Pardalote Holt: July and it's a furry and cuddly month...

Wednesday, August 31, 2016

July and it's a furry and cuddly month...

Everything this year appears to have slipped back a little. The Spinebills turned up a little late and it wasn't until the end of the month that the Scarlet Honeyeaters really began to show, but on the other hand the fat furry beasties put on a show to be relished. So I'm not going to ramble on as you lot only come to see the pictures anyway...

Anyway, I come home from work one afternoon, make myself a cuppa and walk out onto the deck and 10' away, half way up a small gum is....

"Oo-er! Mum, what's happening"

He's looking a little distressed and obviously a bit lost as to his situation.

Slightly worried looking young male Koala.

Worried because he's been herded up the tree by the ever inquisitive Guinea Fowl...

Gaining confidence?

Whether he gained confidence or simply become so distressed he had to do something our visitor climbed down...

and stopped at the bottom for a while looking simply bemused.

Before long he frog hopped over to the next tree and quickly climbed four or five feet up that one.

and stopped to check out whether he was being followed.

I suspect he wasn't that impressed by being followed by me, but I stayed back and relied on the big lens to do the work.

and down he came again before lolloping off to the next refuge...

At which point I retreated back indoors to give him a real chance to get somewhere he was comfortable. It's not often you get a moment like this with a wild Koala and as you can see it's something special. I did take care not to get too close and I quietly shooed the Guinea Fowl away so that our friend could leave in peace. Special moment!

Now calm down, Let's get back on subject and look at the birds....

Now before I get onto the bird lists I would like to note that this month we saw a Sooty Owl, a first for the Holt. A very large and presumably very old gum tree that grew on the edge of the dry creek that separates us from our nearest neighbour blew down and the following day I found this beauty in the nearby Box Brush. I suspect he might have had a roost in the fallen tree, who knows, but it was an exciting sighting.

Sooty Owl

and now the monthly sightings....

Regulars (Seen daily)

Bar-shouldered Dove
Common Bronzewing
Double-barred Finch

Double-barred Finches

Eastern Spinebill

Galah
Little Corella
Pacific Black Duck
Peaceful Dove
Pied Butcherbird
Pied Currawong
Plumed Whistling Duck
Rainbow Lorikeet

Soggy Rainbow Lorikeet doing a mating dance.

Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo
Torresian Crow
White-throated Honeyeater

White-throated Honeyeater

Common (Seen weekly)

Australian Magpie
Grey Fantail
Grey Shrike Thrush
Laughing Kookaburra
Lewins Honeyeater

Lewins Honeyeater amongst the Aloes

Noisy Friarbird
Noisy Miner
Red-browed Finch

Red-browed Finch

Silvereye

Striated Pardalote

Welcome Swallow
White-throated Gerygone
Willie Wagtail
Yellow-faced Honeyeater

Uncommon (Seen occasionally)

Black-faced Cuckoo Shrike

Black-faced Cuckoo Shrike munching wild tobacco buds

Brown Cuckoo Dove

Buff - rumped Thornbill

Buff-rumped Thornbill gets his worm.

Eastern Yellow Robin
Golden Whistler
Grey Butcherbird

Grey Butcherbird

Leaden Flycatcher
Little Pied Cormorant
King Parrot

King Parrot

Pale-headed Rosella
Rainbow Bee Eater
Restess Flycatcher

A Restless Flycatcher leads me a merry dance through the trees

Rose Robin

Female Rose Robin

Scarlet Honeyeater

Scarlet Honeyeaters in the Fire Sprite Grevillea

Spotted Pardalote

Spotted Pardalote with strands of bark from a Stringy Bark Gum for nesting material.

Top Knot Pigeon
Wedge-tailed eagle
White-bellied Sea Eagle
White-throated Tree Creeper
Wood Duck
Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo

Rare (Seen but once)

Blue-faced Honeyeater
Collared Sparrowhawk
Eastern Whipbird
Grey Goshawk
Little Friarbird

Olive-backed Oriole