

Amazing share, slowly each year I watch some of your content, sometimes from youtube suggest, sometimes from king fisher search , the more I watch the more so inspire how it turn out. First video I found from your channel and totally surprise was an so elder guide how to make tripod more calm while filming with strings to apply ease camera movement. I did that for previous setup, it works perfectly. Thank you.

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Awesome, thank you!

[@AKoboldsAdventures]

Absolute legend

[@sabyasachibanerjee124]

Congratulations Mike! You live by the fact "Perseverance pays". And the beautiful results are there for everyone to watch. Beautiful video

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

I appreciate that!

[@rogerhance5883]

Great video MIke. Looking forward to seeing next weeks video. 😂

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Thanks Roger.

[@aeroptical]

Congratulations Mike on completing your list; a wonderful achievement. Your dedication and knowledge is an inspiration to everyone who watches your videos. And wishing you the very best completing the list again in video.👍

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Many thanks!

[@davidosborn3356]

Excellent video

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Glad you liked it

[@davidosborn3356]

@@MikeLaneFRPS Always a great pleasure and always very enjoyable.

[@acraftman2823]

Thank's for posting and well done on completing this stage of your journey Mike.

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Many thanks!

[@tordandreasson]

Well done, Mike. Having been in Bulgaria several time I second it's a great country for bird photography and that setting up a hide for successful Oriole photography is not the easiest thing.

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Thank you.

[@tapsahtip]

Briliant . .I'm away to Romania next year (be similar to Bulgaria for birds) with Golden Oriole on my list .

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Yes very similar

[@enigmabletchley6936]

Great video. Really enjoyed seeing the culmination of your bird bucket list. Lovely photos and videos.

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@ammadoux]

beautiful , really beautiful, they do pass by here in Jeddah, last September as i was looking form the window of my living room one landed right infornt of me the cam was in my hand but by the time i raised it to my eye it was gone. waited and waited. next day put lots of the half ripe dates that i know they love, put them every where in the garden, but no luck. i hope this coming migration be more luck for me and all photographers every where in the world.

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Didn't know about dates.

[@cliftonwhittaker260]

Congratulations, Mike, on completing your goal. Must be a lot of satisfaction in that accomplishment. Thanks another informative video. :)

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Thanks 👍

[@pond9397]

Hi Mike, i'll say it again. Next time you are in Bulgaria give me a shout. April/May is good in my area [ South ] for the Great Spotted Cuckoo. Many come here looking for this fantastic Bird. I have 100's of shots.

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Thank you.

[@MartinJSmithPhotographyUK]

Thanks for sharing, Mike a great video of a bird I've never seen.

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@stevevickers2844]

Well done Mike such dedication deserves recognition 🎉

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Thanks.

[@PrometheusDrago]

Lovely video Mike and well done on completing your list!

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@Beak_to_lens]

Great video! Very nice to watch and happy you got to see this incredible bird! The fluttering of wings and display is a male doing courtship when a female is near! Great shots and video, have a great day!

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Thank you very much!

[@johngunning2123]

Great find! We have the Olive-backed Oriole and the Yellow Oriole in Queensland and they are quite common especially if you have fruit-bearing trees on your property.

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Thanks for the info!

[@jvas5871]

Brilliant video Mike again of a beautiful bird, I did manage to see one male bird about 10 years ago in a field in Cemlyn Nature Reserve it was there for a few days and I did manage to get a picture 👍

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Thanks for sharing

[@kathleeneveritt5340]

Bulgaria is my favourite European country for bird photography been quite a few times , got a Black Woodpecker in the park in the middle of the capital Sofia ,great in the winter too

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Mine too, although I like eastern Europe in general.

[@przybylskipawel]

Footage at 2:26 is stunning! So intimate!

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Thank you.

[@markwhitesell4491]

Loved this video - the perfect mix of stills and video. Congratulations on finally completing your bird-photo list - a wonderful achievement, indeed and highlights a lifetime of commitment on your part! Also, I’m glad you mentioned how many (long and boring) hours you had to spend to get the bird photos and video you wanted. I think the average person doesn’t appreciate how much time and effort that goes into making good bird photos. I was also glad that you touched on the moral dilemma of interfering with the natural order of bird behavior, pondering whether or not to scare away predators . It’s a question every serious nature photographer will face at some point. Again - enjoyed this video immensely and am looking forward to the next boa constrictor sequence!

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Thank you. I enjoy sitting in hides which is lucky.

[@NotSoGoodGamingTV]

Wow, great achievement! The habitat there looks very tropic compared to what we get in northern europe, even though its, geographically, very close! While not with birds, I'm currently planning a similar project with dragonflies, and hope to be successful with it throughout the years.

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

Thanks! 😃

[@birdwatcherlubuski]

Great footage, Mike! Congratulations. I also find Oriole's song very pleasant, it always reminds me of some tropical rainforest with birds-of-paradise singing, probably watched too many BBC wildlife documentaries as a kid.😂 Anyhow... you saddened me a little. 250 species in 50 years... in PL we currently have something around 450, perhaps 400 if you deduct the very occasional visitors. I'm not a youngster anymore, but I hope I will live long enough to photograph them all 😂 Cheers!

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

651 birds on the UK list. My list was only the resident, summer and winter visitors at that time, not the migrants and irregulars.

[@birdwatcherlubuski]

@@MikeLaneFRPS Holy moly. Would that be even possible in one human lifetime?

[@birdwatcherlubuski]

@@MikeLaneFRPS 473 for Poland, 294 of which are either resident, breeding, wintering, or regular migrants. Didn't know UK was that bird-rich. Why do you guys travel abroad in that case :-) You have a bird paradise at your doorstep.

[@cgb9244]

Come to Spain, even in Madrid, WildWatching Spain with the photographer Antonio Liébana, has a lot of hides for different species with the Oriole in.

[@sdrtcacgnrjrc]

What's next -- publish a book maybe with a photo of each bird?

[@blutey]

Shame they're no longer resident in the UK.

[@gerhardwiesinger]

Nice, which binocular and chair hide do you use?

[@MikeLaneFRPS]

The binoculars are made by Vortex. The chairhide I do not know. Probably Stealthgear.

[@skakdosmer]

I'm being eaten by a Boa Constrictor A Boa Constrictor A Boa Constrictor And I don't like it one bit Whadaya know, it's nibblin' my toe Oh gee, it's up to my knee Oh fiddle, it's up to my middle Oh heck, it's up to my neck Oh dread, it's mm-mm-mm-mm (Shel Silverstein)