There are few experiences in wildlife photography quite like standing in a Spanish canyon with huge vultures soaring past you at eye level, sometimes so close you can actually hear the air rushing through their feathers.

In this film, I travel with Apex Adventures to the incredible landscapes around Segovia, Spain, in search of some of Europe’s most impressive — and often misunderstood — scavengers.

I spend time inside a feeding hide where vultures and red and black kites descend around us at incredibly close quarters, giving us some phenomenal photographic opportunities. But perhaps my favourite experience comes away from the hides, high in the canyons, watching these enormous birds use the thermals to soar effortlessly past us at eye level.

But there’s another side to their story.

Vultures have faced enormous pressures over the years, from poisoning and persecution to the devastating impact that veterinary drugs such as diclofenac have had on vulture populations elsewhere in the world. Illegal poisoned baits have also caused the deaths of scavenging birds and other wildlife.

It’s easy to look at a vulture and see an animal associated with death. Spend time around them, though, and you begin to understand just how extraordinary — and ecologically important — these birds really are. They are nature’s clean-up crew, and healthy ecosystems need them.

This film is about getting close to these incredible birds, photographing them, understanding them and hopefully changing a few perceptions along the way.

On a more personal note...

Those of you who regularly follow the channel may have noticed that I’ve been unusually quiet recently, both here and on social media.

I’ve had some difficult things happening in my personal life and I needed to take a little time away from everything. So I want to apologise for the break in videos, but also say a genuine thank you to everyone who has stuck around.

Sometimes life has a way of reminding you what really matters.

For me, getting back outside, picking up the camera again and being surrounded by wildlife has been an important reminder of why I fell in love with this in the first place.

Sometimes we need to step away. And sometimes nature has a wonderful way of bringing us back.

I hope you enjoy this one.

Mike 🦅

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#WildlifePhotography #Vultures #Spain #Segovia #WildlifeFilmmaking #BirdPhotography #RedKite #BlackKite #NaturePhotography #ApexAdventures #WildlifeConservation #Nature