October brings some rain

 

October has been fairly quiet for me. I managed to take some leave, which meant an opportunity to catch up on some of the long list of garden jobs and to do a little birding. It's also peak breeding season for our hens as well as some of the native birds.  I noticed that a Bush Turkey had built a breeding mound behind the chicken runs. "noticed' suggests I might have missed it, but no, the mound was over a metre tall and 6-8 metres square.  Bush Turkeys and chooks often don't get on well as the male turkeys are obsessed with raping the chooks and both sexes steal eggs; however, Bush Turkeys are also very aggressive towards Lace Monitors and Goannas, especially around their mounds, so I watch with interest to see whether we would benefit or otherwise from the mound.  Certainly a number of baby Bush Chooks were hatched and there were odd occasions when I had to nip outside to separate a randy Bush Turkey from a distressed chook. We lost a number of eggs, averaging two or three a day, but we have an excess of eggs so that wasn't an issue.  The big win was that prior to the mound being built the Lace Monitors had been circling and they will rip into eggs and any chook they can catch sitting on them.  Once the mound was complete they vanished and I haven't seen one since (although my neighbour reports in sightings including one individual supposedly the size of a small crocodile).  So, I think the experiment has been a success and the Bush Chooks can stay (they are legally protected anyway) with my blessing.

Bertie the Bush Turkey guards his mound

A few months ago we managed to find a girlfriend for Dymple (our Peacock) and 'P-Diddy' has been in the peacock run since Feb/Mar (they need 6-months to settle). I managed to catch Dymple at the end of last month and put him in with her (he's normally free range) and as it was peak breeding season he immediately flourished his tail and set to wooing her.  I can announce that only yesterday an egg has appeared and so we wait with bated breath to see if more come and P-Diddy sits on them.

Meanwhile, back on the dam its nice to see that we still have turtles. We don't see them often but this Saw-shelled Turtle came out on the banks for a short bask as the days started warming.

Saw-shelled Turtle

Regulars

Australian Magpie
Bar-shouldered Dove
Brown Honeyeater

Brown Thornbill

A pair of Brown Thornbills

Buff-rumped Thornbill

Buff-rumped Thornbill in the grevilleas

Bush Turkey

Cicadabird
Common Bronzewing

Dollarbird

Double-barred Finch

Double-barred Finch

Eastern Spinebill

Forest Kingfisher

Forest Kingfisher

Galah

Intermediate Egret

Still feasting on the Rainbows

King Parrot

Laughing Kookaburra

Little Corella

Noisy Friarbird

Noisy Miner

Olive-backed Oriole

Olive-backed Oriole in the Silky Oak

Pacific Black Duck

Peaceful Dove
Pied Butcherbird
Pied Currawong
Plumed Whistling Duck
Rainbow Lorikeet

Scarlet Honeyeater

Scarlet Honeyeater

Striated Pardalote

Sulphur Crested Cockatoo

Torresian Crow
White-throated Gerygone
White-throated Honeyeater
Yellow-faced Honeyeater

Common (Seen Weekly)

Channel-billed Cuckoo

Eastern Yellow Robin

Golden Whistler

Grey Shrike-Thrush

Spangled Drongo

Willie Wagtail

Uncommon (Seen occasionally)

Black-faced Cuckoo Shrike

Crested Pigeon

Eastern Boobook

Figbird

Male Figbird with Native Tobacco buds

Female Figbird

Leaden Flycatcher

Little Friarbird

Little Wattlebird
Magpie Lark

Magpie Lark

Masked Plover

Pacific Baza
Pale-headed Rosella
Rainbow Bee Eater

Rufous Whistler

White-headed Pigeon

White-headed Pigeon

White-throated Treecreeper

Rare (Seen once)

Australian Ibis

Black Cormorant
Glossy Black Cockatoo

Scaly-breasted Lorikeet

Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo