Dry September and the joeys are showing

September is normally the peak of the years' birding for me, but due to being very busy at work and having to leave at 6.30am and not returning until 7pm means my birding this year was limited to weekends, and those were busy as well.  The upshot of which is that my bird variety lists is probably a little down, but hey ho! there's still plenty watch.

Our local mob of Red-necked Wallabies have become increasingly confident and now allow me to get within a dozen feet before bounding away, and even then they only hop a few bounds and then stop to watch what I'm up to.  It's been a particularly dry season up till September and so they have been enjoying clearing up any missed grain around the bird tables and the chook pens.

Of particular delight is the shots below of a mum with her joey.  To use the local vernacular "the little tucker seems a bit of a sook" ,and still seems set on staying firmly inside even if it is somewhat cramped.

Something's got their interest

Wallabies watching the ducks having an argument

That does look a squeeze

The star arrival of this season is the Scarlet Honeyeater.  I believe that they are around throughout the year, but largely unseen, hidden in the canopy of the gum forest, but in September they appear in numbers on the Grevilleas. It can be a bit of a battle as they compete for the nectar with the Brown Honeyeaters, but they keep at it and eventually find a gap and get through.

Scarlet Honeyeater

Scarlet Honeyeater

Scarlet Honeyeater (f)

It's also thistle time. I happily let the thistles grow and flower so I can get shots like this with a Honeybee and a group of Australian Stingless Bees.

and onto the birding lists....

Regulars (Seen daily)

Australian Magpie

Australian Magpie

Bar-shouldered Dove
Brown Honeyeater
Common Bronzewing

Common Bronzewing

Double-barred Finch

Double-barred Finch

Galah
Hardhead
Laughing Kookaburra
King Parrot

King Parrot

Little Corella
Little Friarbird
Noisy Friarbird
Noisy Miner
Olive-backed Oriole
Pacific Black Duck
Peaceful Dove
Pied Butcherbird

Pied Butcherbird

Pied Currawong

Pied Currawong

Plumed Whistling Duck

Plumed Whistling Duck

Rainbow Lorikeet
Scarlet Honeyeater

Scarlet Honeyeater

Silvereye

Silvereye

Striated Pardalote

Striated Pardalote

Sulphur Crested Cockatoo
Torresian Crow
Welcome Swallow
White-throated Gerygone

Common (Seen Weekly)

Black-faced Cuckoo Shrike
Forest Kingfisher
Grey Butcherbird
Grey Shrike-Thrush
Leaden Flycatcher
Magpie Lark
Satin Flycatcher
White-throated Honeyeater

White-throated Honeyeater

White-throated Treecreeper
Yellow Faced Honeyeater

Uncommon (Seen occasionally)

Brown Goshawk

Collared Sparrowhawk
Eastern Spinebill
Eastern Yellow Robin
Figbird

Figbird

Golden Whistler
Grey Fantail
Lewins Honeyeater
Little Pied Cormorant
Pale-headed Rosella
Rainbow Bee Eater
Red-browed Finch
Restless Flycatcher
Spotted Pardalote
Tree Martin
Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo

Rare (Seen once)

Black-faced Monarch

Black-faced Monarch

Brown Cuckoo Dove
Brown Thornbill
Brush Turkey
Pelican
Sacred Kingfisher

Sacred Kingfisher

White-bellied Cuckoo Shrike
White-headed Pigeon
Willie Wagtail
Yellow RumpedThornbill


64-species, which is about all for now.

And for the Non-Aussie's here's a piccie of more of the burnt lands amazing fauna courtesy of someone or other (but not me)! In this case the Bendigo Advertiser

Brush-tailed Phascagole

A sniff of spring... and the ducks come in

We'll start off with ducks and for a change its not about Plumed Whistling Ducks (although they might sneak in at some point). Mid-month we became gained a new lodger, Bubbles the Duck.

Bubbles

Bubbles was an unwanted pet whose partner had been eaten by another pet. Now, I'm not going into the game of pointing fingers at guilty puppies, but the puppy was being looked after by others when the heinous crime was committed and so when it came home it had to hang its head in shame.  Much to my surprise we were then approached by the owners of the surviving duck (Bubbles) to see if we would take it on.  I can't say that I thought that the idea of us looking after the bereaved and distraught duck was a great idea as we were also hosting the villain of the piece, but it happened anyway, and so Bubbles now lives on the back dam.  Bubbles is a female Muscovy Duck, appears very well behaved and has taken to roosting on the floating island at night and making friends with all the wild ducks during the day.  So far she seems very happy and guilty puppy has shown no interest in her at all (his training continues).

To add to the variety some of you may have noticed that we had a Hardhead appear last month. Well, it has stayed, so I've been treated to the sight of this rather elegant duck diving for food around the dam.

The Hardhead

The hardhead, or White-eyed Duck is Australia's only diving duck and because of its brown colour I suspect much ignored, but I think that its a real beauty. The rich tan feathers in the breast blend into a hard chestnut on its head and it is pure white underwing. Just a lovely looking duck.

Ah!  can't leave them alone..the Plumed Whistling Ducks scared me earlier in the month by completely disappearing for four days. I thought that we had lost them for good, but on the fifth day a small group of nine appeared. The next day it was twenty and by the following week 60+, so we're back to normal again. They seem to congregate in 'mini-rafts'of up to a dozen, standing together on the shore, feeding and swimming together. If one 'mini-raft'collides with another then a whole lot and angry whistling breaks out until they untangle themselves.

One of the mini rafts of Plumed Whistling Ducks

Suffering from cramp?

More ducks!

A Plumed Whistling Duck sneaking up to the coup for some chicken food.

Oft ignored, but always around are the Pacific Black Ducks, which, if you look at closely, are beautiful in their own right. The scalloping on their feathers and the clear stripes around their eyes combine with the tantalizing glimpse of an emerald scapular to present a pretty damn good looking duck.

Is this a case of navel gazing?

The heads seem out of sync with the reflections.

Far less common at the Holt, just an occasional visitor is the Grey Teal, a small dabbling duck with the reputation for being a great traveller. Apparently they travel huge distances, chasing the rain and stopping at any suitable pond, dam or wetland. They are found across Australia.

A pair of Grey Teal.

Well, I thinks that's enough on ducks for today.  Onto the monthly sightings at Pardalote Holt....

Regulars (Seen daily)

Australian Magpie
Bar-shouldered Dove
Brown Honeyeater
Common Bronzewing
Double-barred Finch
Galah
Grey Fantail
Grey Shrike Thrush
Hardhead

Hardhead

Laughing Kookaburra

Laughing Kookaburra

Lewins Honeyeater
Little Corella
Little Friarbird
Noisy Friarbird
Noisy Miner
Pacific Black Duck
Peaceful Dove

Peaceful Doves

Pied Butcherbird
Pied Currawong
Plumed Whistling Duck
Rainbow Lorikeet

Rainbow Lorikeet

Restless Flycatcher
Silvereye

Silvereye

Striated Pardalote
Sulphur Crested Cockatoo
Torresian Crow
Welcome Swallow
White-throated Gerygone
Yellow-faced Honeyeater

Yellow-faced Honeyeater

Common (Seen Weekly)

Eastern Spinebill

Eastern Spinebill

Golden Whistler

Golden Whistler

Grey Butcherbird
King Parrot
Olive-backed Oriole
Pale-headed Rosella
Rainbow BeeEater
Rose Robin
Scarlet Honeyeater

Scarlet Honeyeater

White-throated Honeyeater
Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo

Uncommon (Seen occasionally)

Black-faced Cuckoo Shrike
Spotted Pardalote

Spotted Pardalote

Varied Sitella

Varied Sitella

White-bellied Sea Eagle
White-throated Treecreeper
Willie Wagtail

Rare (Seen once)

Blue-faced Honeyeater
Buff-rumped Thornbill
Collared Sparrowhawk
Crested Pigeon
Eastern Yellow Robin
Little Pied Cormorant
Jabiru
Pheasant Coucal
Red-browed Finch
Red-tailed Black Cockatoo
Rufous Whistler
Top Knot Pigeon

Top Knots flying up the valley

Yellow Thornbill



60-species, which is about all for now.

And for the Non-Aussie's here's a piccie of more of the burnt lands amazing fauna courtesy of someone or other (but not me)! In this case the South Australia DoE.

Potoroo

Amid the deep winter

Let's start with something colourful...

Richmond Birdwing Butterfly

This very beautiful butterfly appears each winter. It is rare and unusual in that it only breeds on the Richmond Birdwing Vine, which, as far as I'm aware, isn't growing at the Holt; however, a friendly council ranger has told me that they are growing in profusion in a reserve that is nearby, so we can presume we're getting the wanderers. I shall obtain some of the vines and see if I can get them growing to see whether they will breed here.

Enjoying nectar from a Grevillea.

Another small visitor that appears to be showing up on a regular basis, regular enough for me to declare them breeding residents are the Spotted Pardalote. These charming little birds are between 8 cms - 10 cms long and nest in holes in steep banks, just as their cousin the Striated Pardalote does (after whom we named the house).  This particular bird appears to have become quite used to me and will sit on a nearby branch to see what I'm up to.

Spotted Pardalote

and when I say "spotted"I mean....

The red rump adds a touch of fire to this small woodland bird

and there's nothing like a good stretch

and without further ado, what did we see in July?


Regulars (Seen daily)

Australian Magpie
Bar-shouldered Dove
Brown Honeyeater

Brown Honeyeater

Common Bronzewing
Double-barred Finch
Eastern Spinebill

Eastern Spinebill

Galah

Galah

Grey Butcherbird
Grey Fantail

Grey Fantail

Laughing Kookaburra
Lewins Honeyeater
Little Corella
Noisy Miner
Pacific Black Duck

Pacific Black Duck

Peaceful Dove
Pied Butcherbird

Pied Butcherbird singing its lungs out.

Pied Currawong
Plumed Whistling Duck
Rainbow Lorikeet

Rainbow Lorikeet

Restless Flycatcher
Silvereye

Silvereyes & Double-barred Finch (above).

Striated Pardalote
Sulphur Crested Cockatoo
Torresian Crow
White-throated Gerygone
White-throated Honeyeater
Yellow-faced Honeyeater


Common (Seen Weekly)

Fan-tailed Cuckoo
Golden Whistler

Female Golden Whistler

Grey Shrike Thrush
Noisy Friarbird
Rainbow BeeEater
Rose Robin

Female Rose Robin

Uncommon (Seen occasionally)

Black-faced Cuckoo Shrike
Brown Goshawk
Eastern Whipbird
Eastern Yellow Robin
Grey Shrike Thrush
Hardhead

Hardhead

Masked Plover
Olive-backed Oriole

Olive-backed Oriole

Rufous Whistler
Scarlet Honeyeater
Spotted Pardalote

Spotted Pardalote

Varied Sitella
Welcome Swallow
White-throated Treecreeper
Willie Wagtail
Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo


Rare (Seen once)


Blue-faced Honeyeater
Buff-rumped Thornbill
Collared Sparrowhawk
Fan-tailed Cuckoo

Fan Tailed Cuckoo

Figbird
Pale-headed Rosella
Red-browed Finch
Shining Bronze Cuckoo
Wedge-tailed Eagle
White-bellied Sea Eagle
Wood Duck

58-species, which is about all for now.

And for the Non-Aussie's here's a piccie of more of the burnt lands amazing fauna courtesy of someone or other (but not me)!

Pair of Eastern Quolls awaiting release