July jaunts

Sometimes exploring "new" places that have always been there (just unexplored by you) and revisiting regular locations offer unexpected delights - always have that camera handy 😁.

Between Link Avenue and the Coast Road there is quite the expanse of bushland that you just always seem to "drive past" and not give a second thought to. Probably because there are no obvious entry places or designated parking bays. Lately I had been noticing it more, so yesterday was the day of my first relatively brief explore ... I shall be back for a more extensive wander around Allawah Bushland Reserve for sure (god willing, of course!).

Loads of birdsong on my wander, but I was not trudging too carefully as I was not sure where I was heading along various paths. However, a couple of photos below provide some indication that more patience and a less intrusive presence by yours truley would likely be very fruitful.

Bar-shouldered dove

Lewin's honeyeater

On the way home I decided to brave the wind and head over to the wall for a walk. Alas, just as I reached the wall at the Marine Rescue tower to begin, a rain squall arrived and that was that ... but not before the brahmini kite soared overhead into the teeth of the sou' easter.

A reminder ( I have not provided one for a while now) that clicking on a photo will open all the photos of the post in a larger view window and they often look much better in that view.

This morning, after a regular coffee gathering, I decided to brave the wind again and head over to the wall for a walk that eluded me yesterday. Same starting point, but the action this  morning was on the Shaws Bay side.

First time I have sighted an azure kingfisher at this location so this alone made the decision worth while! Even better it was a very co-operative poser and the rich palette it presents is very clear in the plumage. Easily my best shots of this delightful character in the kingfisher family 😁.

And just before heading back to the car park, along came this silver gull gliding quite low into the strong sou' easter. While its position is quite high in the frame, it is nice and clear and floats wonderfully above the cotton wool cloud bank on the horizon.

The road less travelled home (June)

We decided that our trip back from Sydney would take the road less travelled rather than simply follow the freeway as normal, or head back up the NE Highway (bit cold and potentially treacheous this time of year when not used to winter travel). While mostly about taking in the magnificent coastal scenery along our route, a few opportunities were taken to enjoy the birdlife.

This meant we followed the old Pacific Highway to Newcastle on our first day, ending up at Fern Bay, not far from Port Stephens and Fingal Bay. My wife wanted to explore those areas which her family had frequented for childhood holidays. The trip was very pleasant because there was very little traffic and a reduced speed limit most of the way, so it was easy to take in the scenery so often by-passed using the freeway.

After exploring that very picturesque but rapidly developing area, next day we headed to the other side of Port Stephens and stayed a night at Tea Gardens. The afternoon of our arrival we went for a short exploratory drive and came across quite the mix of water birds sharing the spoils of the shallows as the sun begun its evening descent. Pelicans, an egret, silvergulls, little black cormorants and a white-faced heron. Each seemed to get their share!

Next morning we headed off through Mungo Brush to Buladelah. Nice coastal rainforest and heathland then farmland. We intended to take the Lakes Way to Forster via Seal Rocks and Boomerang Beach, alas a bad car accident led traffic in both directions to be turned around. Still we made Forster for the night and enjoyed sunset and sunrise over the main beach and ocean pool from our seafront room.

Next day after a brief drive around we headed north to Black Head, by-passed Taree and then into Harrington and Crowdy Head. We took the dirt road through the Crowdy Bay National Park to Dunbogan, Laurieton and North Haven to stay the night - my turn to reminisce from our childhod holidays in that location. The stay was cool, and a visit up North Brother Mountain {Dooragan} lookout next morning a highlight.

We went for a walk out the Dunbogan sea wall on the cloudy and windy afternoon we arrived and were treated to the following three sightings.  First up a Brahmini kite hovering into the strong wind.

Next, this young darter was (it turned out!) straining on a boulder, and the second photo captures the "surprise" as it examines what it had just excreted - "did I really just do that?" And they say photos never lie!

The final treat for this little excursion was a pair of sooty oystercatchers flying in for a rest and brief explore on the boulders down near the water edge. That water offers a nice backdrop to the birds on the boulder and serves to highlight the striking red/orange of their beaks and eye ring. Like the "plain" white of the cockatoo in the previous post, the "plain" black is very dressed up with that red/orange and the pink of the legs.

From here we headed further north via Port Macquarie and a drive through Limeburners Creek National Park to Crescent Head and on to South West Rocks for our final night before heading home. Both final days were simply fantastic weather and we were treated along the way to many whale sightings at stunning coastal locations. Have to include these two shots for some substantiation of the claims - SW Rocks beach lookig to Trial Bay and a pod of whales heading north from the Smokey Cape Lighthouse.

Set out below are some photos from around various locations near SW Rocks - the birds in each are identified under the photos. This is a location we are returning to for a more extensive stay and explore in early August - here's hoping the weather is still as spectacular!

Pacific black duck

Pelicans (and chestnut teal butts)

Chestnut teals foraging

Chestnut teals resting on the bank

Young black-winged stilt foraging

Black-winged stilt pair in disagreement

Same pair foraging after resolution

The ubiquitous white ibis

Young pied butcherbird

Pair of crested pigeons seeking seed

Pied butcherbird in full voice

Rewards on a well worn path

Ahhh, I feel like I am on top of my blog now. Caught up. 

As October kicks off I have three posts (including this one) to contribute and I am in a position to hereafter add a post as things happen. Of course that also requires some diligence and discipline, so I will not get too far ahead of myself 😉.

This post covers a couple of days in September. Starting with a few photos from a drive returning through Meerschumvale and our garden again, followed by a drive I enjoy a lot to South Ballina via Pimlico.

The initial photo shared here is a white-necked heron on alert in a paddock with some cows. It had clouded over quite quickly and was just beginning to rain but I managed to sneak this photo before the heron took flight and landed much further off in the paddock. I like the way the cows offer a sense of serenity and also scale to judge the size of the heron as it grazes with the cattle among the long grass heads.

A little further along, but now in a paddock to the west of the main Wardell Rd., I was watching a black-shouldered kite hover over a potential prey. It was near the limit of my zoom, but I thought it worth sharing this photo just as its descent was abating before it alighted on the prey in the grass. Soon after it found a branch in the tree to enjoy its meal.

This particular morning over a cup of tea (very covid civilised!!) on our front verandah I photographed this noisy miner enjoying some seeds and then taking a bath before perching on a nearby vacant branch to dry itself. Sometimes goos to use the still photos to share a sense of occasion 😊.

One lovely spring morning I decided to head off on a favourite drive. The South Ballina road had been closed for several months for bridge repairs so I had not ventured in that direction. I like to detour through Pimlico. The fallow cane fields and remnant forest as well as the riverside drive provide a range of habitat that often presents a variety of birds. This was one of the "often" days!

First up, indeed right up in a pine was a familar profile of a black-shouldered kite. Below is a photo heading east approaching the perch, and second from under the tree looking slightly westward for a frontal perspective. Always majestic looking creatures are birds of prey.

On the opposite side of the road from the kite, without needing to move my car, there was much activity and chatter of grass birds in the fallow fields awaiting their next ploughing. I caught glimpses of red-browed finches but they disappeared too quickly for me to photograph. I was more fortunate with some chestnut-breasted mannikins. This was a delight because I have not seen these little guys for some time. Last time was along Emigrant Creek on the Old Bangalow Rd near Tintenbar - a road I regularly drive without another sighting success 😞. So it is good to be able to share a couple more nice clear photos of this delightful bird that does much to enhance the colour brown (chestnut).

Further along, on a powerline beside the river, was the first of two new sightings for me 😁. Several times I imagined I had photgraphed the forest kingfisher, but closer examination has always shown them to be a sacred kingfisher with the buff head marking and the duller blue-green plummage. In the first photo below you see the bright white body feathers and the sleek shiny blue of the wings. This encourages me it is the forest kingfisher. As if to confirm that, about 200 yards further down the road was a sacred kingfisher, not quite in the same light as the line was on the other side of the road. However, the duller plummage (only by comparison!!) and the more distinct collar are evident. This was turning into a good day 👌.

Having reached South Ballina, what is not to enjoy about the joyous palette of the rainbow bee-eater. Always proud to show-off their finery it was a real treat to capture this first one right beside the road (these were actually taken from the driver's seat parked almost under the tree). Great to be allowed the privilege to get so close.

Walking now - and it was good to get out of the car and strecth the legs on such a gorgeous spring day. An improvement I notice at South Ballina now they have closed the beach to 4 wheel drive vehicles is the old tracks to the beach are closed off and to get to the beach and the wall, you need to walk along the river bank and wall. This was an option before BUT vehicle traffic often made it a dusty and noisy experience. Not so now 😁. This greatly enhances the habitat and the sense of peace and quiet as you walk. That heightened awareness had its rewards this day.

First up was a majestic brahmini kite, imperiously lording over its territory - well, probably having a rest on this perch between soaring flights over its territory. I share three photos below from various angles of the perch as I headed east along the road towards the wall. A grand creature.

Next treat was seeing a nesting pair of pied oystercatchers. Used to seeing these on the beach or in shallows, they were in a dried out swampy depression to the south of the wall road just before reaching the south wall proper, near the old car park. Both photos showing one bird on the nest, the second catching the partner bird hovering close by in protective mode. Impending parenthood - many of us can identify with that feeling 😘.

On my return walk, I was blessed to photograph a brahmini kite soaring and searching as it rode the thermals eyeing potential prey.  Then, a short time later and approaching much lower was what I thought was an osprey. I managed a good photo (second one below) and a poor one because it was gong so relatively fast at a low altitude. And then it was gone! Only later having a review did I notice it was not an osprey, but rather a whistling kite (atlest I am reasonably sure it is 😉. I think I have an earlier snap of one, but this is MUCH clearer. So it seemd to me like a "first" positive identificaton. My second for the day. While the different colourings underwing are noticeable, it is cool to see the heads and eyes are both focused in the same direction, the wing tip feathers both spread the same way and the tails straight out backwards ... makes sense when they are both "doing the same thing" and are both kites. One notable difference in the wings is the gap near the body of the whistling kite ... looks like a few are missing.

And to finish this gorgeous outing one more posing rainbow bee-eater just before I reached the car to head home. A contented (very contented!) smile, some sweat and several kms under the belt were my rewards.