British birds photographed with rainbow wings

Photographer Andrew Fusek Peters first captured a blue tit in his Shropshire garden

An "extraordinary mistake" led to a wildlife photographer being able to capture rare pictures of British birds showing light refracting through their wings in a rainbow effect.

Professional Andrew Fusek Peters said he had been left "gobsmacked" by the images.

After first photographing a blue tit's display in his Shropshire garden he has spent the past few weeks making a collection of other visiting birds recorded mid-flight and surrounded by colour.

"They're so beautiful," he said.

A robin and a greenfinch are captured in a battle for food

The photographer said it was only possible to capture the birds in the winter sunlight

He had been taking images of the birds in his garden for the past decade, he explained, with winter feeding the best time to capture them.

But then one recent image caught his eye in particular.

"I set up a stick with hidden seeds and photograph them through the kitchen window," he said.

"I was doing this around dawn one December day, and it was a blue tit which took off, and I looked at the back of my camera and it wasn't a blue tit any more, the wings had turned into rainbows and I was just gobsmacked.

"I had no idea what I had done and why it was happening, until then I looked it up and it is obviously to do with refraction on the various layers."

The photographer has taken about 100 images of the light refracting through the birds' wings

This image of a long tailed tit is among the collection

The "act of transformation" can only be captured in certain conditions, he explained.

"The light has to be at a certain angle, you have to be shooting into the light, because if I was on the other side then all I would be getting was the first sunlight on the birds.

"There is literally about 15 minutes in the morning when the light is at the right angle."

The photographer shoots in "near darkness" using a camera with "amazing autofocus and low light capability".

"We live in a valley and as the light comes over the hedge it is going to be hitting that stick and the birds at just the right angle.

"So it's the coincidence of circumstances," he added.

"I find it extraordinary. It's immensely difficult."

The photographer captures the images through his kitchen window

An Australian photographer Christian Spencer became well-known for his images of hummingbirds and the phenomenon.

"But I'm the first person in the UK to do this I think," said the Shropshire man.

"I think garden birds in themselves are so beautiful but a blue tit is a blue tit is a blue tit, and there's plenty of them," he added.

"But a blue tit with iridescent rainbow wings is a one-in-a-billion blue tit."

The photographer said he had been left "gobsmacked" by the images

A long tailed tit is pictured in the Shropshire garden

He said he was working on a book documenting garden wildlife, including birds, foxes and badgers, which was due to be published in 2025.

He said he had been able to take about 100 images during the past month, but the light was no longer correct to capture the rainbow display.

"I've been trying to work out how to keep doing it as it goes into February and March, but it involves me sitting in the garden with my camera aimed upwards, but the birds don't like that at all," he explained.

"I had [the experience] for a month and I'm happy with those shots and perhaps think of it as a little bit of a spiritual gift - maybe that's the way to look at it."