Birding around Mannum, South Australia part 2
Murray River at Mannum, South Australia
A few weeks ago I spent a pleasant Sunday afternoon birding in and around Mannum, about a 20 minute drive north of home. The Murray River and its environment are the dominant feature of this town, an old paddle steamer port in the 1800s. I went for a walk along a walking trail on the riverside opposite the town. The trail starts just south of the ferry crossing.
I was delighted with the birding on that fine, pleasant spring day. One of the best species I saw was the Superb Fairy-wren. This stunning bird is always a good sighting and that can come up quite close in picnic areas. This family was just a little wary and it took quite a while and some patience to get several good shots of the male in all his colouful splendour.
Male Superb Fairy-wren, Mannum
Male Superb Fairy-wren, Mannum
We have baby Willie Wagtails in a nest
Willie Wagtails in the nest
I had suspected that our resident pair of Willie Wagtails have been nesting somewhere in our mallee scrub but hadn’t been able to locate the nest. They can be very sneaky and secretive about the whole affair.
Then a few days ago I was cleaning up in an area of the scrub not frequented all that often and I was attacked by the adults. Not that they actually hit or bit me; they just made it quite obvious by their scotching calls and close swooping over my head that I was not welcome.
Sure enough – three fluffy chicks were over filling a totally inadequate nest. The photo above shows their home almost bursting at the seams.
I took the photo a few weeks ago and the chicks have now fledged and are making their presence known around the garden, demanding food from a harried set of parents struggling to keep up with their insistent calling for food.
The next question is: will the parents nest again once this brood is off their hands… er… beaks and feeding themselves independently?
The photo of some fledged Willie Wagtails was taken a few years ago at the same location.
Further reading:
Baby Willie Wagtails just out of their nest and being fed.
Horsfield’s Bronze-cuckoos
1 Comment »31st October, 2011; Category: Bird Behaviour, Bush birds, Cuckoos, Garden birds, Migratory birds
Horsfield’s Bronze-cuckoo
Over recent weeks we have heard one or two Horsfield’s Bronze-cuckoos calling from various vantage points on our property or nearby; their call usually carries well over a hundred metres. On one occasion I saw two in the tree shown in the photos here. One was chasing the other so I suspect that mating was imminent. The tree in question is about 40 metres from our back varanda.
Most of the various cuckoos in Australia are like the true cuckoos of Europe except for their call. They are parasitic breeders, laying their eggs in the nests of a wide range of host parents who then incubate the eggs, hatch and raise the young. In many cases the cuckoo will dispose of the host bird’s eggs, or the cuckoo chick will hatch first and remove the eggs or young as the hatch.
We also get the Pallid Cuckoo and the Fan-tailed Cuckoo in our area most spring times but I haven’t heard either of them yet this year. On only one occasion we had a Shining Bronze-cuckoo in our garden, and it is possible to have the Black-eared Cuckoo here too, but I’ve yet to record that species on our block of land.
related articles:
Horsfield’s Bronze-cuckoo
A flock of Red-rumped Parrots
Red-rumped Parrots, Lake Hattah
Sydney Trip June 2011
After lunch on the last day of our trip home from Sydney we drove around the Nature Drive in Hattah-Kulkyne National Park. This drive follows the shore of Lake Hattah and several other lakes. Part way along I spotted a flock of about 20 Red-rumped Parrots. They flew from the grass where they had been feeding and perched in one of the trees near the road.
While it is not a brilliant photo it does illustrate the beautiful green and yellow colours of the male birds.
A private moment for two Galahs
Galahs, Lake Hattah, Victoria
Quite frequently I come across birds doing something interesting or unusual or even bizarre. While having lunch at Lake Hattah in the Hattah-Kulkyne National Park earlier this year I noticed and photographed these two Galahs in a very private moment.
I almost feel like I was intruding, so I’ll say no more.