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RAIN lashed the Lauderdale Oval, but a band of nature-lovers and a white-faced heron were not to be deterred.  Wind and rain seemed appropriate for the excursion on this occasion. The object of the summer exercise was after all the study of probably the most neglected and misunderstood environment in the world of nature: the saltmarsh. Born of storm and tide, it’s a vital habitat for fish, birds and insects so who was complaining about a little rain. Amid welcome swallows … [Read more...] about Salt of the earth

Thunder in the mountain, it sounded like the opening lyric of a Bob Dylan song. I should be seeking shelter, in a cave and not under a tree. I stood in the open, however, my eyes on the heavens. It was just the sort of storm front that would bring with it the mysterious and magical white-throated needletail swift. That or the rising hot air from a bush fire. The swifts breed in Asia and migrate to Australia for our summer, guaranteeing a supply of their flying-insect prey … [Read more...] about Swiftly through the skies

A sprig of cornflower – the intense blue of its flower illuminating the darkest of spaces on Melbourne’s rattling trams – accompanied me on a magical mystery tour of that city’s hidden corners last month. My trips to Victoria might not always be about nature but all the same I can’t resist pausing to watch bird species we don’t find in Hobart, like magpie-larks on grassy roundabouts at busy city intersections, or red wattlebirds chasing smaller honeyeater species away from … [Read more...] about A meadow in the city

Charlie the parrot came into my life during the summer holiday season, more by accident than design. I’ve never owned a pet bird, or even looked after one, so the prospect of being Charlie’s carer for a week or so was a daunting one. Great responsibility goes with looking after a neighbour’s pet, especially when it is the much-loved playmate of their children. I may know a great deal about birds flying wild and free but a captive one had me out on a limb. I’m not … [Read more...] about Charlie wants a holiday

A greedy cuckoo has found not one but two surrogate parents to raise him this breeding season. And most remarkable of all, they were birds of different species, black-headed honeyeaters and scarlet robins. Last summer I was shown a cuckoo chick being fed by honeyeaters at the Waverley Floral Park in Howrah, and this season I eagerly waited for my informant, Vern Hansson, to contact me with more sightings. Vern is a skilled finder of nests, and cuckoos, and I was grateful … [Read more...] about Cuckoo doubles up on parents