Meandering in July

Slim pickings in July, but a few encounters to share featuring mainly water birds & waders,

First up is a series of three photos showing a little pied cormorant getting into a relaxed position to soak up the sun and dry out after spending some time swimming and diving.

This next series of three highlights a pair of pied oystercatchers reposing on some rocks, turned into the wind tucking their beaks along their back and standing on one leg. The red eyes are (as always) a strong feature. The individual poses are zoomed in on each bird of the pair.

Even the much maligned noisy miner can look exquisite in the right light and surroundings. This photo shows off the range of colour in the plumage and the black and yellow highlights looking across the yellow beak. The light weight of the bird is demonstrated by the way the milk thistle remains upright as the miner clings vertically on the stem. Sometimes so much can be noticed with time to enjoy the environment.

Here is a nice shot of two pairs of Australian wood ducks enjoying the shaded grass under a tree ... not a care in the world for a while at least ... 

Next up are two common "black" birds. First, the magpie enjoying the view across the river on some debris branches wedged ashore after the earlier floods - that beak looking powerful; second, one of those willy wagtails perched on a steel gate post with the ever-present cheeky gaze at the camera.

Finally, on a drive through some sodden cane fields north of Woodburn I managed to photograph this trio of water bird waders near a canal, culminating with two of them sharing the same lens, offering a neat contrast. A feature of these birds here is the similar shape of the bodies, though each clearly different in bulk; also the similar longs legs enabling the wading through waters and marsh of considerable depth.