Not a new haunt, but often a fertile one. On reviewing the photos for this post I had a sense of what once might have been - hence the title of the post. This is about the wetlands along the coast between Byron golf course and Suffolk Park. They are a version of similar environments that were much more prolific further up the coast when you used to drive from Wooyung to Kingcliff that have essentially disappeared with a few (fortunately) retained spots. Be grateful for what we have and enjoy them while we are able.
There had been quite a bit of rain and so there was plenty of water in the low wetland coastal forests (as you will see). This made for an eerie wander ... much more "tropical" than usual and so with the stillness and quiet there was even a dread that perhaps a crocodile might just appear crossing one of the boardwalks - or even more scary, rear out of the murky still water 😟. Did not happen ... not even any scary sounds!
However, as often the case, the wetland setting provides a wonderful canvas on which to show off the birds that were sighted. I include a couple of those settings to offer a sense of the glimpse I wrote about above ... don't think it takes too much imagination, but perhaps more to recognise such locations are increasingly rare 😟.
My first inclusion is a masked lapwing (plover) that was unusually photogenic in the early morning sunshine. In the first one it is clearly showing off an early morning yoga routine, standing very still and balanced on its left leg ... not a sound, not a movement ... great pose and subject 😉. Fortunately I was able to take full advantage and get a good close zoom shot as well ... might be very quiet and still but the mask I find rather fearsome (especially knowing what is tucked into the black points of those wings! A nice study in concentration!
And now into that coastal wetland environment to try and offer sense of what my words above are trying to convey. The next photo is a fallen melaluca flower sitting atop the weeds infesting the many stained ponds throughout. The unfallen flowers feature in several later photos being plundered by various birds. Next is a dusky moorhen preening in the shallows of a canal, then the wider view of the wetlands. Still and eerie. Great places for birds!
Perching and ever-watchful among those trees and over that water wonderland is a laughing kookaburra. I share these two to accentuate the sense of ancient in the lanscape, even with the close-up - who knows what story is "written" on that hanging loose paperbark?
Next up is a sequence showing a noisy friarbird in action ... not so much the "noisy" bit, but certainly the dominat position and agressive pose before moving on further towards the coast and sampling nectar from those flowers and keeping a sharp eye out for whatever might be next 😊.
Here we have a humble and ever-photogenic willy wagtail pondering whether to cross the bridge on foot ... as a human we might wish we could fly sometines, so ... for what it is worth, we did not fly across the bridge and the willy wagtail did not walk! The second photo is testimony to where it next alighted; and to me (atleast) it is clear which canvas offers the best perspective of the bird (but on another day I might offer a different conclusion!). The sunlight does magical things in nature.
Ah ... a truely wondrous moment here ... you can hear their cheerful chirping nearby and above. You are obliged to stop and look. Doing so quickly reveals many brilliant but small flashes of red through the foliage. Quickly your neck stretches and is tested as you try to keep track. They stay still ... NOT! Gorgeous scarlet honeyeaters feasting on the abundant nectar of those flowers! This was my first sighting of these. I am exceedingly pleased it has not been my last 😁.
Finally I share the large and the small. First a pelican having a flap as part of a preen on a low hanging perch. Then a grey fantail among the branches and foliage of the wetland to end my May offering.
