Singing in the rain

Winter is finally here in South Australia. The nights are cool – even a little chilly and the mornings are damp with dew and a lovely crispness in the air. We haven’t had a frost yet which is rather unusual for this time of the year. By the end of May we’ve usually had several – perhaps three or four – but the temperature hasn’t yet dropped below about 6C. Plenty of time for frosts later.

Over recent weeks we have had some reasonable falls of rain. For most of this week we have had periods of light drizzle, several heavy showers and other times of steady light rain for extended periods. Yesterday it rained steadily from about 4am to mid-morning.

Everything looks clean and fresh. A green tinge of grass can be seen everywhere. When the sun emerges like it did this morning, the birds come out to sing. Thornbills twittering everywhere. I heard several Mallee Ringnecks calling as I walked down the driveway to collect the paper. A Black Faced Cuckoo Shrike glided overhead giving its churring call. Honeyeaters are busy collecting their breakfast from the few flowers out at this time of the year. Small flock of Galahs fly overhead and the mournful cry of a Raven can be heard in the distance.

The only downside to all this rain and cooler weather is that few birds come to visit the bird baths. My chief source of photos has dried up, so to speak. I guess I’ll just have to get out there in the bush or down by the river and see if I can get some photos.

Meanwhile, I invite you to head over to another blog I write, Trevor’s Travels. Over the next three weeks or so I am featuring a series of articles on the birds and animals of Nepal.