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Donald Knowler

Dancing on the Edge of the World

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Hardhead headache for tixidermists

April 12, 2024 Don Knowler

Out on the stippled waters of the one of the reservoirs at the Waterworks Reserve something a little different stirred. I could tell summer was making way for autumn because a seasonal traveller had arrived – a hardhead duck. The male was still in its breeding plumage and in the soft early-morning sunlight it looked a treat. Chocolate head on a textured brown body, blue-black beak with a silver tip and a distinctive white eye, which gives the species its second name, … [Read more...] about Hardhead headache for tixidermists

On The Wing

A splash and a dunk in cool waters

April 6, 2024 Don Knowler

A splashing and dunking, a spray of water droplets sparkling golden in the late-afternoon sun. A passing parade of birds were taking a dip. In terms of a birding hotspot this bathing pool did not look much. The birds knew otherwise. A fallen wattle was spread across the shallow waters of the Sandy Bay Rivulet where the watercourse weaves its way through the foothills of kunanyi/Mt Wellington. The silver wattle’s twiggy, clustered upper branches trapped a pool of water and … [Read more...] about A splash and a dunk in cool waters

On The Wing

Woodswallows linger for a summer feast

March 31, 2024 Don Knowler

Dusky woodswallows soared into the sky to snatch at the last of the summer’s flying insects. In the upper bare branches of a dead gum, they were joined by tree martins. The two unrelated species jockeyed for position, the martins coming off worst. When a woodswallow returned from a sortie, the smaller martins had to make way for it. Despite a late spell of summer weather, I sensed the two species were looking north, they certainly seemed to head that way after taking off, … [Read more...] about Woodswallows linger for a summer feast

On The Wing

Ley lines plot a flight of fancy

March 28, 2024 Don Knowler

Over millennia, the rich diversity of birds inhabiting the Hobart area have followed ancient ley lines shaped by the landscape and the seasons. The first Tasmanians, the Muwinina people, and Charles Darwin in his ascent of kunanyi/Mt Wellington followed them, too. And even today the marathon runners participating in the Point to Pinnacle share the same route negotiated in spring by migrating crescent honeyeaters and eastern spinebills, moving from winter territories near … [Read more...] about Ley lines plot a flight of fancy

New Nature Writing

‘Pick-pockets’ in red-hot form

March 24, 2024 Don Knowler

The “pick-pockets” of the bird world were busy with their nefarious trade, stealing treasure from unsuspecting victims. Tall, wavering stalks of red-hot poker flowers had attracted the attention of eastern spinebills and they were emboldened to take on the much bigger and more aggressive yellow-throated honeyeaters to steal the pollen and nectar. Usually the tiny spinebills are difficult to see. They operate under the noses, or should I saw beaks, of the bigger honeyeaters, … [Read more...] about ‘Pick-pockets’ in red-hot form

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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