Opportunistic Birds
I am sometimes amazed at how opportunistic some birds can be. Quite a few species of Australian birds will migrate long distances to take advantage of rain or floods in some part of this country. Honeyeaters come and go in response to the flowering of native trees. Various hawks and kites will come to an area over run with a mouse plague, while other species respond to a locust plague.
This week I’ve witnessed a response to a very localised situation. We are having some areas next to the house concreted tomorrow. A few days ago the builder did some quite extensive work with a bob cat, leveling the area to be covered. A storm water drain was also installed, further disturbing the soil.
Both the resident Willie Wagtails and Australian Magpies took immediate advantage of the situation, feeding on the exposed worms and beetles. Both species are quite unafraid and feed within a metre or two of where we were working. Unfortunately I was too busy to race inside for the camera.
UPDATE:
The concrete slab was poured the next day, denying the birds any more feeding opportunities on that patch. Looks good too – this area will become a great outdoor living area for us – and I hope the birds like it too when we introduce a few plants into the scene.
Below is a photo of the cement being poured.
A new concrete slab being poured in our back yard.
In Britain the Robins appear almost immediately when you start digging in the garden. I don’t get Magpies or Wagtails here in Tassie but the Fairy wrens, while not as brave as the British Robins, will often forage within a few feet when I dig in the garden as soon as I stop and sit down.
Hi there Alan – welcome to my blog. I would love to have the Fairy Wrens in our garden. Alas – the nearest family lives up the hill about a kilometre away – occasional visitors only. On the other hand, we have plenty of other species to entertain us – just go to the “Garden Birds” category on the sidebar to see what I mean.
Thanks for visiting and leaving a comment.
I also enjoy having those kinds of birds visit my garden but I am not so enthusiastic about the Sulphur-crested Cockatoos that only come down when my Passionfruit are ready – and then scream at me for disturbing them. It must be an acquired taste for them – and they are such fussy eaters! They spit out any fruit which is not quite ripe!
Hi there Mick, thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. We don’t have problems with the SC Cockatoos as there are none in this area (plenty in the Adelaide Hills 50-60km to the west).
Our problem is the Galahs – they chew around the stem of our pears before they ripen. We’ve also lost count of the number of times they have stripped our almond trees bare before they were ripe. Cheeky blighters.