Dancing on the Edge of the World
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.
By Don Knowler
Winter has been missing its usual sights, sounds and smells this year. An unseasonally dry period has cast a pall over the landscape. Although winter is traditionally a quiet period, wildlife and the woods largely lying dormant awaiting the rebirth and rejuvenation of spring, has been more muted. … [Read More...]
Filed Under: On The Wing
By Don Knowler
Winter can be a dangerous time for birds and this is not just because of the cold weather and a shortage of food. A growing, sinister threat also lurks in the form of rodenticides which are sometimes liberally laid in and around properties in the winter months to keep rats and mice at bay. As I’ve … [Read More...]
Filed Under: On The Wing
By Don Knowler
A friend in Britain who had just watched a film featuring a British coastal walk, The Salt Path, urged me to see it. He said in his email the hit movie had stunning shots of ospreys. Without sounding like a know-it-all, I had watched the film myself at the State Cinema and was in a position to … [Read More...]
Filed Under: On The Wing
By Don Knowler
Tapping on the window, fluttering against its panes, a tiny brown bird was making a nuisance of itself when I had work to do at the keyboard in my study. Just a sparrow I’m thinking, common around my home. I pulled the curtains shut so it could not see its reflection, a common cause of birds … [Read More...]
Filed Under: On The Wing
By Don Knowler
Writing this column I combine two passions – a love of birds and words. Ink and feathers. Now I’ve met an artist who uses the printed word for a different purpose. Craig Williams frames his paintings of birds with the pages of books, magazines and newspapers. I discovered Craig’s remarkable art … [Read More...]
Filed Under: On The Wing
By Don Knowler
The swamp harriers had delayed their migration to the mainland, or so it appeared. There they were, a small flock gliding and hovering above a pick-your-own-fruit nursery on the road to Richmond. Just a glimpse at first, before I pulled over. All the same there was something odd about this harrier … [Read More...]
Filed Under: On The Wing
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