Sunday, May 30, 2010

Spotted Turtledove


Spotted Turtledoves are common birds of parks and gardens throughout eastern and southern Australia as well as parts of Western Australia. They were introduced from Asia in the 1860s. Their soft "coo-coo" calls can be pleasant at first and a common call of many towns and cities. After a few hours of hearing this persistent call it can get irritating to some people. Like many doves and pigeons, their nest is a flimsy platform of a few sticks.

To read more about Australian birds click here.




Thursday, May 27, 2010

Peaceful Dove

Peaceful Doves are delightful little birds. We occasionally have some visit our garden. We love hearing their soft "doodle-doo" call in the trees around our house.

Peaceful Doves are widespread throughout most of Australia except for Tasmania and southern Western Australia. Their preferred habitat includes scrublands, open grassy woodlands, farming country, parks and gardens. They make a flimsy nest of a few sticks.

Read more about Australian birds on Trevor's Birding blog.




Monday, May 24, 2010

Rock Doves

Rock Doves

Rock Doves are also called Feral Pigeons, Domestic Pigeons or Homing Pigeons. They are a common bird, usually introduced, in many large cities of the world, especially in Europe, Africa and Asia.

Here in Australia they are present in most cities and towns and are spreading to farm buildings and factories. I have also witnessed large populations living in rock crevices and small caves along coastal cliffs. Around schools and hospitals and other public buildings, for example, they can pose a considerable health risk from their droppings and as lice carriers.

For more information about Australian birds go to Trevor's Birding.

Rock Doves



Friday, May 21, 2010

Black-fronted Dotterel


The tiny Black-fronted Dotterel is found throughout most of Australia where there is suitable habitat. This species prefers shallow freshwater wetlands, swamps, edges of lakes, rivers and lagoons and sometimes brackish waters. They are usually encountered singly, in pairs and occasionally in small groups. They feed in very shallow water and along mudflats.

To read more about Australian birds click here.


Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Darter

The Darter is also called "Snake-bird" because of its long, snake-like neck. As it swims along the surface of the water you can often only see its neck out of the water, not unlike a snake swimming.

The Darter is a widespread water bird in many parts of Australia where there is suitable habitat. It frequents lakes, rivers, reservoirs, swamps, lagoons and estuaries but rarely the open sea. After swimming individuals can be seen perched on a bank, log or tree branch with wings outstretched drying out the feathers which are not water resistant.

To read more about Australian birds, and to see many more photos of them go to Trevor's Birding blog.



Sunday, May 16, 2010

Pied Currawong

Pied Currawongs are found along the eastern part of Australia, from Cape York Peninsula down through to Victoria and to the south eastern tip of South Australia. They are a relatively common bird in their range. Their far reaching call is a well known sound in the forests, woodlands and farming areas in their range, as well as in parks and gardens in populated areas.

The photos on this post were taken from the kitchen window of my son's house in Artarmon in inner north Sydney. It was being harassed by several Noisy Miners.

To read more about Australian birds go to Trevor's Birding, my other blog about birds.



Friday, May 14, 2010

Grey Currawong


We have several species of currawongs in Australia. These birds which look a bit like crows or ravens are found in many parts of Australia. The common one around where we live is the Grey Currawong. A juvenile is shown in the photo above.

I love hearing its far reaching call echoing through the mallee scrub. It seems to carry for over a kilometer on a still morning. We've lived in our house for over 25 years and for most of that time we never had currawongs visiting our garden. This has changed in the last five years and they are now almost daily visitors.

The local small birds like the honeyeaters do not enjoy these visits. They all set up a terribly noisy kerfuffle for they know that the currawongs will rob raid their nests given half a chance. Many baby birds get eaten by such predators.

To learn more about Australian birds go to my other  blog called Trevor's Birding.

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

White-browed Babbler

One of the more interesting bird species we have in our garden is the White-browed Babbler. This is one os several species of babblers in Australia, but the only one found near where we live.

I am always amused by these birds - they seem to be the clowns of the bird world, hopping around madly chasing one another or seeking a better place to find beetles and other bugs. All the time the mew like demented cats!

They tend to be found in family groups of 5 - 15 and the whole family will set to and make a rough, untidy nest of grass and fine twigs. Sometime it takes the flock less than a hour or two to make a nest. It is often used for roosting at night.

To read more about Australian birds and see more photos of them go to my other site called Trevor's Birding.

Monday, May 10, 2010

Singing Honeyeater


There are many different kinds of honeyeaters in Australia. These birds, as their name suggests, are largely nectivorous. Many also eats fruits, berries and insects. We regularly have seven different species of honeyeaters in our garden, most of them resident breeding species.

The Singing Honeyeater is one of these species, present in small numbers, perhaps 4 - 6 at any one time. During our long hot and dry summers they enjoy coming to our bird baths for a drink. They also enjoy feeding on the nectar of the flowers of the many native Australian plants we have in our garden.

To find out more about Australian birds click here.

Saturday, May 08, 2010

Yellow-rumped Thornbill


Australia has a number of species of thornbills, small birds which feed on the ground or in the foliage of trees and bushes. The most common species in our garden and mallee scrub near our house are the beautiful Yellow-rumped Thornbills.

Quite often we see or hear flocks of 5 - 15 moving through the garden calling to each other as they feed. On hot days in the summer they are regular visitors to our bird baths giving us excellent views of this tiny bird.

To learn more about Australian birds go to my other birding blog called Trevor's Birding.





Thursday, May 06, 2010

Mallee Ringneck Parrots


Australia has many very colourful birds, especially in our parrots. One of those beautiful birds has to be the Australian Ringneck parrot. This species has several sub-species, including the Mallee Ringneck shown in the photos on this post.

This parrot is a resident breeding species in our garden. We see 4 - 6 of these beautiful birds on a daily basis as they feed in the garden of nearby paddocks and mallee scrub. They are also daily visitors to our bird baths during our hot, dry summers.

You can read more about Australian birds on my other blog called Trevor's Birding.



Tuesday, May 04, 2010

Striated Pardalote


One of my favourite garden birds would have to be the tiny Striated Pardalotes. I often hear their "peep peep" calls as they feed in the eucalyptus trees just outside my office window. They are insectivorous and when I'm out in the garden I can sometimes hear their little beaks snapping up tasty morsels as they catch their lunch.

This species is one of several found in Australia. we also have the Yellow-rumped Pardalote resident in our garden. I'll write about that another day.

Pardalotes make a nest in the hollows of trees. They will also make a small tunnel in sand with a nesting hollow at the end of the short tunnel.

For more information about Australian birds go to Trevor's Birding here.



Sunday, May 02, 2010

Crested Pigeon



We have many Crested Pigeons in our garden and the surrounding mallee scrub. On some occasions I have seen as many as forty perched on the power lines going along the road. They are a delight to have around and will often allow me to approach to within a few meters of where they are sitting. They also enjoy coming to drink from our bird baths on hot summer's days.

To read more about our wonderful birds here in Australia, go to Trevor's Birding.