Birdland is a magical place where it’s possible to escape all the pressures and stresses of the environment of the city created and inhabited by one species – humans – and immerse yourself in a less one-dimensional world. Birdland is nowhere in particular, and does not have to be special or noteworthy. It could be in the wildest of wild forest, or in suburbia. It could be a pristine beach, a few hectares of eucalypt woodland, or a neatly manicured city park. It could be a … [Read more...] about Passport to birdland
Archives for January 2022
Ex-Beatle Paul McCartney finds his “wings”
In these days of Covid lockdowns and restricted movement, the simple pleasure of a stroll in nature with its symphony of birdsong has been extolled by a songster of a different kind, former Beatle Paul McCartney. The musician said in an interview how birds especially had been an important part of his life, inspiring many of his songs, including his mega-hit Blackbird. McCartney found solace and escape in the woods when he was growing up in the urban jungle of industrial … [Read more...] about Ex-Beatle Paul McCartney finds his “wings”
Eccentric plovers rule the roost
All is well in the plover world, at least at the Waterworks Reserve. A plover family I watched all summer survived a tortuous breeding season with their family intact. Four eggs were laid in September and by year’s end four juveniles were happily joining their parents on feeding forays on the grassy reservoir walls within the reserve. Over two decades of visiting the reserve near my home in Dynnyrne, I have always been delighted by the antics of the masked lapwings, as they … [Read more...] about Eccentric plovers rule the roost
Cuckoos fall silent in the woods and fields
The cuckoos have stopped calling, their cunning work done for summer. In the first week of the new year, the fan-tailed cuckoo seemed to be the only cuckoo calling at the Queen’s Domain in Hobart where just before Christmas the calls of not only fantails, but pallid and shining bronze-cuckoos had bounced off the gums and casuarinas. The adults might have fallen silent but the dry woodlands were filled with noisy cuckoo young, making life difficult for overworked surrogate … [Read more...] about Cuckoos fall silent in the woods and fields
Hobart – the blue wren capital of Australia
The birds didn’t exactly fall silent on my home turf during the 2021 national backyard bird count. But on my home turf their songs and calls were drowned out by a substantial building development within sight and earshot of my garden. The birds were still around, I think, but the sound of the warning bleeps of reversing concrete trucks and the hammering of nail guns made it an unfriendly environment. So instead I took my notebook and binoculars a short distance away to a … [Read more...] about Hobart – the blue wren capital of Australia