Pardalote Holt: Dry September and the joeys are showing

Friday, November 2, 2018

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 (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

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

Plumed Whistling Duck

Rainbow Lorikeet
Scarlet Honeyeater

Scarlet Honeyeater

Silvereye

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