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A flock of silvereyes passed through the Waterworks Valley on dainty, jerky flight, heading north. Even without seeing them, I could hear their muted melody, a soft twitter which enables small flocks to keep in contact with each other while they are on the move. The song at this time of the year carries a melancholy air, but perhaps that was just me, lamenting the passing of summer and the passing of the silvereyes through my garden on the first stage of a migratory journey … [Read more...] about Silvereyes bid farewell

The songbirds of the southern suburbs of Hobart had to be on their guard this summer – the brown goshawks and collared sparrowhawks had returned in force. I’ve never seen such numbers of this winged army intent on causing mayhem and panic in the bottlebrushes and grevilleas. I know the dark secrets of birds which prey solely on the fairy-wrens, robins and silvereyes so beloved of our gardens can appear cruel but the raptors are only going about the business they were … [Read more...] about Goshawks out in force

Autumn had arrived and I could feel it in my bones, in my soul, and the striated pardalotes could feel it, too. All spring and summer their incessant “pick-me-up” triple-syllable song had bounced across the garden and through my home. Now the pardalotes had fallen silent and were on their way to wintering grounds on the other side of Bass Strait. Autumn always arrives quietly, almost imperceptibly. There’s no fanfare as in spring, when the sun suddenly shines strong and … [Read more...] about Striated pardalotes fall silent

The forest raven swayed back and forth on the upper branches of a wattle, its body twitching and turning to maintain balance, but its head as steady as its intense stare. The raven looked straight at me, concentration rippling its facial feathers, trying to make sense of this human, stretchered, wired and dripped in a hospital bed. I, in turn, was trying to make sense of a raven fascinated by the comings and goings in a Hobart orthopaedic hospital ward. I should have been … [Read more...] about The dark side of crows