The pop world is all a twitter after an album devoted to birdsong gate-crashed the Aria charts. The album produced by the birding organisation, Birdlife Australia, is built on the premise that birds are among the most talented singer-songwriters on earth. And long before anyone had heard of Elvis, the Beatles and even Taylor Swift in more recent times, the birds were the first to make music. The aim of the album, called Songs of Disappearance, is to promote awareness of … [Read more...] about Birds hit a high note in pop charts
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.
Owls a vintage solution to rodent plague
Winemakers in California are studying a novel way to reduce the toll rodenticides take on birds of prey – using the birds themselves to control mice and rat plagues. Instead of laying down poisons, vineyard owners are encouraging an enemy of rodents, the barn owl, to establish territories among the vines. In turn, it is hoped the hungry owls will eat into the rodent problem. The study is of interest to Tasmania where the growing use of ever-powerful rodenticides is having … [Read more...] about Owls a vintage solution to rodent plague
A fatal gift of beauty
December 2021 marks a tragic anniversary in the bird world. A century ago nature-lovers were given hope that one of the most beautiful birds known to Australia was flying free and had not succumbed to extinction as had been feared. Although the paradise parrot had vanished from view about 20 years previously, a birdwatcher reported in December 1921 seeing a pair of the birds in cattle country inland of the south-eastern Queensland coast. What’s more, Cyril Jerrard followed … [Read more...] about A fatal gift of beauty
A special place in our hearts
Eleven of the 12 Tasmanian birds found nowhere else on earth can be spotted with ease at the Waterworks Reserve just a few kilometres from the Hobart CBD. It was an interesting talking point when I was asked to discuss the avian treasures of the reserve on the ABC Radio Drive program recently. The birds, though, were not the only focus. The presenter of the program, Kylie Baxter, also invited listeners to describe why the reserve in general was important to them. Kylie was … [Read more...] about A special place in our hearts
Winds of change embrace the white goshawk
High in the sky, a white goshawk battled wild winds and the attention of an angry kelp gull. Flying against the backdrop of a snowy kunanyi/ Mt Wellington, the all-white goshawk might have believed the peak offered it camouflage as it patrolled the airways. But the raptor was mistaken. Its fluttering wings revealed its menacing presence to watching eyes Ironically, the mountain should have been free of snow in the last few weeks of spring but an unseasonal blizzard brought … [Read more...] about Winds of change embrace the white goshawk