Magpies like flowers
Australian Magpie on our back veranda
We always enjoy having a family of Australian Magpies in our garden. They are friendly and never swoop or attack us, even at the height of the breeding season. They strut around the garden as if they own it – which I guess is how they view it. This is their territory; we are the aliens. When we dig up the garden they are there immediately to catch any worms or beetles that are unearthed. When I mow the grass they follow the mower for insects like grasshoppers.
They are also very sociable and will join us for morning tea or lunch on the back veranda. They casually walk around our chairs less than a metre away, quite unafraid of our presence. We think that’s wonderful. They also leave evidence that they visit our chairs and table when we are not there. Several days ago I was passing the glass sliding door leading out to the veranda and saw this magpie perched on one of our chairs.
Was it admiring the flowers in the pot on the table?
Not sure. Perhaps it was watching to see if any insects were buzzing around. Whatever the reason it made a great photo.
If you want to learn more about Australian Magpies, I can recommend a great little book about them. The fearsome flute players (click here) is an excellent read, and there is a special offer if you mention you read about it here on Trevor’s Birding.
Australian Magpie on our back veranda
Adelaide Rosellas in a flying visit
Adelaide Rosella
The Adelaide Rosella is a race of the widespread Crimson Rosella. It is confined to the Adelaide region, the Mt Lofty Ranges and through to the mid north of South Australia. It is relatively common in that range and shows considerable colour variations, ranging from a washed out orange through to almost red.
I live in Murray Bridge which is about 80km SE of the Adelaide CBD and about 40km from the ranges. When we first moved here 30 years ago I had to travel 30 – 40km west to see this species. Over the years the range appears to have drifted further east and sightings in and around Murray Bridge are becoming far more common. I can’t claim this as a resident species in our garden, but sightings are becoming quite regular every few months so it might happen in the future.
On the weekend just gone we had two land in the Eremophila youngii bush in our front garden. This bush has been in flower for some time and the local honeyeaters love feeding on the nectar. The resident Mallee Ringnecks also feed on the flowers. These visiting rosellas came early in the morning and sat there briefly in full sunlight. I was just emerging from showering and shaving, and my camera was at the other end of the house. Naturally they flew off before I could take a photo.
One day.
One day they’ll pose nicely for me and I’ll be able to improve on the photo above. Meanwhile, I’ve included a close up photo of the flower (see below) as well as one showing a New Holland Honeyeater in the bush.
Eremophila youngii in our garden
New Holland Honeyeater feeding in Eremophila youngii
Opportunistic Magpies
Australian Magpie gathering wool for nesting material
It never ceases to amaze me when I consider how enterprising and opportunistic birds can be, especially when it comes to nesting time. It’s that time again and our resident Australian Magpies having been busy fighting to establish their territories. Our 5 acre block on the edge of town is the intersection of three territories, so at this time of the year there are many disputes over boundaries.
One pair dominates the area around our house and sheds and they are the birds that come most frequently to our bird baths and close to the house. They will often come right up to the front or back doors and allow us to get quite close. They are also quite happy to search for food only a metre or two from where we might be working or sitting in the garden. This includes our back veranda area where we often cook a BBQ and eat a meal.This is despite never having fed them in any way.
A few days ago my wife had a fleece of coloured wool out in the sunshine to dry. She was preparing it for spinning but our resident female magpie found it. Soon she was taking big chunks to the nest tree. Incensed at this free-loading, my wife brought the fleece onto the veranda and draped it over the clothes horse. Undeterred, the magpie enterprisingly found it and continued her nest lining activities. The photographic proof is shown on this post.
For those interested in learning more about magpies go to this article: The fearsome flute players. There is a special offer for readers of Trevor’s Birding.
Australian Magpie gathering wool for nesting material
Australian Magpie gathering wool for nesting material
Kestrel flyover
Nankeen Kestrel, Laratinga wetlands, Mt Barker SA
Earlier this week I took a mid-morning break to have a coffee and to do some reading. It was a beautiful day with bright sunshine, moderate temperature and no clouds. It was the complete opposite of some of the dreary,gloomy, drizzly weather we’ve had this winter. I was enjoying the warmth of the sun, and the coffee wasn’t bad either.
As I read, a bird call nearby attracted my attention from my book. I’d heard this call several times in the previous few days but had not managed to catch sight of the birds. I recognised the call as that of a juvenile Nankeen Kestrel begging for food from the parents. A few seconds later an adult bird flew overhead, closely pursued by two young ones begging as they flew.
They went across our garden so quickly it was only a brief glimpse. They didn’t land nearby so there was no opportunity for a photo or two, so I’ve included a photo of a different bird of the same species taken in nearby Mt Barker some months ago. I have observed that they had been landing regularly on the cross bar of a nearby electricity power pole. Getting close enough without disturbing them can be a challenge as they can see me coming.
I’ll keep trying.
Good birding.
Related articles:
Corellas calling
Little Corella
We have many different kinds of parrots visiting our garden and five acre block over the course of the year. Some are resident, like the Mallee Ringnecks, others are only occasional visitors. The Little Corella is one of those infrequent visitors and when they do visit, it’s usually just a “flying visit” – meaning – they just fly over without landing. This is despite the species being present in large flocks of 200 – 500 (or more) along the River Murray only 4 – 5 kilometres away (as the parrot flies).
This morning I was busy attending to something when my attention was drawn to an unusual call outside – unusual for our bird life, that is. I instantly recognised the call of a flock of Little Corellas. I raced outside, noting that there was no time to grab either binoculars or camera, just to see a flock of about 50 quickly disappearing over the trees in the distance.
Never mind; at least I now know that they still know where I live, and are prepared to pay me a visit every now and then, albeit oh so briefly.
The photos on this post were taken last year in the riverside reserve at the nearby town of Mannum.
Good birding.
Little Corella