Tag: Birds

Australasian Grebe

One morning, a fast-moving ripple on the dam attracted my attention.  Getting out the binoculars, I could see a small water bird madly swimming back and forth, as though its life depended on racing from one spot to another.  Every now and again it would dive beneath the surface, then swim madly off in another … Continue reading Australasian Grebe

Playing around with Cockatoos

While I much prefer to photograph birds in their natural habitat, providing a little bit of bird seed does offer a fantastic chance to get some close-up shots of the Sulphur Crested Cockatoos.  I wanted to convey the playful nature of Cockatoos, but also show their beauty.  To other birds, in this case a couple … Continue reading Playing around with Cockatoos

Immature Golden Whistler? Identify this bird if you can!

On a calm day last week, many small birds were calling from the treetops, and I could identify where they were sitting from the rustling noises they made when they moved. I took many photos of one small bird which was hopping around the trunk of a tree at the point where the bark peeled … Continue reading Immature Golden Whistler? Identify this bird if you can!

The Colour of Long-Billed Corella

Every single day we have a large flock of Long-Billed Corella fly South over our land  shortly after Sunrise, and return Northward just before Sunset.  We don’t know where they come from, or where they go to each day. It is one of nature’s mysteries.  Rarely do they land here.  If they do, it is … Continue reading The Colour of Long-Billed Corella

Silhouette – Yellow-Tailed Black Cockatoo

On the still evening I photographed the White=Browed Scrubwren, I also saw the Yellow-Tailed Black Cockatoos for myself.  Mostly they were in among the leaves, high in the treetops and hidden from the camera.  As I neared the end of my walk, and the sun had almost set, this solitary bird presented me with a … Continue reading Silhouette – Yellow-Tailed Black Cockatoo

Pair of Pacific Black Ducks

In mid-February we had a solitary Pacific Black Duck swimming around in the dam.  This was the only time we’d sighted one until this morning.  When I got up there were two Sulphur Crested Cockatoos, three Crimson Rosellas and two Pacific Black Duck searching for food in the grass near the house.  Just after I … Continue reading Pair of Pacific Black Ducks

White-Browed Scrubwren

We’ve recently returned to standard time after being on ‘Daylight Saving’ Summer time, so twilight sets in much earlier.  I often go walking twice a day – once in the morning, and once at around 5pm.  Over Summer, this meant that it was too early to spot mammals, and many birds were off feeding.  It … Continue reading White-Browed Scrubwren

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

Yellow Tailed Black Cockatoos

We’ve known for a while that we should get Yellow-Tailed Black Cockatoos in our area, but until this week, we haven’t seen any.  Earlier in the week, on one of my walks I had spotted some black birds which seemed to be making ‘hyena-style’ laughing noises, but I couldn’t get close enough to see what … Continue reading Yellow Tailed Black Cockatoos

Pacific Black Duck

Mid afternoon we noticed a different species of duck in the dam.  It turned out to be a Pacific Black Duck – actually brown in colour.  This species is pretty common around most of Australia, but as far as we know it is the first time it has visited us. We were pleased to see … Continue reading Pacific Black Duck

Waiting for the end of Summer

I’d imagined Summer would be a hive of activity, with new birds arriving for the water in the dam, flowers appearing everywhere, and an active planting season in the vegetable garden, but I’ve come to realise Summer is a time of waiting and watching. Waiting for the vegetables to grow, waiting for each high fire … Continue reading Waiting for the end of Summer

Blackwing Currawong: race Melanoptera

Just before midday, I collected the mail and walked toward the dam to see if any birds were active.  Nothing moved.  A gentle breeze rustled through the trees, then ceased.  All was still.  Except I could still hear bark clattering high up in the tree.  Looking toward the sound, I noticed the black head of … Continue reading Blackwing Currawong: race Melanoptera

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

Laughing Kookaburra

Lately, a bedraggled Kookaburra has been sitting in trees near the house in the afternoon.  When we first spotted it, the bird’s tail feathers were completely missing, and it looked like it had been in some kind of skirmish.  Even now, with half-grown tail, it looks very scruffy compared with many beautiful Kookaburras I have … Continue reading Laughing Kookaburra

Black Kite

I was at the opposite end of the house to Richard when he called out ‘What’s that brown thing in the dam?”   Never too far from the camera, I caught a distant shot of a large bird, which we initially thought was a Wedge-Tailed Eagle.  This large bird of prey was taking a bath in … Continue reading Black Kite

Royal Spoonbill

Today was a day for unexpected visitors.  When I returned home at lunch time today, I found a Spoonbill walking around the dam.  I actually stumbled across the bird when looking for orchids.  Luckily it didn’t fly away, and I rapidly backed away from it, raced inside and grabbed my camera.  By the time I … Continue reading Royal Spoonbill

Australian White Ibis

When we awoke this morning, a small number of Australian White Ibis were wading in, and walking around the dam.  We didn’t actually count them, but there were about six or seven all in different locations. It is hard to tell if these were a family of ibis, or a flock of individuals.  Males and … Continue reading Australian White Ibis

Fallen Fruit: A not-so-happy story

Here the pictures tell the story.  Look at the photo’s I posted last week, and compare them with these.  I don’t think we are going to get much fruit this year.  The fruit trees are only small. From the sharp edged marks in the top of the pears, I think the culprits were parrots.  I … Continue reading Fallen Fruit: A not-so-happy story

The Fairy Wrens and the Cat Enclosure: A happy story

In an earlier post, I worried about disturbing the Superb Fairy Wren’s habitat in our back yard. I also worried about our cats killing the wrens if they were able to find a way into the newly constructed cat enclosure.  Most of all, I lamented that I would no longer see their cheery form hopping … Continue reading The Fairy Wrens and the Cat Enclosure: A happy story

The end of the painted parrot

When we bought our house, a colourful wind parrot adorned the near end of the jetty.  From the house, it looked almost realistic.  More than one person thought it was a real bird, and went down to investigate it.  In high winds the rotating wings gave the illusion of fluttering, and it was very cheery.   … Continue reading The end of the painted parrot

Great Cormorant

We’ve had a few cormorants here before – the pied cormorant, and the little black cormorant – so when we saw this huge bird sitting on our jetty, we both exclaimed “What’s that!” and rushed for the Field Guide to Australian Birds.   Turns out this is the Great Cormorant which can grow up to … Continue reading Great Cormorant

Taunting Kookaburras: Photographing our environment

Every night, just when the light is too low to capture them on film, I hear kookaburras laughing in the trees.  It sounds like they are taunting me because try as I might, I simply can’t get a good photo of one.  During the day, the kookaburras call from neighbouring properties, or the opposite end … Continue reading Taunting Kookaburras: Photographing our environment

Eastern Spinebill

A  pair of Eastern Spinebills, also nectar feeders,  can squeeze through the lattice fence into the fernery.   Thankfully, this pair seems to have mastered the process of getting out of the cat enclosure as well as  breaking into it. The cats don’t seem to have noticed their presence, which is a huge relief!   … Continue reading Eastern Spinebill