Winton Wetlands special

So, the final post from our Tassie adventure is a "special" tribute to my brief visit to the Winton Wetlands.

While it was on our return journey, I figured there was enough from that single 2 hour visit to warrant a seperate post to celebrate the special nature of the wetland. I was impressed with the range of birds and other wildlife I saw from my very quick tour.

Here are my picks to share, and the only disappointment is my inability to identify the bird of prey I have in good clear pictures. Someone will help me at some point. Bottom line, if that is all I have to be disappointed about I am in a very privileged position 😁 - its been fun catching up; touring and now being settled back in home. Time to refresh my exploring of the local sights!

Pair of black swans upon still water.

Take-off by an eastern rosella (later I saw two flocks
of more than 50 birds each lift out of grass as I drove by)

The next two photos are sulphur crested cockatoos. Second one most intereting as it is perched at the entrance to a nesting hole.

Yellow-billed spoonbills, one having a bit to say!

Little pied cormorant

Australian wooduck and egret on waters edge.

Three sulphur-crested cockatoos on the lookout.

Australian white & straw-necked ibis sharing some space

The next 3 photos show off two different birds of prey (I believe same species, but young - that is my excuse for not being able to name them 😏).

The next 3 photos show of two sets of little corellas playing and perching (seemingly precariously the way they carry-on) out on a limb!

My final offering is a white-necked heron. I was mazed how prolific these were in this location - we rarely see one at a location around here, so to see them so often on this two hour drive was a delight and a pleasure. Majestic movers!

A quiet 3 months (Aug-Oct)

For a variety of reasons, mainly health related, this period was relatively quiet. Of course, preparations for our long-awaited driving trip to Tassie occupied much of our time too.

The selection below shows a variety of regular birds along several common areas we walk. "Regular" in terms of sightings they might be, but as usual, they also offer different appreciations of the capability and beauty of the birds.

First up I managed to frame this osprey alighting from the top of a riverside pine. More usually I photo these in static poses.

Next a youngish prancing plover (masked lapwing) just about to disappear into the shadow of a telegraph pole.

The next two photos show a rainbow lorikeet and a crested pigeon. The lorikeet is feasting on the nectar of the banksia flower while keeping a very keen eye on the photographer. The pigeon is in the same bush and roosting among the flowers to complement its wonderful plummage and also keeping an eye on the photographer.

Here is a pied cormorant basking on a boulder along the wall in the morning sun. The sheen on the wings and the black collar and head streak contrast strongly with the white neck and chest. The yellow beak is also a clear further contrast.

  

The same beauty of the soft pastel palette is perhaps even more apparent with this crested pigeon grazing on the grass among the clover, compared to the perch in the banksia shown above. Both have their own charm.

From pines, to banksia, to grass, to rocks, a plainer bare branch context against our wonderfully clear blue sky shows off the magnificent sounding (and looking) pied butcherbird. 

 

And a youngish magpie listening and feeling for any movement underground before it digs out the underground prey.

Showing off both the grass and rocky context is this white ibis preening its chest while balancing on a single leg ... such dexterity while ensuring they look their best 😁.

A pair of pacific black ducks by the edge of the lake enjoying some anonymity in the shadows.

The next two photos show a pair of welcome swallows enjoying the afternoon sun on their highwire perch. One caught at the beginning of a dive, and then in the second photo it has returned to the (deserved) admiration of its partner!

Another photo showing the acrobatic skills of the rainbow lorikeet.

Finally, just prior to our departure, a brush turkey decided he was going to build a nest in our front yard 😟. You can see in the first photo the spread of dirt behind the red flowers ... it had been moved there by the turkey from the nice clean path beside the birdbath. The next position was off to the left under a native magnolia tree ... the second photo shows to proud builder working the dirt & debris into position under the tree. On our return (mid-Nov) the nest is MUCH bigger and the yard much less tidy but boy, can these guys move a lot of material around in a short amount of time!

Waterbirds by the wall (May)

After my semi-regular Tuesday coffee catchup chatter, I headed to Meldrum Park for a bit of peace and quiet to do some reading. I had my camera just in case. I was very fortunate. Just glancing up for a break and casting my eye over North Creek I noticed some activity in a nearby gum ... a pair of scaly-breasted lorikeets in a nesting hole! A really nice set here showing one on lookout, then the second head just peering over the lip of the hollow and finally both perched on the edge of the hollow. Like I wrote ... a real treat before getting back to more reading 😁.

Enough reading, the day cleared a bit more, so I decided to head over for a wander along the wall. Predominantly water birds this day but a few other treats as well. Starting with a photo of some of the good sized prey you often see in the clear waters of Shaws Bay - this time some mullet, fortunate I feel that no sea eagles were about this low tide!

Next, as noted above, predominantly water birds as identified on each photo below.

Little pied cormorant basking and drying in the sun.

Same for a young darter.

Sacred kingfisher luminous in the sunshine.

Australian white ibis stalking it's shadow?

Pied oystercatchers wandering the sandy shore.

White-faced heron hunting in the shallows.

Moving on to some birds near the water but not "waterbirds" per se.

Next is two photos of a small bird flitting around the branches of the mangroves. Although  good clear shots, I took a while to identify this one. I'm pretty sure after my research it is a brown gerygone, so a new one for my archives.

 Always keen to be seen AND heard, I managed to catch this willy wagtail just as it was alighting on the boulder and then in all its glory being still upon that boulder!

And back near the carpark a browsing brush turkey popped up in a nice environment for a photo ... 

Finally for this post, a couple more of the australian white ibis offering a more majestic and commanding view than we are perhaps accustomed. These are roosting in the same tree on different days ... you marvel how they balance so easily on such precarious perches but the positions also highlight just how delicate and light these magnificent creatures we collectives label "birds" really are (especially the second photo with the single bird) ... these photos at Summerland House Farm.

Sluething along the Serpentime (Apr)

I had a little time to kill while waiting for my wife to do some shopping so I headed over to the Serpentine to a small park I had driven past but not had a wander around before. The tide was out. Not too much activity, but what there was presented enough interest and entertainment to fill my waiting period 😁.

First up was a striated heron, quite unusually out in the open though still very well camouflaged among the reeds on the mudflat! Initially, the nearby australian white ibis was stalking the nearby sand bar among the soldier crabs and then crossed over to the reedy mudflat to graze in closer proximty to the striated heron. The third photo of this initial set shows to striated heron alone among the reeds - easier to spot once you are aware of what you looking at 😆.

Then a very lonely looking sacred kingfisher was spotted on the sandbar - its looks like a desolate environment to be searching for a morsel but it did peruse in stillness for quite some time!

Back to the park now, and while walking along the path to the nearby residential streets the antics of a magpie family demanded my attention. First, the young one showed off  the reward of a successful hunt; second, the parents watching from nearby looking rather proud that their tutelege had paid off this time! To complete this set there are nice clear portraits of one of the parents and then the young magpie not too far from the edge of the path. Handsome birds with their strong pointed beak - we are right to not want to be pecked by one of those!

Once the path reaches to top of an incline to meet those residential streets I caught this "bat-like" activity of some rainbow lorikeets, and not to be out done, a noisy miner as well! They all look very at ease hanging so acrobaticly from their various perches - certainly if not for the distinctive plumages, it is not hard to imagine a bat reposing like that 😏. The afternoon light and the upside down poses offer quite a different tinge to the rainbow colours than normally seen.

Back down the path and a final look along the water/sandbar edge before the carpark offered two more glimpses worth sharing. 

First up, the striated heron was still exploring and this time on the nearer edge of the reedy mudbank. This set offers a chance to see three different profiles highlighting the potential to extend its neck, and also the ability to take quite rapid and long strides with apparent little disruption to the water surface.

Second glimpse was a close-up showing off some "opposing" battalions of soldier crabs (sure ... not birds I know, but I tried to capture the formations as they were moving about the mudflats squaring off for whatever their battles may have been).

And finally for this post is this cute photo of our lone(ly) remaining chook who seems to have decided to follow the lead of one of the ornamental bluebirds on our BBQ table in the outdoor area. Quite the companions! Like they say (???) art imitates life, though with our chook I think it may be the other way round!