Driving through Kingston one chilly afternoon I caught a glimpse of the last of the swift parrots heading north at the start of winter. I stopped the car to study the birds closely because I didn’t want to fall into the age-old winter bird-watching trap – confusing swift parrots with musk lorikeets. Not a year goes by that I do not receive calls from readers during the winter months saying they have seen swift parrots. One well-known politician was on record one winter a … [Read more...] about A swift case of mistaken identity
On The Wing
Passport to birdland
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 backyard. That’s the magic of birds; they bring beauty and wonder to every corner of the planet, wild or untamed, and my On the Wing writing is their celebration.
Help for a fallen friend
PIGS may fly, as the expression goes, but the owner of the Inverawe Native Gardens at Margate was hardly prepared for the sight of a flying pademelon. There was Margaret Chestnut one autumnal afternoon, tending some newly-planted shrubs, when she saw what looked like a pademelon land with a thump right in front of her. Yes, her eyes were not deceiving her. It really was a pademelon that had apparently fallen right out of the sky. Mrs Chestnut moved forward to determine if … [Read more...] about Help for a fallen friend
Woodswallows take their time
Winter had finally arrived, with a dusting of snow on Mount Wellington and a chilly wind rattling the eucalypt canopy but, observing the antics of the dusky woodswallows, you would not know it. The welcome swallows and tree martins had been gone for weeks but here on a sunny if bitterly cold day the woodswallows were still doing what woodswallows do best – launching themselves from bare branches to snap up insects in mid-flight. It was a surprise to come across them … [Read more...] about Woodswallows take their time
Firetail steals the show
The sea eagles ruled supreme at Eaglehawk Neck, but it was the beautiful firetail that stole the show. The white-bellied sea eagles had thrilled a party of bird-watchers on one of BirdLife Tasmania’s regular outings with a display of aerial prowess over the fishing trawlers moored in Pirates Bay. The firetail simply let its stunning plumage do the talking. Before the firetail had turned up it had proven a pretty unremarkable birding trip, although a fine sunny day had put … [Read more...] about Firetail steals the show
Tension in the avian war zone
THE battle for the banksias and bottlebrushes takes place every autumn as soon as temperatures start to drop, and the smoke from wood stoves spills from household chimneys. The chill winds blowing off the high country carry with them the calls of the spinebills and crescent honeyeaters, the birds making their way down from breeding grounds to warmer areas closer to the coast. In the process, however, they clash with resident species like new holland honeyeaters, incensed by … [Read more...] about Tension in the avian war zone