Australian Brush Turkey

Earlier this year my wife and I travelled to Sydney to visit our son and his family. We always enjoy the long trip because when we get there our grandchildren are always so pleased to see us. We love spending time with them. On this occasion, we went for a drive with our son to the Ku Ring Gai Wildflower Gardens in St Ives. We try to get there every time we visit Sydney. The wildflowers are usually very interesting, and sometimes the birding can be good too.

On this occasion, we were pestered by an Australian Brush Turkey (see photo above). It came wandering through the picnic area where we were sitting having a snack for afternoon tea. I guess it thought that we were good for a handout. We had some biscuits but the bird was out of luck. We don’t feed our native birds because human food can be dangerous – even deadly – to them.

Australian Brush Turkey

In frustration, the turkey decided that there must be something it could salvage from our bags. My camera bag was sitting on the grass no more than 30 centimetres from my son, but this didn’t deter it. The cheeky bird pecked at it, thinking it might find something inside. It was out of luck.

These gardens are wonderful for exploring because there are many walking and cycling tracks throughout the park. We have visited on many occasions and there always seems to be something flowering. Below I have posted a few of the flower photos I took on this visit. These are just a small sample of the many plants in this location.

Further reading:

• Five reasons to love Brush Turkeys – from the ABC website

Ku Ring Gai Wildflower Gardens

Ku Ring Gai Wildflower Gardens

Ku Ring Gai Wildflower Gardens

Ku Ring Gai Wildflower Gardens

Ku Ring Gai Wildflower Gardens

Ku Ring Gai Wildflower Gardens

Ku Ring Gai Wildflower Gardens