Aggressive Red Wattlebirds
Red Wattlebird
This morning I was suddenly aware of a noisy disturbance just outside my office window. I looked up to see three Red Wattlebirds locked in a furious battle in the garden bed. In fact, I thought at first it was only two fighting each other. As I reached for my camera, they flew off, and I saw that there had been three birds fighting.
What caused this kerfuffle? I have no idea. As they flew off two of them were aggressively chasing the third one. The battle may well have continued elsewhere.
Red Wattlebird
Juvenile Australian Magpie
Juvenile Australian Magpie, Victor Harbor, South Australia
We recently had a weekend in Victor Harbor on the south coast of South Australia. We stayed in our caravan with a group of friends in their caravans. While sitting around talking at one stage a juvenile Australian Magpie came hopping around our feet, begging for food from the adults nearby. They were looking for any scraps of food that may have fallen from our picnic tables.
A little later this young bird flew in and landed on the annex of our friend’s caravan about 3 metres from where I was sitting. If you look closely at the photo above you can just see the corner of the annex. The bird looked at me, noticed that a camera didn’t look very tasty, and flew off.
Juvenile Australian Magpie, Victor Harbor, South Australia
Juvenile Australian Magpie, Victor Harbor, South Australia
Crested Pigeon resting
Crested Pigeon, Murray Bridge, South Australia
A few days ago I took a series of photos of one of the Crested Pigeons resident in our garden. This bird was sitting in one of our bird baths. Normally they just sit on the edge and take a short drink, but this one must have felt the need to sit in the water. I don’t think there was much water in it, but it still looked rather comical.
Subsequent photos show the bird in various poses before it decided to fly off.
Crested Pigeon, Murray Bridge, South Australia
Crested Pigeon, Murray Bridge, South Australia
Crested Pigeon, Murray Bridge, South Australia
Crested Pigeon, Murray Bridge, South Australia
Masked Lapwing, Victor Harbor
Masked Lapwing, Victor Harbor
Masked Lapwings are birds that are easily recognisable to many Australians. They are found throughout the eastern half of the continent and the northern parts too, where suitable habitat exists. They are common in parks, ovals, grassed areas, swamplands, and the edges of watercourses, dams and lakes. They are notorious for their habit of fiercely and noisily defending their territory by swooping anyone who dares to come near to their nest on the ground or the young.
While they are known to also inhabit beach areas, I haven’t often seen this species right on the beach like the one shown in the photo above. Mind you – this one is actually walking on the piled up seaweed along Encounter Bay at Victor Harbor.
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A gathering of magpies
Australian Magpie, Victor Harbor, South Australia
Last weekend we went to Victor Harbor on the south coast of Fleurieu Peninsula, about an hour’s drive south of Adelaide and just over an hour from home here in Murray Bridge. we took the caravan and stayed with a group of friends in one of the lovely caravan parks in the town.
On the Sunday afternoon my friend Rod, who lives in Victor Harbor, took us on a cruise in his 1928 A model Ford. It was a great – though little breezy – drive. He and his wife Jan took a picnic basket and we had a wonderful cuppa and nibbles part way up The Bluff. as we were having our cuppa a family of Australian Magpies joined us. They were probably expected some tasty handouts from us picnickers. Sadly, they went without a tidbit.
One of the interesting things was the presence of several juveniles, still in their downy plumage and still very much in begging mode as the parents tried to satisfy their needs. The breeding season is well and truly over, but the juveniles will continue to beg for food for many months after leaving the nest.
Australian Magpie (juvenile), Victor Harbor, South Australia
Australian Magpies, Victor Harbor, South Australia
Australian Magpies, Victor Harbor, South Australia
Encounter Bay, Victor Harbor, South Australia