I thought I would start off 2018 with a happy story about Kookie, the kookaburra without tail feathers. Looking back through my posts, I can see mentions of Kookie “the tailless Kookaburra” since late 2012, but we first really began to observe her in 2014. Back then, we didn’t know if she was male or … Continue reading Two Kookaburra Chicks
Tag: Kookaburra
Kookaburra on Water Feature
We’ve been setting up a new garden which has a water feature at the centre – just high enough to be a good vantage point for Kookaburras. The birds have taken to sitting on the top-tier to spy insects and worms in the garden bed below. The photograph above was taken through my study window. … Continue reading Kookaburra on Water Feature
“Kookie” the Tailless Kookaburra
I’ve written about Kookie, the tailless Laughing Kookaburra before. We keep wondering if the loss of its tail is temporary, but after at least 18 months of no tail, we guess it must be a permanent state. I would love to know if this is a result of genetics or an accident or attack. As I’ve … Continue reading “Kookie” the Tailless Kookaburra
Kookie on a Foggy Morning
From time to time I’ve mentioned the Kookaburra without a tail we often see around the house. We’ve affectionately dubbed it Kookie (we don’t know if it is a male or a female). Here is a photo of Kookie on a foggy morning, sitting on the stump just next to our decking. Kookie has found … Continue reading Kookie on a Foggy Morning
Familiar Faces: Wildlife, Home, and Making Contact
The first thing I do when I get out of bed each day is look out the window to see ‘who’ is there. We recognise individual birds and animals within a species because they seem to have made their regular patch of turf the land outside our windows. It is their home as much as … Continue reading Familiar Faces: Wildlife, Home, and Making Contact
Birds in Spring: Nest Hunting
Two of the trees we can see from the house have hollows in the trunk – just about right for nesting birds. Over this first week of Spring, I’ve noticed a flurry of activity as pairs of birds try to find the perfect nest. It reminds me of house hunting. The birds will land close … Continue reading Birds in Spring: Nest Hunting
Kookaburra in Winter Sun
Finally, after many frustrating attempts, I have a good photograph of a kookaburra! This one was sitting in the cool afternoon sun. Last night our temperature approached zero degrees Celsius, and it was already very cool when I took this shot.
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
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