Category: birdlife

Two Little Birds

November 12, 2020

I heard them before I saw them, two little birds safely high up in a gum tree. No wonder they’re called Noisy Miners.

What a cute little pair.

I wonder what they were saying to each other.

Yes they are really good friends

Bee-eaters in the air

November 11, 2020

I finally managed to capture a bee-eater in flight. These two got my attention. One would fly off, presumably to catch a bug, and then return to the other. Maybe it was feeding it because they seemed to share the food. After a while I realised that if I just waited and held my breath, with my finger on the button, eventually I might be able to catch one in flight.

Needless to say, I have many pics of a single bird, having been too slow or simply missing my chance. But I’m so pleased to have these.

Ibis Rookery

November 10, 2020

At Box Bridge, near Kow Swamp

I’ve finally taken the time to look more carefully at what is all around me. I have learnt that there are three types of Ibis in Australia and two appear to be in the picture above. The white ones are just that, White ibis, once known as Sacred ibis and now affectionately known as “bin-chickens”. The darker birds are straw-necked ibis. They have straw like feathers on the front of their necks. The third type, The Glossy Ibis I have yet to see.

Gathering along every edge of the water
A single image doesn’t do the numbers justice

They were everywhere. For some reason unknown to me they have congregated at this particular spot this year. Other years have seen them gathering in different locations in the area. There are huge numbers of them.

Black-fronted Dotteril

November 4, 2020

This bird is sometimes called a Black-fronted Dotterill. I found it poking along in the muddy edge of a lake at Wooroonook, in Central Victoria, Australia, while I was out camping for the weekend..

It runs along and stops very suddenly. I found it difficult to get it in focus because of all the sudden movement Busy little thing.

For Lisa’s Bird Weekly Challenge. I’m just learning to take photos of birds. I find it so much more difficult when the subject keeps moving!! At least flowers don’t fly off on you when they realise you are there. But there is a great feeling of achievement when I can actually recognise a bird in the shot. I have so much respect for the skills of bird photographers… and I will keep trying to improve mine.