Merlin by Jeremy McClements

In a particularly strong week for uploads to the BirdGuides gallery, Jeremy McClements's outstanding close-up of a flying Merlin takes top spot. For most birders, an encounter with this raptor amounts to a fleeting glimpse as the bird zooms by at breakneck speed, often in pursuit of a hapless Meadow Pipit or Eurasian Skylark. Such sightings are often extremely brief and the bird is long gone in a matter of seconds. As such, capturing a high-quality image of a Merlin is no mean feat, and Jeremy is to be commended for his skill in producing this week's winning image. It is just about as perfect a shot as one could hope for, with a razor-sharp bird, immaculate feather detail, a great pose and fantastic eye-to-eye contact. Congratulations to Jeremy!

Other notable images

Great Northern Diver, Toft Newton Reservoir, Lincolnshire (Nick Clayton).

Long-tailed Duck, Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire (Ron Macdonald ).

Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Greylake RSPB, Somerset & Bristol (Carl Bovis).

Hen Harrier, Stone Creek, East Yorkshire (Peter Garrity).

Short-eared Owl, Stone Creek, East Yorkshire (David Constantine).

Red Grouse, undisclosed site, Antrim (Ian Dickey).

Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Beringovskiy, Chukotka (Jens Kirkeby).

Spotted Sandpiper, Studland Bay, Dorset (John Wall).

White-winged Tern, Leap, Cork (Richard Mills).

Greater Flamingo, Marano Lagunare, Friuli-Venezia Giulia (Raffaele Cargnelutti).

Waxwing, Oulton, Suffolk (Rob Holmes).

Cape May Warbler, Bryher, Isles of Scilly (Scott Reid).

Corn Bunting, Tagus Estuary, Portugal (Ian R Poxton).

European Stonechat, Marazion Marsh RSPB, Cornwall (Martin Webb).