Chestnut Teal, Laratinga Wetlands
Chestnut Teal, Laratinga Wetlands, South Australia
The male Chestnut Teal is an attractively coloured member of the duck family here in Australia. They are moderately common in their range which covers most of SE Australia, including Tasmania, as well as the SW part of Western Australia.
The birds shown in these photos I saw at the Laratinga Wetlands in Mt Barker, South Australia, were not as confiding as the Pacific Black Ducks and I found it hard to get good photos on the day.
Chestnut Teal, Laratinga Wetlands, South Australia
Pacific Black Ducks, Laratinga Wetlands
Pacific Black Duck, Laratinga Wetlands, Mt Barker, South Australia
Pacific Black Ducks and Grey Teal are probably the most common and well known ducks found in Australia. They are very common in parks, on lakes, rivers and reservoirs and can even be found in private gardens. More than once we’ve had ducklings in our swimming pool.
They are one of most recognisable birds and are very popular in public parks and gardens where people love to feed them. I don’t encourage this practice as the food – often bread – is not only unsuitable for ducks, it is potentially harmful to them.
Pacific Black Ducks are generally quite unafraid of people, especially in public places like the Laratinga Wetlands in South Australia. This makes them excellent subjects for photography.
Further reading:
Pacific Black Duck, Laratinga Wetlands, Mt Barker, South Australia
Ducks upside down
Laratinga Wetlands, Mt Barker, South Australia
On my recent visit to Laratinga Wetlands at Mt Barker in the Adelaide Hills I saw many water birds, including plenty of Pacific Black Ducks. This is a common Australian duck species found throughout much of the country where suitable habitat exists. They are often found in wetlands like this one, but also swamps, lakes, rivers, creeks, reservoirs, ponds, parks and gardens and even in suburban home swimming pools. We’ve had ducklings in our swimming pool on many occasions.
What amused me on this occasion was capturing a number of them upside down – see the photo below. They were all feeding on the bottom of the pond, tails stuck up in the air.
See also: Rescue of the ten little ducklings
Pacific Black Ducks, Laratinga Wetlands, Mt Barker, South Australia
Pacific Black Duck, Laratinga Wetlands, Mt Barker, South Australia
Young Ducks, Laratinga Wetlands
Grey Teal with ducklings, Laratinga Wetlands
On my visit to the Laratinga Wetlands, Mt Barker earlier this week I was pleased to see how many birds were breeding, or had young. Many of the water-birds had young in various stages of dependence, including this family of Grey Teal swimming on one of the ponds.
These wetlands are on the eastern side of Mt Barker in the Mt Lofty Ranges about a half hour drive from Adelaide, South Australia. The series of ponds have been made next to the treatment works and they purify the water which is later used in irrigation projects nearby.
Grey Teal are a very common duck, being found throughout Australia where there is suitable habitat. They usually respond quickly to flooding and heavy rainfall, breeding up in large numbers. I didn’t see as many Grey Teal on this occasion. Many have probably flown to more northern and inland parts of Australia where there has been extensive flooding in recent months.
Related Articles:
- Australian Shoveller, Laratinga Wetlands
- Australasian Grebe
- Pacific Black Ducks breeding
- Australian Wood Duck family
- White-eyed Duck
Grey Teal with ducklings, Laratinga Wetlands
Australian Shoveller, Laratinga Wetlands
Australian Shoveller, Laratinga Wetlands, South Australia
Last Sunday I spent about three hours birding at the Laratinga Wetlands at Mt Barker in the Mt Lofty Ranges near Adelaide. It was a pleasant summer’s day with a cooling breeze. Overall I made quite a long list of birds seen. It was the first time I’d walked around all of the ponds in this wetland. The ponds drain the nearby treatment plant, purifying the water so it can be reused for nearby irrigation.
The wetlands are usually good for a large range of water birds, but the extensive planting of native Australian tree, bushes, grasses and water plants over the last 10 years has produced an environment suitable for many bush birds like wrens, honeyeaters and parrots.
On my visit earlier this week, possibly the best sighting was a solitary Australian Shoveller, a species of duck shown in the photo above. The photo also shows two Pacific Black Ducks in the background. The Australian Shoveller (also known as the Australasian Shoveller) is found in suitable habitats throughout eastern Australia and much of southern Western Australia.
Laratinga Wetlands, South Australia