Budgerigar, Adelaide Zoo
Budgerigar, Adelaide Zoo
After a recent medical appointment in Adelaide my wife and I spent a few hours at the Adelaide Zoo. Apart from being the only zoo in Australia to have Giant Pandas exhibited, our local zoo has an excellent collection of birds, especially Australian species. Some of these are in walk-through aviaries, making photography easy.
Some, however, are seen through wire mesh. I am quite pleased with the photo above because I managed to focus on the bird without too much blur from the netting. Budgerigars are one of Australia’s favourite birds being kept as a pet by many people. It is also a popular cage bird worldwide.
Superb Parrot near Wagga Wagga
Superb Parrot, Adelaide Zoo
We recently travelled by road from home in Murray Bridge, South Australia (near Adelaide) to visit family in Sydney. The road trip took two days of many hours of travelling because it is a journey of over 1300km. We didn’t have many opportunities to stop and do some birding, so I had to be content with the birds seen while travelling along at highway speeds – usually 95 – 105kph. That’s not conducive to good birding practices, nor does it allow bird photography.
While travelling between Narrandera and Wagga Wagga in central west NSW I saw a solitary Superb Parrot fly across the road in front of the car. This is only the second time I’ve seen this parrot outside of an aviary. This particular area is one of the regions where this species is relatively common. It is a spectacular bird, as shown in the photo above. I cheated with this photo; it was taken of a captive bird in one of the aviaries in the Adelaide Zoo. It’s not a great photo because it was taken through the wire netting of the aviary. One day I’ll see one in the wild, one which poses perfectly for my camera.
Flamingos, Adelaide Zoo
Chilean Flamingo, Adelaide Zoo
Adelaide Zoo has only two flamingos, a Chilean Flamingo and a Greater Flamingo. They occupy the flamingo grotto built in in 1885, a specially made quiet corner of the zoo. Only a low fence separates them from the admiring public. They usually make excellent photo opportunities as they feed in their small pond.
You can read further information about these birds from the Adelaide Zoo website, including details of distribution, diet and other interesting facts. The pages include short videos of the birds:
Greater Flamingo, Adelaide Zoo
Cape Barren Goose, Adelaide Zoo
Cape Barren Goose, Adelaide Zoo
The Cape Barren Goose breeds on islands in Bass Strait Tasmania, as well as some islands in South Australia and Western Australia. In spring and summer large flocks disperse onto the mainland where they feed on grasslands and irrigated pastures.
While the total population is possibly no more than ten thousand, they can be locally present in large loose flocks. For example, about a twenty minute drive south of where I live I have seen a flock of about 500 feeding in one irrigated paddock. Only a few days ago I saw about 50 in the same area.
The bird shown in the photo above is of a captive bird at the Adelaide Zoo.
Dusky Moorhen and chick, Adelaide Zoo
Dusky Moorhen
One of our common water birds here in Australia is the Dusky Moorhen, shown in the photos on this post. This species is found throughout eastern and southern Australia, as well as south western Australia. The birds shown in these photos were swimming in one of the ponds in Adelaide Zoo. They were not captive birds but free flying birds who found that the environment within the zoo boundaries to be quite suitable for living – and breeding.
I was quite pleased with the photo above as it shows the interplay of light and shadows on the water, the ripples accentuating the effects of the light.
Dusky Moorhen and chick