Returning from the toilet my wife was engaged in conversation with another couple about a koala they had spotted up a nearby gum. I took a cople of pictures but the sun was not helpful to get a decent shot worth sharing. A treat nonetheless for viewing.
Thenm flitting along the fenceline keeping travellers from wandering down to the nearby creek was this little fella - it caught my attention with the black and white flashes as it moved and sure enough it was a restless flycatcher. Only seen these around Murwillumbah before, so good to see it a lot further inland this time. Quite co-operative too, sharing a left profile, having a word to the listener and a more frontal right profile making identification a bit easier!
Extending our stay even further were more little birds grazing the grass and moving across fallen branches - more rare sightings for me (only once seen these fellows in the Casino wetlands), some double-barred finches. I always enjoy sharing photos of finches I have come across because they are masterful in showing off their small size among the grass, leaves and other detritus you find them. In the 3rd photo of this set you can see two more not quite in focus in the grass at the top of the photo.
Chasing the finches was interupted by another flash of balck and white. I thought the flycatcher was back, but it was a near relative - the ubiquitous willy wagtail just had to be noticed ...
Finally, before we headed off to our coffee in the olive grove a few more of the double-barred finches. These perhaps offering the best glimpses of these ratehr special owl-like little birds ... another excellent example of the colour variation offered by simple black & white on nature's irrepresible palette. Quite the roadside stop ... unexpected delights when we stop and watch and listen ...
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