Tag: Australian Magpie

Do Magpies Play?

I often see Sulphur Crested Cockatoos at play, but Magpies always seem so serious in searching for food or defending territory.  Even when  caroling, they seem to scan their surrounds, just checking to make sure everything is as it should be.  Lately, I’ve witnessed a young Magpie engaged in a few incidents that could be … Continue reading Do Magpies Play?

A Gallery: Twenty Minutes at the Bird Feeder

On this day, only three bird species turned up to the bird feeder, but it was still a constantly shifting feast.  Each species jostles the others out of position, and it is a constant flurry of wings.  Missing were the Galahs, Bronze wing Pigeons and Australian Wood Ducks.  The Ducks tend to wait for the … Continue reading A Gallery: Twenty Minutes at the Bird Feeder

Learning to Carol

Two young Magpies have taken to using the bird feeder as a convenient platform while learning how to carol.  At the moment they produce a mix of squeaky or rasping twiddles and trills that are often grating to the ear, but over time they are developing some melodic notes. I know when they mature their … Continue reading Learning to Carol

One Magpie v. More than Twenty Ducks

This is a sight I have often seen, but never before with camera in hand!  Finally, I have captured it to share with you. A pair of magpies lives in a tree near the house, spending much of the day on the lawn leading down to the dam.  One of these magpies is particularly territorial, … Continue reading One Magpie v. More than Twenty Ducks

Breakfast

I find it interesting to watch birds drink from the dam, as this is when they seem to be most vulnerable.  They appear to stop and look around before they bend their heads to the water.  These cockatoos were drinking just after sunrise.  There was much milling around and one bird drank at a time, … Continue reading Breakfast

Australian Magpie – Race Hypoleuca

Magpies are so much a part of an Australian landscape, both in the city and in rural areas, that it is easy to look past them to more exotic species of birds. It would be very remiss of me to leave them out of my species list. I have always loved magpies. Their carolling voices … Continue reading Australian Magpie – Race Hypoleuca