An Icy Egret
Winter is well and truly in full swing here in South Australia. We have had some good rains to open the season for the farmers and more recently we have had plenty of cold showery days. In the last two weeks however, the frosts have come in with a vengeance. We normally get several dozen frosts every winter with temperatures around 1 to 4 degrees C.
Over the last two weeks the temperature has dropped below zero on many occasions. It is very tempting to linger awhile snuggled up in bed. A few days ago I needed to drive into town quite early in the morning. On my way home I took an alternative route past the Rocky Gully Wetlands. I wanted to check out the bird life there. These wetlands are quite close to the main road and consist of several large ponds.
The frost was still lying heavily all around, and the first rays of sunlight were sending spirals of mist from the water. Traces of fog lingered over the nearby River Murray. I saw a few Australian Pelicans on the shore of the wetlands. These were accompanied by dozens of Silver Gulls trying to warm up in the early morning sun.
Only one bird seemed brave enough (or was that silly enough?) to enter the freezing water. A solitary Little Egret was standing statue-like in one of the ponds. I’m not sure if it was frozen to the spot or just being very still trying to catch an early breakfast.
I didn’t wait around to see if it moved; I was racing home to my lovely warm fire and the morning paper.
Australian Pelicans, Rocky Gully Wetlands
Now for something different: animals
2 Comments »24th June, 2007; Category: Animals
If you are anything like me your interest in the natural world is not restricted to just birds. I take an interest in animals, plants (especially flowers), insects and scenery. In recent days I have been featuring on my Travel Blog some of the animals I saw while in Nepal. For those of you who may be interested here are the links to these articles:
- Spotted Deer
- Black Buck Antelope
- Swamp Deer
- Barking Deer
- Hippopotamus
- Rhinoceros
- Tiger
- Leopard
- Nilgai (Blue Bull Antelope)
- Himalayan Black Bear
In coming days I will feature some of the birds I saw during my visit.
Bird Cinema
I always enjoy watching films, videos or DVDs that feature birds. I have mine own small and growing collection. It is a great way to learn about birds from other countries and is very cost effective.
Now bird lovers can watch these on a special dedicated web site called the “Bird Cinema: where the wild birds are always on.”
Enjoy.
And don’t forget my photo gallery here.
I and the Bird #51 Sweepstakes
I quite often feature a link to the carnival called I and the Bird. I usually contribute to this carnival as well but I missed the deadline last week. Never mind.
The latest edition has been posted over at The Bird Chaser. It never ceases to amaze me how creative the hosts of this carnival can be. This time, if you read every article, you can enter a competition. Only wished I had the time to enter.
Here is the link: I and the Bird #51 – read, and enjoy, and good luck.
Birds in the News #88
The latest edition of Birds in The News has been posted. It features a beautiful photo of an American Redstart.
As usual this posting also features links to many articles about birds in the news from around the world. It is well worth a visit.
Link:
- Birds in the News #88