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Donald Knowler

Dancing on the Edge of the World

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On The Wing

A column for all seasons

Everyone has a story about birds. They are all about us and are our contact point with nature. The birds I see are usually in an urban environment and so I concentrate on these in my writing. I don’t pretend to be an expert but birds of the city and suburb are also the ones that most people identify with, the species you do not need a compass and binoculars to seek out. A scarlet robin singing in a garden is just as exciting as a swift parrot in an ancient forest and is worth just as many words in my On the Wing writings, which appear weekly in the Sunday Tasmanian.

Swift action need on migratory parrots

June 26, 2022 By Don Knowler

The battle to save the critically endangered swift parrot has switched to the forests of the south-east mainland these chilly winter months. Birdwatchers have been fanning out across country Victoria and New South Wales to count numbers of migrating parrots in their wintering grounds. The swift … [Read More...]

Filed Under: On The Wing

Butcherbirds win out in the turf wars

June 18, 2022 By Don Knowler

The turf wars have returned to my garden with the onslaught of winter. The ravens and currawongs are once again engaged in battle over the scraps of food I leave out for them each morning. And this year another protagonist has joined the fray – a grey butcherbird. The resident forest ravens have … [Read More...]

Filed Under: On The Wing

Drawn to a mountain bathed in soft sunlight

June 12, 2022 By Don Knowler

A wedge-tailed eagle soared across the sky in front of me. High above South Hobart it rose and fell, twisted and turned, a silhouette against the backdrop of kununyi/Mt Wellington, which was bathed in soft sunlight in the first week of winter. My focus should have been on the “wedgie” – the fourth … [Read More...]

Filed Under: On The Wing

‘Tip turkey’ gives up on life in the city

June 4, 2022 By Don Knowler

The 240 kilometres of ocean separating Tasmania from the big island has kept us safe from the scourge of city parks in Melbourne and Sydney – the Australian white ibis. This strange, mercurial bird goes by the name of “bin chicken” and “tip turkey” in some parts. In its more aggressive moments it … [Read More...]

Filed Under: On The Wing

Happy birders prove to be golden whistlers

May 28, 2022 By Don Knowler

New research has suggested bird-watchers are laying a “golden egg” when it comes to domestic tourism. The travel trade has at last been able to separate birders from other tourists to determine what they contribute to the economy. It comes to a staggering $282 million per year. Until recently, … [Read More...]

Filed Under: On The Wing

Storm clouds carry a silver lining

May 22, 2022 By Don Knowler

A scarlet robin sat on an exposed twig, bathed in a mellow, yellow autumnal light. After a day of torrential rain, the clouds had lifted and so had my spirits. A robin on a low perch, its head moving from side to side, his eyes trained on insects flitting in the kangaroo grass beneath him. Not … [Read More...]

Filed Under: On The Wing

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PUBLISHED BOOKS

The Shy Mountain

shy mountain

Silent and brooding, the Shy Mountain does not have to speak her name. We know she’s there, watching … [Read More...]

The Falconer of Central Park

Although written more than 30 years ago, The Falconer of Central Park has remained popular ever … [Read More...]

Riding the Devil’s Highway

Tasmania might be known internationally as the home of the Hollywood cartoon character, Taz, based … [Read More...]

Dancing on the Edge of the World

Dancing on the edge of the World by Donald Knowler

Dancing on the Edge of the World is a collection of essays that had their genesis in the “On the … [Read More...]

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Recent Posts

  • Swift action need on migratory parrots
  • Butcherbirds win out in the turf wars
  • Drawn to a mountain bathed in soft sunlight
  • ‘Tip turkey’ gives up on life in the city
  • Happy birders prove to be golden whistlers
  • Storm clouds carry a silver lining
  • Birdsong at quarry echoes from the past
  • ‘Diamond birds’ find their voice
  • An ancient mariner feeds between the tides
  • Bird of peace defies Putin’s horror

© Donald Knowler . All rights reserved.