Backyard and Sunshine Coast

 Well, despite an intention to be more active in 2022 seeking birds to photograph, the weather continues to remind us of the power of mother nature. It remains so wet! So, keeping an eye on activity in the backyard during breaks in the rain and we also had a short break to the Sunshine Coast recently - surprise, surprise, it rained for all but the final two days of our visit 😉. 

So here are a few offerings to show the range of birds I have become accustomed to extend well north.

First up, some very familiar locals.

While the flowerettes on the umbrella tree open and leak their nectar, the noisiest of the noisy enjoy the feast on offer. A pair of blue-faced honeyeaters, a single one (though the body and wings of another are also visible), then a rainbow lorikeet. Despite the noise, there is always plenty of sharing during this event.

Next up is an opportunity we have been waiting for while some golden pendas have reached flowering stages along our eastern fence line. Due to the persistent rain, I thought this may not happen this year, but one day this rainbow lorikeet was enjoying the foliage and blooms and the break in rain enabled a decent position to capture the images. The glorious bright palette even on dull day is striking.

Consistent with our decision to try to take a few short breaks, we spent a week in the Sunshsine Coast hinterland. I was struck by a lack of birds, notwithstanding the rain. Around home they still abound in the wet. In any case, during a few short walks during respite from the rain as we explored the hinterland, here is a sample of what we saw.

Brown thornbill

Pale-yellow robin

Noisy miner

Not 100% sure 😀

On our final morning I went for a wander around a nice park at the back of the Montville shops. Some movement in the long grass beside the path just as I set off revealed a pair of pale-headed rosellas enjoying a feast of seeds.  

Further along, beside one of the beautiful lakes there was change in shadow and a rustle of leaves off to my left. Seeking and detaching seeds was this brown cuckoo dove. A little later, a grey butcherbird was taking a rest on the rail of the bridge across the lake just as I returned to the carpark.

During our drive through the country back roads heading back into Brisbane on our final day, we stopped for an afternoon coffee at a small cafe in Mt Nebo. One of three shops roadside, surrounded by trees and with an eclectic outdoor seating area, this coutnry stop provided bird delights featuring a pair of king parrots (female first below, then male) and a pair of sulphur-crested cockatoos atop a towering gum. You never know what these remote roadside stops might offer 😉.

Until next time ... perhaps winter will provide what autumn skipped this year?