June kept on giving (2021)

A few more random drives as June drew to an end provided several more bird encounters of interest (and one non-bird one). These demonstrate why it is wise to always have your camera handy when out and about - especially locally where we are blessed with many roads that are seldom busy catering for a slow meander and time to peruse the environment.

First set involves another visit to a favoured location - the wetland walkway at the back of Byron at Byron (now called Crystalbrook). Here I encountered several black cormorants perched on dead branches over the water enjoying the afternoon sun, preening and drying their wing feathers.  

On the return walk I had one of those moments where you hear a bird call very near - so near you feel you could touch it! But ... look around as you might in the direction of that sound you just seem incapable of seeing the source of the song. In this case I "knew" the song of the white-faced honeyeater and had seen them flitting through the melaleucas. Fortunately, may patience and perseverence eventually paid off - there it was ... and just as close as I felt it was 😁, even managing one photo (third one below) with the beak and lungs in full voice (always delightful)!

Now for the non-bird treat at this location. Almost back to the start of the walk and in the stillness and quiet a rustle just off the walkway in the under story of the forest. Initial seeking of a brush turkey turned up a much more delightful creature. An echidna enjoying the feast of the forest floor. The dark eyes, sensitive snout and protective spikes clear in these photos.

Driving along this black-shoulderd kite was doing a hire-wire act while waiting to detect any movement in its field of vision. After a while you notice from quite a distance when there is something taking advantage of the powerlines for their perch. Saves sudden braking and resulting heart flutters and likely frightening the bird off too! Further along that same drive (where I had previously spotted a single one of these numerous times) my attuned vision picked up a diffferent pattern as I approached these favourite pines. Could I be so fortunate? Yes, indeed! A pair of white-bellied sea eagles captured looking to the north and then at each other. The final one in the set was a little further along where one had alighted in another pine after they took flight. Ah, you just never know 😀.

This photo I wanted to share because the light shows very clearly the dazzling iridescence the dark plummage of the straw-necked ibis possess. Really striking.

The final sequence I have included to show how pesky and agressive some territorial birds can be - no matter it is a bird of prey they are harassing 😈. Here a black- shouldered kite is perched precariously (but with remarkable stability) near the top of a broken bamboo stalk ... doing what they do ... scanning for any sight of movement indicating potential prey. The first two photos show a scan to the east (in the late afternoon sun) and a look down to the ground. Thereafter, the precarious nature of the snapped off bamboo perch becomes more evident as magpies and noisy miners let it be known its presence is not welcome. As you see, for this battle atleast, the kite remained undeterred 😜.