The Black-winged Stilt – Wader of the South

Posted by aussiebirder on September 20, 2018
Posted in: Australia, Australian Birds, Bird watching, Birding, Birds, Birdwatching, Fauna, migratory waders, National Parks, Nature, Nature reserve, Outings, shorebirds, Sydney, Uncategorized, wetlands, wildlife. Tagged: , , . 2 Comments

Black-winged Stilt reflecting

This week I want to honour a wader which is common to the shores of Australia, South America and South Africa, Indonesia, New Zealand and other countries south of the Equator. The Black-winged Stilt (Himantopus himantopus) is probably one of our most common waders, and one of the few that does not migrate to the north each year to breed. It breeds in Australia and as my book explains, has a friendly foraging relationship of comradery with the Red-necked Avocet a purely Australian wader which also breeds locally, but more inland.

Stilt and Avocet foraging together
Avocets and Stilts flocking together

The Black-winged Stilt is one of my most favourite birds to photograph because it is such a perfect bird for reflection photos, which I love to take., as you can see.

This is one of the few birds that I have photographs of that follow this bird from egg to its adult stages. The Black-winged Stilt feeds on aquatic insects and small molluscs and crustaceans. They feed in the shallows of freshwater lakes and wetlands including brackish marshes. They are a flock bird and can be quite noisy with their bird-bark-like-call which usually warns of alarm or encroachment of territory, as they are very protective of their space when nesting and raising young.

Let’s start with the eggs. The Black-winged Stilt has a clutch of 3 to 4 eggs and like many bird eggs they are dappled as you can see below. The female has a simple shallow hollow with some soft grass as the nest. Note below how she bends her very long legs, her knees fold backwards, the opposite to our human knees. This allows her to tuck her large feet comfortably under her body. 

When the chicks are finally born after 22 to 24 days incubation. Most birds would be starting to nest by now or be about to as Spring arrives. The chicks begin walking about and fending for themselves soon after. You can hear the parent warning off potential trouble as we walk by.

As the juveniles start maturing and begin looking like the adult they lack the black neck but sport a black eye marking for their first years. As they mature their brown plumage becomes black, the eye marking lessons and disappears and the black neck stripe forms.

In this very rare and unique image one can see four different stages of maturity for the Black-winged Stilt. See if you can work out the stages of maturity.

Four different stages of development in one photo

When these birds fly they tuck their long lanky legs behind and fly quite majestically.

Finally the bird matures to an adult and at low tide and around the lake edges it pokes its long sharp beak into the water seeking out marine insects and small crustaceans. You can hear its monotonous call as it forages.

As I have shared earlier the Black-winged Stilt though not endemic to Australia has formed a friendly alliance with Australia’s Red-necked Avocet, where both birds are often found forading beside each other and their flocks mixed. Here is a candid moment which is seldom experienced where the larger Avocet runs into the Stilt and moves it on.

So there we have it, a beautiful bird with beautiful reflective properties for photographers, in the still shallows. If you are in Sydney and you would like to see both these birds together, visit Sydney Olympic Park and walk to the large lake with the bird hide, past the mangrove walks. What we learn from these two birds is that you can be quite different in appearance and culture yet live and feed in the same areas and have peaceful and caring relationships. This is God’s best for us all in this multi-cultural age, an example set by these birds.

“Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.” – Romans 12:16

 

During the last decade, Sydney has become one of the most multicultural cities in the world (Australia the 2nd most multicultural nation) and with that many of us Anglo-Saxon Aussies from country areas, such as myself, found it a challenge to adjust to this change. As I currently work with people  from all over the world, warm caring family people,  I have learned to appreciate them in a much more understanding and loving manner, enjoying many warm friendships. Sometimes we need to reflect on  our attitude to those who are different from us.

Have a wonderful week birding!

As I approach my final weeks of full-time work in Immuno Haematology, negotiations are continuing as managers discuss the possibility of continuing my employment part-time. My wife and I seek God’s best for my future, and wait for him to open or close the door. The future always remains in the reliable hands of the One who ‘knows the end from the beginning’ of all things, and always works everything in life for our good. The proposed bird guide work and 2nd book writing are both on hold till this is resolved, your prayers are valued.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” – Romans 8:28

If this is your first visit to my blog, why not check out my birding website pages from my Homepage. 

Also check out my book you can purchase here online with secure PayPal or at any of these places. Check out the promo below.

NOTE: All photos, videos and music used on this website are photographed, composed, performed  by the site owner and remains his copyrighted property, unless otherwise stated. The use of any material that is not original material of the site owner is duly acknowledged as such. © W. A. Hewson 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018

 

Birdwatcher, Birder or Twitcher, which are You?

Posted by aussiebirder on September 15, 2018
Posted in: Australia, Australian Birds, Australian wildlife, Bird watching, Birding, Birds, Birdwatching, Fauna, Holidays, migratory waders, National Parks, Nature, Nature reserve, rainforests, Royal National park, Sydney, Uncategorized, wildlife. Tagged: , , . 13 Comments

Aussiebirder birdwatches an Eastern Yellow Robin – truly ‘a bird in the hand’

It has been a couple of years since I visited this topic, and I continue to meet many people who ask me to explain the difference, it is timely that I reiterate, but with more information from more of a counselling and lifestyle perspective.

A group of tourists have an unexpected sighting, a family of Tawny Frogmouth

Most people in our community are only familiar with the term Birdwatcher and what that entails. A person who actively seeks out birds to view them and study them as a recreational pursuit.  This title or description, to most people, could be used to generically include all who look at birds as a past-time both recreationally and ornithologically.  However, to us who pursue birdwatching as a recreational pursuit and have done so for several years or more, birdwatching is but the first stage or introduction, where interest in birds and their presence begins to ignite a delight and desire within us for more…

Glen, acclaimed naturalist, birdwatching a male Regent Bowerbird

We start to include looking at birds as part of our nature/bush walks and family picnic experiences, this begins as the birds make their presence known or demonstrate some unusual behaviour and we start to have an awareness that the birds are there, and for the first time in our life we start looking for them and expecting them to be in particular places because we have seen them in the same places when passing. Picnic areas and car parks are some of the best places one can see and get close to Australian birds, as they have learned that humans have food.

Sulphur-crested Cockatoo at the Royal NP – they know how to get a free  feed

However, it is better to feed them their own food if you can.

Hand feeding seed to wild Eastern Crimson Rosella

The Cafes can be good birdwatching places also…

Australian Raven drinking milk at Cafe in the Royal NP

Pied Currawong at O’Reilly’s Rainforest Cafe also drinking milk

For me personally, photographing nature and beautiful vistas was my prime delight for most of my early years, producing My Beautiful Series and the website by that name which many of you may have followed but was recently deconstructed. When my interest turned to birds more specifically, after a visit to Lord Howe Island years ago, in search of the Red-tailed Tropicbird, a whole new interest took my heart. I took less interest in landscape and nature photography and more in photographing birds. I was transitioning into the next stage and becoming a Birder.

Red-tailed Tropicbird in flight
Red-tailed Tropicbird in flight
Red-tailed Tropicbird in flight
Red-tailed Tropicbird
Red-tailed Tropicbird
Red-tailed Tropicbird in flight

 

A large percentage of Birdwatchers become Birders, a term which is mainly used by Birders themselves to describe their passion or differentiate themselves from others with greater or lesser enthusiasm in the recreational vocation. A Birder is a person who deliberately and passionately pursues birdwatching, particular bird species and bird habitats to actively engage with and view birds in their native habitat.  The birder studies the birds and seeks to gain an active practical knowledge of bird species, their appearance, their call, their food, their habitat, their breeding, their migratory patterns and their peculiar characteristics. You could possibly use the term a recreational ornithologist. 

For me personally, I call myself a Birder, along with my wife. The change to Birding meant a change in my camera lens from 18-250mm to 100-400mm. It also meant purchasing some books on where to find various birds including several different kinds of Bird Field Guides, taking interest in native bird conservation groups such as Birdlife Australia, joining a local bird observer club and checking on latest local sightings on eremaea birdlines or ebird websites. Many an avid birder, but not me,  wear bush camouflage clothing, and purchase camouflaged binoculars, telescopes and camera lenses. Another sign is that the equipment used becomes more expensive some moving to high powered lenses including tripods and telescopes.

I started meeting other people, singles and couples, armed with binoculars and cameras with long lenses like mine. I would usually greet them and get right to the point by asking the question ” Are you a Birder?” or ” Are you into Birding?” The conversation would then include latest sightings and what was seen so far on the current walk. It could include name sharing of Birders we may share in common. You know your family know when all your gifts for whatever occasion have something to do with birds.

It was not till on our Honeymoon that my wife and I first seriously understood the term Twitcher, which is when one takes birding to the next level. When we shared with a lady how we met and found out later we were both Birders she gave us a copy of the movie The Big Year and said it was a must see for us. If you have not seen it is is as humorous as it is sad, starring the three funny men, Steve Martin, Owen Wilson and Jack Black but depicts a nonfictional story from a 2004 book called The Big Year. In a nutshell a Twitcher is a person who has an active addiction to Birdwatching and has become an obsessed Birder. These people seek out particular birds including rare bird species at any cost to themselves, their relationships and their health. They may devote a whole year to tick off a list and try and see the most birds in that year. 

From the movie ‘The Big Year’ available on DVD – 3 Twitchers on their Big Year

The term originated in the 1950s in reference to a British birdwatcher Howard Medhurst who would get showing nervous shaky behaviour when he started thinking of and pursuing a rare bird. His mate would say he is ‘on the twitch’. He is thought to have started the idea of travelling long distances purely for the purpose of seeing a particular bird species. Read this interesting article on the origin of the term ‘twitcher‘. Some have said it comes from the term tick hunter as they would be trying to tick off their list of birds to be seen,  These people have taken the joy of birdwatching to an extreme, where it can become a quite competitive task, rather than a delightful enjoyable experience. Watch the above mentioned movie to learn more. 

The above mentioned person may need personal counselling to rectify their behaviour when it starts to place important life relationships and care for one’s self and others on a lower priority to their bird quests. Sadly, as the movie shows, as with any addition, the lies that are told, the moody behaviour with its accompanying  anxiety, is ultimately destructive, and also to those in relationship with the Twitcher.  It is said that the natural hunter instinct of man is enacted in the process.

It easy to get overly passionate about birding – the hunter instinct

I have to confess that there was an occasion where I almost crossed over, and this can so easily occur as we begin to become passionate about our new found hobby, if we do not check our behaviour at regular intervals, or have not been trained to do so. People living stressful lives, driven to achieve, with extreme goal orientation, are more prone to become Twitchers. I pulled back as I saw I was being consumed by my obsession to find new birds, and I listened to my wife tell me the changes that she was seeing in me that were not healthy for our relationship. I thank God I pulled back and saw what she saw, and established guidelines for my behaviour.

I pulled back from almost ‘crossing over’ – almost becoming a Twitcher

I have drawn up my own comparison here for you to consider. I pray this will be helpful, even if only for one Birder on the brink of crossing over for I speak from experience, but not just as an almost victim, but also as a self assessing family counsellor. Please note: My definition of Twitcher may not agree with all who call themselves Twitchers. My main purpose is to highlight healthy from unhealthy behaviour, as the term Twitcher encompasses many displaying addictive behaviour.

Birdwatcher

Birder

Twitcher

 Thinks about birds occasionally and does not distract from normal life.

Thinks about birds daily, possibly talks about them, this may only occasionally distract and interfere with normal life, but rarely.

Thinks about birds most of the day and takes up most of their conversation, and may interfere and distract them from normal life on a regular basis.

Seeks birds occasionally when on an outing, not necessarily to reason for the event. 

Seeks and pursues birds recreationally on a regular basis, birds being the prime purpose of the outing.

Seeks birds and pursues them as the prime focus of thir life, always thinking of the next encounter and how & where they will view them.

May or may not use or even be aware of an ebird app. This will have little impact on weekend plans unless the sighting  is nearby and unusual.

May use an ebird app at least once a week or more to help plan a weekend birding adventure, and may travel several hours or more to location but minimise cost. 

Will most definitely use an ebird app and other means to access live and recent sightings. This will help determine their next day. They may travel long distances at great cost.

Weekends away & recreational walks may include bird watching, Binoculars may be optional unless kept in the car. Only done outside work hours.

Weekends away and day trips prime focus on finding birds. Always brings binoculars and  camera. Only outside work hours with very infrequent day off during the week.

Any time during the week when rare birds and rare sightings seen, may interrupt normal work week and family functions to pursue birds on a regular basis.

Stress level Low to Moderate – seeing birds adds an interesting dimension to the outing and assists in lowering stress levels. They share their delight with those with them.

Moderate stress level – birding a healthy distraction from busy & stressful life. Excitement or disappointment with pursuit of birds mostly lowers stress levels but can at times be stressful. They love sharing their delight and knowledge.

High stress level – driven with high expectation and personal achievement. Addiction is stressful causing anxiety lacking peace. Hence the ‘twitch’ in Twitcher. Can be very selfish, guarded, not wanting to share.

Birding is an enjoyable experience most of the time. It is good and healthy to be passionate about people we love and things we love to do, but only when we have control of our passion, not allowing it to take control of us. Addiction encourages and paves the way for demonically inspired behaviour, which is physically, emotionally, socially (relationally) and mentally destructive. When I look at Jesus I see a man who was passionate for the good of others (unselfish love), having a totally balanced character, always in control of his person.  Jesus was man as God had intended him to be, growing in all 4 aspects of life – healthy mind(pure loving thoughts with emotional stability), body(stature or health), spirit (with God) and relationships(with man). He trusted God’s Holy Spirit to guide him through life.

“And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.” – Luke 2:52

May your week be peaceful, satisfying, full of joy and enjoyable birding experiences.

If this is your first visit to my blog, why not check out my birding website pages from my Homepage. 

Also check out my book you can purchase here online with secure PayPal or at any of these places. Check out the promo below.

NOTE: All photos, videos and music used on this website are photographed, composed, performed  by the site owner and remains his copyrighted property, unless otherwise stated. The use of any material that is not original material of the site owner is duly acknowledged as such. © W. A. Hewson 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018

 

Taking Birding to the Next Level – Races and Subspecies.

Posted by aussiebirder on September 8, 2018
Posted in: Australia, Australian Birds, Australian wildlife, Bird watching, Birding, Birds, Birdwatching, Fauna, National Parks, Nature, Nature reserve, Outings, Sydney, waders, water birds, wetlands, wildlife. Tagged: , .

In our early years of bird watching, becoming birders, my wife and I would excitedly seek out new species which birders term lifers (having been sighted in the wild for the first time). I like to distinguish for my own sake  a true lifer from a species I might view for the first time in a zoo or avery. This was the case with the rare and elusive Regent Honeyeater pictured above, notice the leg band. Because many of the birds in the wild now are banded, being ex zoo release birds, it is difficult for you to know if I shot this in the wild, but no, this was shot at Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney. Click on photo to enlarge.

Regent Honeyeater feeding on Grevillea flower at Zoo.
Regent Honeyeater feeding on Grevillea flower at Zoo.

I had photographed this bird many times at Taronga Park Zoo in Sydney, where the birds are bred as a conservation effort in captivity, then banded, and released into the wild in their breeding areas. It was not till last year, that I photographed several non-banded birds in the wild that I was satisfied that I had a true lifer. See below…

Regent Honeyeater in Capertee NP
Regent Honeyeater in Mugga Ironbark blossom
Regent Honeyeater feeding on Ironbark blossom

As novices, my wife and I excitedly sought out holiday locations with the view of including birding as a vital part of our time-away. Many a committed birder knows the frustration of spending much time and money pursuing particular new or rare birds only to come home disappointed, this occurred many times with the above bird before I finally found it in the wild. Notice the more beautiful plumage and more classic bare skin around eye with the wild non zoo bred bird at the top of the page.

Our mission together was to passionately engage as many new species of our beautiful and varied Australian birds as possible, eventually covering most of our country and surrounding islands. One book initially assisted us in seeking good birding locations, a well written and easy to follow book a friend gave me as a gift one year: ‘Best 100 Birdwatching Sites in Australia.’ by Sue Taylor. This is a book we highly recommend to those, like us, pursuing birding as an enjoyable recreation.

Sue Taylor’s book cover

Interesting enough, and long before I received this book, the front cover depicts the location and bird that originally hooked me into birding as a hobby and recreation. Yes, the Red-tailed Tropicbird (my trading logo and avatar) on Lord Howe Island, where I travelled to see this ‘backward flying bird’ as I first called it. 

On a holiday to Western Australia, after visiting my son in Perth, we ventured down to the Margaret River region on the bottom South West tip of the continent. It was here that we started to realise and consider something we had not noted previously. My wife, the spotter (binoculars),  would occasionally say to me, the shooter (camera), “Take this bird, I think it is different from ours!”. What she meant was the bird in question was also found in our local area, but it had some noticeably different characteristics to the trained eye, which she could observe better with binoculars. As you can see below it can be difficult to note any fine delineating characteristics between the south west WA race longirostris

and the eastern NSW, we see at home race novahollandiae

Back home, processing our birding treasures from the holiday, I discovered from consulting my field guides, my wife was correct.  We had opened another exciting door and challenge to our birding experience, taking it to the next level. We had entered the field of seeking the various subspecies or races of particular Australian bird species. A race (subspecies) as it is termed in the ornithology books, is a morphologically distinct group of birds that can interbreed within the same species. This is where the captured still image is vital so morphological details of each bird can be studied in detail at home on the computer allowing race distinctions to be detected allowing correct classification. 

New Holland Honeyeater Eastern race NSW
New Holland Honeyeater SW WA race.

These birds look very similar, sometimes identical, but there are differences in appearance, which are usually found groups geographically located by location. For example, I noted the race differences of the Masked Lapwing I featured from my recent Far North Queensland post comparing them to our local Sydney Masked Lapwing race. Primarily, the facial mask differed slightly in each of the two locations, northern Australia and southern Australia. 

Masked Lapwing Northern race.

Good field guides list the various names of the current races, the morphological differences and their geographical  location on the map of the country. Notice I used the word current, as ornithologists today are constantly reclassifying birds using more complex and scientific (genetic) means, than previously was the case. Older field guides will vary in the naming of some birds.  In Australia several species of bird, found also in neighbouring countries, have been reclassified into new specifically geographic subspecies beginning with the name Australian or Australasian… Two recent examples as Purple Swamphen if found in Australia, is now Australasian Swamphen and the Darter in Australia is now called the Australasian Darter. The  species Anhinga anhinga (specie name followed by subspecie/race name) has a subspecies (race) of Anhinga melanogester which is the Oriantal/Indian Darter BUT NOW Australia has its own subspecies Anhinga novaehollandiae. The Latin race name means New Holland (the Dutch name for Australia), since they were the first Europeans to discover it in 1606). 

Australasian Darter
Australasian Darter
Australasian Darter
Australasian Darter
Australasian Swamphen
Australasian Swamphen

 One of the first honeyeaters to be named (scientifically described) was the New Holland Honeyeater (discussed above) as it is one of the most prolific coastal honeyeaters in Sydney and all around the rugged Australian coastal scrublands of southern Australia. This species alone has 5 races within Australia in five geographical locations both on the continent and also Tasmania and its islands. This was the bird I wished I had photographed more when in SW WA, on my wife’s suggestion. Here are photos of three of the 5 races, see if you can see the distinguishing characteristics.

Tasmanian
Tasmanian
SW WA
SW WA
Eastern NSW
Eastern NSW

Australia has over 70 species of honeyeaters, more than anywhere else in the world, as well as the world’s largest in size. The great challenge at the next level is to track down and identify (using good observational skills) the various races within each of these species. Then of course, there are the many other bird species with subspecies. It must have been quite an exciting experience for the early European/English naturalists to find so many varieties of similar birds to their homeland birds which only have one species with no subspecies. Here are but a few…

Eastern Spinebill
Helmeted Friarbird
Yellow Honeyeater
Blue-faced Honeyeater
Brown Honeyeater
White-throated Honeyeater
Eastern Spinebill
New Holland Honeyeater
White-cheeked Honeyeater
Red Wattlebird
Noisy Friarbird
Lewin’s Honeyeater
Yellow-faced Honeyeater
Noisy Miner
Striped Honeyeater
Scarlet Honeyeater
Scarlet Honeyeater male
Red-headed Honeyeater
Red-headed Honeyeater

Australia has 19 species of Robin of which these are but a few…

Pacific Robin male

In some cases more than one race of a particular species may exist in the same location as another, making it all the more challenging. An example of this was in our recent trip to Far North Queensland where we saw two different subspecies (races) of Little Shrike-thrush in the same location. They looked quite different morphologically.

(race rufogaster)
(race parvula)

For example, when we were birding in Britain we saw A Robin, A Cormorant and An Oystercatcher just to name a few for example. In Australia we have several if not many different species of these birds with the same species classification, and some of these even have several subspecies. In the Cormorant family we share the the Great Cormorant (Black Cormorant) with Europe but in  addition have four others unique to Australia, the Little Black, the Little Pied, the Pied and the very rarely seen Black-faced Cormorant from the wild Southern ocean. 

Great Cormorant
Little Black Cormorant
Little Pied Cormorant
Pied Cormorant
Black-faced Cormorant

To conclude, the scientific approach to birding is that nothing can be taken for granted (assumed) from a distance, only careful observation and attention to detail will reward the astute birder with exciting discoveries and findings at the next level. This observational skill, accompanied with the latest bird field guide will bring an added appreciation for the wonderful variety of creatures  even within a single species and how Intelligent Design could only be the origin of such an interdependent complex and beautiful system by a thoroughly awesome and amazing intelligent Creator. Here then is my source of knowledge, wisdom and understanding, as I seek His embrace and His best for my life.

“How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.” – Psalm 104:24

“For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.” – Proverbs 2:6

Have a wonderful week birding! We did not do any birding this week but we do  give thanks for the good rain that has blessed us this last few days and hopefully will bring our birds back to breed.

If this is your first visit to my blog, why not check out my birding website pages from my Homepage. 

Also check out my book you can purchase here online with secure PayPal or at any of these places. Check out the promo below.

 

 

NOTE: All photos, videos and music used on this website are photographed, composed, performed  by the site owner and remains his copyrighted property, unless otherwise stated. The use of any material that is not original material of the site owner is duly acknowledged as such. © W. A. Hewson 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018

 

 

Little Corella Cavorting Capers in Centennial Park, Sydney

Posted by aussiebirder on August 31, 2018
Posted in: Australia, Australian Birds, Bird watching, Birding, Birds, Birdwatching, Fauna, Holidays, National Parks, Nature, Nature reserve, Outings, shorebirds, Sydney, Uncategorized, wildlife. Tagged: , , , .

Little Corella playing love games pre mating.

I had a tip off that a flock of Pink-eared Ducks were in Centennial Park, Sydney, so I went to check it out. I did not find any but I did find a very large flock of Little Corella playing and cavorting on the banks of the lake. The photo above is typical of what I saw many birds doing as they played in the warm winter sun, making love in preparation to mate soon, which they may do many times in the next few days.

Passerines do not have a penis but both sexes have a cloaca opening which swells at arousal and then connect by rear mount during intercourse. Water birds have and need the extended penis when they mate in water environments so their sperm is not washed away. These Corellas roll around on the grass with their mate on top, making herself very vulnerable to male, expressing trust and acceptance.

Corella cavorting
Corella cavorting

When they put their mouths together they touch tongues, which is a pleasurable kiss for them. They show much affection for the one they will mate for life with.

Little Corella kissing
Little Corella kissing

They enjoy playing like young lovers, rolling about on the grass together. It is difficult at times to tell one bird from the other, which is type of their relationship ‘where two become one’ as God intended for all marriages. I guess, with Spring being a day away this behaviour is to be expected. Many kinds of flock birds cavort and mate as a group, the Flamingo is the best example, though I did not witness any birds mating while I passed by this flock.

The footage below shows something of the size of the flock and noise these birds generate. We hear a large flock of them going out and coming in each day from near my home. Watch them as they roll on the grass briefly.

This flock were near the water, as we are in severe drought, many are having a drink from the lake and generally staying close to fresh water. Soon they will graze on grass seed on the fields nearby, as they have eaten much of the pine cone seed already. The Sulphur-crested and Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo have also competed for the same food and are also looking elsewhere for seed. Click on photos to enlarge.

Corella drinking
grass sathering
in flight

The more sedate and cultured Corella sat in the tree nearby beholding the raucous commotion and cavorting behaviour.

A very interesting find, almost missed by myself, was this one Corella that was on its own standing among the Rock Pigeons a short distance away from the Little Corella flock. It was a Long-billed Corella.  Many would just think it was another Little Corella, but for careful observation of beak length and pink chest colouring.

As with many features in one’s life and in birds, things can look the same but subtle differences express meaning to those who understand. Take for example this pair of Australian Black Swan which were on the lake nearby. Note the male, he has a longer neck and bill than the female.

As many of you know I love a good bird reflection, so these were also captured that morning.

I always love seeing Black Swans preen, as it makes it difficult from a distance to actually work out what on earth the seemingly headless creature is.

The Hardheads that were also on the lake have a classic way of sex distinction by their eye colour.  The male has the white and the female the brown eye. This is similar to the Jabiru (Black-necked Stalk) but the female has the yellow eye and the male the brown.

My final find, just before leaving the park was this Fairy Martin, a bird that is not often seen ( or should I say identified), and mainly because many, including myself, when not observing intently, think it is just another Welcome Swallow by the way it constantly circles flying over the water. This guy drew my attention because it flew constantly around me, coming very close, and offering a photographic challenge, which I delightedly took up.

The white back  and tail shape of this very active little bird differentiate it as it eats insects on the fly. Below compare the Welcome Swallow, with the above Fairy Martin.

Welcome Swallow
Welcome Swallow pair
Welcome Swallow pair
Welcome Swallow in flight
Welcome Swallow in flight

I need to sadly inform my readers that the Pied Currawong nest I featured in last weeks post suffered destruction due to the eucalypt tree in which it sat falling over. I found no trace of the nest remains. Many large trees are currently suffering drought stress and shedding leaves with some even falling over in our local bush parks. This misadventure could not have been forknown by the Currawong, it trusted the tree like it has on other occasions to support its nest and future family.

checking the babies

Sometimes misadventure happens to us all, we do all the right things, we act honestly and respectfully with integrity, but unexpected bad things happen to us or to the ones we love and it does not seem fair at all. Anger to seeming injustice is common and can cause depression and much heart break. Life carries no guarantee that everything will always turn out to appear good. The good thing is our loving Father God can make all things (both bad and good alike) turn out for our good, maturing and teaching us in a way we can not even imagine. So many people can testify to this, me included. So press into Gods loving arms when things go askew and seek him to take you through your pain and difficulty in the trial, and discover God’s Treasure in Your Trial. 

“When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider this: God has made the one as well as the other.” – Ecclesiastes 7:14

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” – Romans 8:28

Have a wonderful week, and enjoy the birds!

Thanks again for wonderful comments and reviews I continue to receive from those who have purchased my book here online and from the many stores that now stock it. If you have not yet bought your copy or even explored what it is about, then go to my Birdbook page. You can purchase it there or here in the sidebar. I have found several places I visited it was sold out and they had not realised they had even sold their display copy.

 

 

NOTE: All photos, videos and music used on this website are photographed, composed, performed  by the site owner and remains his copyrighted property, unless otherwise stated. The use of any material that is not original material of the site owner is duly acknowledged as such. © W. A. Hewson 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018

 

 

 

I Know Its Spring When The Whistlers Sing

Posted by aussiebirder on August 26, 2018
Posted in: Australia, Australian Birds, Bird watching, Birding, Birds, Birdwatching, Eastern Spinebill, Fauna, Holidays, Magpie Goose, migratory waders, National Parks, Nature, Nature reserve, Oatley Park Reserve, Outings, Uncategorized, waders, water birds, wetlands, wildlife. Tagged: .

As we approach Spring in one weeks time after the hottest and driest winter and previous summer, we pray and wait for good rain to come, as the worst Winter bushfires continue to blaze. The Wattle has been flowering for weeks, but the bird that tells me it is Spring, the beautiful Golden Whistler, has been silent and elusive during the recent Winter months, as per usual. Last weekend for the first time I heard several singing their hearts out, though the female I saw was still very quietly moving about. Usually, one has to hear these birds singing before they are able to spot them, otherwise they silently go unnoticed. Click on photos to enlarge them.

Golden Whistler male
Golden Whistler male
Golden Whistler male
Golden Whistler male
Golden Whistler male
Golden Whistler female
Golden Whistler female
Golden Whistler female

Why does the male start singing in Spring you ask? Three possible reasons which all have to do with breeding and nesting. He sings to attract a mate, and when he gets a mate, he sings to communicate. When she nests, his excitement rises, and as an expectant father, he rejoices all through the Summer months. I was so delighted to catch this following footage of this bird continually singing to his mate nearby.

This Spring, due to the dry unseasonable Winter, has resulted locally in a reduction in bird numbers and breeding numbers, however I will share more of those resident birds that are preparing to increase their number and form families. The Australian Black Swans at the Hunter Wetlands have already made a great start with this lovely brood of cygnets.

Watching over the brood
cygnet
learning from the parents
cygnet afloat
What is so interesting down there?

Other waterbirds preparing for nesting are these Grey Teal, getting acquainted as they have a quite paddle together.

While nearby another swan has only just started nesting having built its mound of reeds and grasses. Nesting mounds are not normally this large, but it needs to be high enough to escape rising water in the wetland..

Other wetland dwellers include this Australasian Swamphen with its one little chick, not long out of the egg.

There was a moment of alarm for them both as this white ibis flew over to land.

We also noticed one of the Emu at Blackbutt Reserve was nesting…

This Pied Currawong had already built and the high pitched chirps could be heard coming from high in the eucalypt tree, as the parent went to and fro bringing food.

sitting on the nest
checking me out
checking the babies
ready to fly off
going out again for food

Their cousins the North Eastern Australian (Black-backed) Magpie had couple of youngsters already quite brave enough to land quite close to my wife and I as we were walking Friday before sunset. Note the brown back plumage which has not fully changed, and the scallapping of chest plumage.

juvenile magpie
juvenile magpie

These birds are now thought to be the worlds most intelligent birds along with the Australian Raven. The Australian Magpie has not only the most complex and beautiful song but is able to play, learn, talk and do many other skills. This juvenile is learning from its father who is warbling in a tree behind as it stands boldly without fear an arms length from me.

The Australian Magpie is not shy of humans and attacks them quite viciously during nesting season if it deems them a threat. Yes, nesting season is approaching again. Ow! However if you are friend to them, they will not attack, as Ausiebirder has experienced in the past, the person standing with me being repeatedly attacked while I am ignored and left unscathed. This educational YouTube clip will enlighten you more. Cyclists and joggers pose the most threat to magpies and will attack repeatedly, sometimes causing a bleeding wound injury.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRH0ZPPS0Z8

Listen and watch as this male ‘maggie’ sings, you will hear the female respond from nearby, and the sound of the Pied Currawong in the background making its sunset call. Please excuse the poor focus.

Another much smaller passerine undergoing preparation for the new breeding season is the Superb Fairy-wren. The males are in eclypse morphing to full breeding plumage, having spent the winter looking very much like the female, but for the blue tail. Notice the blue patchy colour starting to form. One male (pictured below) is almost finished morphing whereas the other has only recently begun. Notice the last pic where a breeding and non-breeding male are together in the one frame.

Walking further we found this beautiful White-faced Heron developing breeding plumage, looking for fast food from this stream flowing. He will be looking for a mate soon also.

White-faced Heron
White-faced Heron

Lastly, a most interesting observation as the resident Laughing Kookaburra pair in Oatley Park Reserve have reinhabited the white ant nest again this year for their own nest. I have showed in previous years blogs how they have nested here, and they are doing it again. One checks the nest while the other guards from outside.

Quite surprisingly, this Rainbow Lorikeet was about to challenge the ‘Kooka’ for the nest. These birds can be aggressive, but strange that it would challenge the mighty Kooka, which could easily kill and eat it or its babies. Maybe it wanted the hole for a nest also. This was the result…

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After the trouble passed and the babies were safe the Kooka couple sat guarding together nearby the nest.

How lovely to see the romantic moment where this couple demonstrate  how relationship is bonded and strengthened as  a result of sharing children together.

During breeding one can distinguish, with difficulty, the male from the female, as the male has blue vertical back band at the top of its tail plumes. You can determine which is the male from my photo below…

And so we leave them …

Also in the coastal Angophora costata forests of the Sydney region both the Rainbow Lorikeet and the Sulfur-crested Cockatoo have already been occupying nesting holes. We also await the return of the migratory waders as well as migratory passerines spending the Winter in the warmer top end of our land, New Guinea and South-East Asia.  During the next few weeks the migratory waders will make their 16.000 km journey across the Pacific Ocean or via the Asian coast from Alaska and the Arctic Circle to our beaches, after breeding and feeding in the northern hemisphere during our Winter months. I  previously thought Godwits migrated in formation like geese and duck but they fly single file as below, possibly slipstreaming. When you travel non-stop for 8 days direct without stopping you need a little help from your friends.

Bar-tailed Godwits in flight

Life is in seasons – that is how God made it to be. My wife and I have been entering a new season of our lives together. It is a blessing to understand and accept that each different season we enter is a positive experience meant for our growth, preparation  and understanding of the next stage in life will bring. My wife continue to work part-time as my company want me to stay till October and assist training staff, and she wants to further reduce her hours. Seasons bring with them both blessings, and challenges which can also become blessings, if approached within the context of a God centred world view, knowing that a loving Heavenly Father has our best at heart.

“When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider this: God has made the one as well as the other.” – Ecclesiastes 7:14

“Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.” – Acts 14:17

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” – Jeremiah 29:11

Have a wonderful week, and enjoy the birds!

Thanks again for wonderful comments and reviews I continue to receive from those who have purchased my book here online and from the many stores that now stock it. If you have not yet bought your copy or even explored what it is about, then go to my Birdbook page. You can purchase it there or here in the sidebar. I have found several places I visited it was sold out and they had not realised they had even sold their display copy.

 

 

NOTE: All photos, videos and music used on this website are photographed, composed, performed  by the site owner and remains his copyrighted property, unless otherwise stated. The use of any material that is not original material of the site owner is duly acknowledged as such. © W. A. Hewson 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018

 

Birding in Tropical Queensland – The Cairns Esplanade Boardwalk (Part 6)

Posted by aussiebirder on August 17, 2018
Posted in: Australia, Australian Birds, Australian wildlife, Bird watching, Birding, Birds, Cairns, Far North Queensland, Fauna, migratory waders, National Parks, Nature, Nature reserve, Outings, Uncategorized, waders, water birds, wildlife.

For our final leg of our journey, and for this series, we drive down from the Atherton  Tablelands and make our way to Cairns, the major tourist city for Far North Queensland, with its famous birding stretch known as the Esplanade Boardwalk, which runs along the waterfront through a beautiful bird rich reserve. This walk sports tree birds feeding in native fruit trees on one side and shorebirds, waders and sea birds on the other. We walked from our accommodation onto the waterfront reserve where we strolled with camera clicking for a couple of kilometers toward the town centre. Interesting sculptures and artworks were also along the reserve.

The very first bird to draw our attention with its very unique call, was the Black Butcherbird, which is only found up here in the top end of Australia. It was deep in the sub canopy of a very large fig tree, in quite poor light. Butcherbirds get their name because of their tendency to hang their prey of small reptiles and birds from the forks of trees or impale them on branches, though they are essentially insectivorous. Notice the hooked beak. Click on photos to enlarge them.

Black Butcherbird
Black Butcherbird
Black Butcherbird
Black Butcherbird
Black Butcherbird

All along the reserve lined with fruiting rainforest fruit trees the sounds of frenzied feeding was heard from several species of birds aggressively and noisily feeding. The main bird is the Australian Figbird. The far northern race (subspecies) has a much brighter red eye ring than our southern race, and a more yellow throat and chest, but the female looks much the same for both races being brown with a bluish grey eye ring.

Another frenzied feeder was the Metallic Starling  with its beautiful shining metallic plumage and bright red eye..

I had a little trouble working out who this one was. Was it a cross between a female Figbird and an Oriole, no, it actually is a immature Metallic Starling. Note the red eyes.

The Dusky Honeyeater, another bird found only up here, was checking the flowers for nectar with its long curved beak. This video has been slowed to half speed.

On the large lawn area of the reserve we saw a small  flock of of the tiny finch like Nutmeg Mannikin grazing on the grass seed. They grazed in family units often, two adults and one or two juvenile. The juvenile lacks the patterns on the chest and front of body.

Nutmeg Mannikin
Juvenile nutmeg Mannikin
Nutmeg Mannikin
Nutmeg Mannikin
Nutmeg Mannikin family
Nutmeg Mannikin
Nutmeg Mannikin adult
Nutmeg Mannikin

As we walked along the waterfront we were blessed with the fact that it was low tide coming in, as the shore birds, which included migratory waders that had not returned to Alaska to breed this season. The Bar-tailed Godwit was out first encounter foraging on the mud flats.

We were elated to find a small flock of Whimbrel a fare way out by the shore, many were sleeping but some exploring in the late afternoon sun.

I only managed one good shot at this Eastern Reef Egret in dark morph as it flew over.

The occasional  Caspian Tern was also present.

Caspian Tern with Gull-bill Tern
Caspian Tern with sleeping Gull-bill Tern

Our greatest find was the Gull-billed Tern, another bird found only up the north end, Breeding plumage has the black cap on the head and non-breeding just a black mark on the eye.

This Great Egret gave a beautiful landing…

and then watched this pair of Australian Pelican glide just above the water line and land with its friends to hunt below the water.

There were some Sandpiper way out near the waterline, but I could not identify what kind they were. They are always difficult being so many so similar.

It was also a thrill to see the Black-fronted Dotterel pair in the late afternoon light…

Lastly, the Sacred Kingfisher, a beautiful bird often seen on the mud flats…

Before we left we took a walk along the Jack Barnes Mangrove Boardwalk near the airport where some very fast and tiny birds were seen. Here one can see several different species of mangrove in the one place. Lovely Fairy-wrens are also reported to be seen here, but not on the day we where there. These birds were too fast

mangrove flower

Before I finish I would recommend a book to my Aussie birder friends, that I recently read, called ‘Where Song Began’. Tim Low, the author, has extensive experience  as a biologist with Australian animals and birds and has rubbed shoulders with many of the world’s ornithologists and conversationalists. If you can read without letting the ‘millions of years’ evolutionary hypothetical reasoning get to you ( interesting enough, Tim mentions how the postulations of these so called scientists constantly change regarding the origins and evolutionary history) you will learn many interesting facts about our birds. What is interesting and scientific, is Tim’s observations and  information he has gathered about Australia’s birds and how through the years up to today we can understand better why our birds are so different to those of the northern hemisphere. One interesting truth that he shares near the end of the book is how the early so called Naturalists (European settlers including John Guild) would wantonly kill with rifle so many birds, and steal their eggs in the name of scientific study, which of course was a hypocritical disaster. Many shot our birds and animals, some to extinction, and many depleted to the extent that they now do not exist in places in any great number. The good news is that man, the hunter, has traded his rifle for a camera and binoculars and can now shoot the birds and animals without causing their demise. Now most people actually feed the birds and water them instead of eating them and shooting them for sport, feathers and taxidermy.  An interesting and enlightening read for every Aussie birder. This is a Penguin publication.

Have you checked out my website for interesting facts on birding   from my menu on Homepage?

Have you checked out my Special Sightings page and seen my latest Powerful Owl photos?

Have you checked out my book ‘What Birds Teach Us’ on my Birdbook page. You can buy your copy here online through secure PayPal, or send me an email via my AboutUs page to buy several copies, as it makes a great Christmas or Birthday gift for all ages?

The lesson I learned for this week came from reading Tim Low’s book mentioned above. It was an interesting exercise to read a book heavily steeped in a philosophy I do not hold to and yet despite this, be edified and taught from Tim’s many scientific observations. The art of gleaning truth is much needed today more than ever in our humanistic society. Many of our youth today have become accustomed to believing information simply because it is on the internet, and so conclude it must be true, but that is far from the truth. God warns me in his Bible in these ‘last days’ to be alert and wise and not caught sleeping in the complacency of popular opinion as the ‘prince of this world‘ deceives and confuses the minds of God’s beloved children.

“For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.” – Proverbs 2:6 (NIV)

The good news is that we I not been left alone and helpless but God has provided for me as I partner and bond my life to Jesus, God’s Son. Jesus tells me:

“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.” – John 16:13

Have a wonderful week and please pray for a break in our drought, as some inland towns have no water and food for their stock, and over 80 bushfires are burning many out of control, possibly more will start in the strong winds of today!

 

NOTE: All photos, videos and music used on this website are photographed, composed, performed  by the site owner and remains his copyrighted property, unless otherwise stated. The use of any material that is not original material of the site owner is duly acknowledged as such. © W. A. Hewson 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018

 

Birding in Tropical Queensland – Rainforest Birds (Part 5)

Posted by aussiebirder on August 11, 2018
Posted in: Australia, Australian Birds, Australian wildlife, Bird watching, Birding, Birds, Birdwatching, Far North Queensland, Fauna, Holidays, Outings, rainforests, Uncategorized, wildlife. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , .

Travelling further north in Far North Queensland we spent a night at Mission Beach where it is known one would see the world’s most dangerous and Australia’s second largest flightless bird, the Southern Cassowary. All visitors to the top end are warned ‘Be wary of the Cassowary’ not so much because of the bony head piece or casque, but because of their huge clawed feet with three toes, the innermost having a huge claw which it uses to attack. After tearing open the victim they jump on them. They have been known to bang on doors and break glass to get entry, or to attack their own reflection.

It is one of the few birds that can and has killed humans and animals when provoked.  We were at Mission Beach on the weekend of the Cassowary Festival, but not one bird could be seen. However there are signs all along the road warning of recent Cassowary crossings. A friend gave us a tip off to go to nearby Etty Beach and that is where these photos came from. A pair quite tame birds, did the rounds for food in the caravan park, hiding out on nearby private property. This video shows how tall they can stand when picking fruit.

Humans driving cars are the reason numbers are depleting, including depleted habitat. When people feed wild animals they come to them for more food. A car means humans means food, to a unsuspecting Cassowary, which results in death, as you can see by the sign warning below. These birds are fruit eaters, and it has  recently been realised they are most important in maintaining the integrity of rainforest by pooing out the seeds from the fruit they eat at various locations. When these birds are gone the rainforest may start to deplete itself of new growth and die.

Another lifer, the Pheasant Coucal, was sighted from quite a distance coming out of the rainforest for a moment and I managed to get one shot before it saw me and fled. I had seen these beautiful birds several times flying off into the forest as I drove along the road A tourist from the Czech Republic joined me as we tried to find the bird. Click on photos to enlarge them.

Leaving the coast we made our up into the hinterland of the famous Atherton Tablelands where the thickest rainforest exists, and the home of the Tree Kangaroo which we managed to see in the pouting rain. We had to go over unsealed  rough roads with the hire care at only 20 km/hr, but we were determined and praying the whole way that the car would be OK, and thankfully it was. It was pouring rain most of the time up there, and this footage was taken high up in the light deprived canopy.

Lumholtz’s Tree Kangaroo is the species found almost exclusively in this region. Papua and New Guinea also have their own species. They feed on leaves and fruit from the native forest. Their very long tail has no visible function as it does not grab or hold, it just hangs down. This was a lifer in the wild for us both. Unlike other kangaroos it spends its life in rainforest trees where it seldom comes down, but to relocate to food sources. 

Tree Kangaroo

While up in the Atherton area we actually stayed in an Eco Lodge deep in the rainforest, where each morning and night we not only heard the rain and the the strange sounds of the rainforest birds calling, but actually got to feed some of the regular visitors to our cabin. The two lifers that came to visit were the Spotted Catbird and the female Victoria Riflebird. Sadly the colorful male Riflebirds are usually further north this time of year. The chubby Lewins Honeyeater, a rainforest bird we are well acquainted with down south was our most frequent visitor, eating pieces of fruit we put out on the railing, as we sat and sipped our wine and cheese.

Apologies for the visual noise in the video clip as it was quite dark facing into the rainforest most of the time, especially in the rain. Most of the rainforest birds, and in fact most Australian birds are fruit eaters, nectar eaters, insect eaters  and Lerps eaters, but for rainforest birds native fruits and insects are thew main diet..

Each morning we were awakened to the sounds of the Catbird calling and the Orange-footed Scrubfowl. You can’t mistake the loud Catbird sound which woke us up, and the Scrubfowl is making the unusual loud warbling cackle occasionally and some other bird is making the regular single note chime. It sounded like this…

We did manage to see an Orange-footed Scrubfowl digging outside of the forest while the common Australian Brush Turkey wandered around. The Brush Turkey is very brazen and has no fear, it would try and steal the food we put out for the  shy rainforest birds. They are a problem in Sydney also for destroying gardens and building their mounds in unpopular places.

Orange-footed Scrubfowl
Australian Brush Turkey females
Australian Brush Turkey females
Orange-footed Scrubfowl
Australian Brush Turkey females

The Little Shrike-thrush was a common bird here in the rainforest also, it was frequenting the gardens of the Eco lodge.

(race rufogaster)

While near Atherton we took drive to famous Hastie’s Swamp a great haven for waterbirds, and always full of Plumed Whistling Ducks, they were there in their hundreds whistling away. 

They are a beautiful looking bird, the males have the larger longer plumes, and a true flock bird. We saw many of these birds in various places on our travels far north.

Plumed Whistling Duck male
Plumed Whistling Duck
Plumed Whistling Duck
Plumed Whistling Duck
Plumed Whistling Duck
Plumed Whistling Duck
Plumed Whistling Duck

Several families of Pink-eared Duck and a few only of Australia’s rarest endemic   waterfowl, the Freckled Duck, which is not normally seen this far north. Freckled Duck but they like usual, being shy of humans were some distance and sleeping on the water as you will see in my one good shot below..

Freckled Duck sleeping
Pink-eared Duck
Pink-eared Duck
Pink-eared Duck

You can learn more about the Pink-eared Duck from reading my book “What Birds Teach Us” which you can order here online. Visit my BirdBook page to find out more. Thank you so much everyone for your wonderful reviews, so glad it is blessing people of all ages.

Also, if you have not visited my new Special Sightings page and seen my latest entry the Powerful Owl (male and female), Australia’s largest owl, we saw last weekend, with Possum prey hanging on display from beneath the talon of the male click here. and I’ll take you there.

You may remember this sequence of events in the first video clip of this post…

The lesson I learn from the Southern Cassowary is that so called human kindness can be to the dire detriment of the bird. No matter how tame the bird might appear to be, this camper is doing the right thing in preventing the bird from stealing his food, he as the saying goes being cruel to be kind by discouraging the bird from coming to humans for handouts, which is the main cause of them being killed on roads, as well as attacking people and destructively breaking into houses. Notice how this man wisely rebuked the bird standing behind the table and making minimum eye contact. It was the following picture, my wife took, which caused me to see the spiritual aspect in all this.

Here in this photo man and wild bird have respect and lack of fear for each other, the man appreciating this special moment with this bird which is capable of killing him if it felt threatened or become aggressive demanding food. Many of Australia’s territorial birds are aggressive.  As an aside: Australia has the largest percentage of aggressive birds in the world, and it is partly due to their diet and their territorial controls, as they compete for nectar, lerps and fruit. You are more likely to be attacked by a bird in Australia than any where else, and other birds and other animals are included as victims. 

Interesting enough, the above picture occurs after the above series of the man chastising the bird for trying to steal his food. Today, sadly, we are seeing many problems with youth not having respect and consideration for others. This selfishness is partly due to the lack of discipline the parents have not employed during the child’s formative years. The secular humanistic philosophies which have departed from the life principles of the Creator has contributed to this. The spare the rod and spoil the child has come about because many parents disciplined out of anger, frustration and cruel punishment instead of out of loving correction, which uses a bare minimum of physical corrective contact while the child is very young. As with the Cassowary, when a child is allowed to always have its way, and becomes dependent on us to give it what it wants, we set a pattern for their future downfall in life, leading to possible depressive and  loveless mindset, and in some cases suicide (internalized rage) or violent anger (externalized rage). As parents we need to firstly model the behaviour we want for our children by loving them, and the most important way we can do this is to love our spouse, for this is what they will learn more so than words, as the old adage says: it is better felt than telt. We teach our children and grandchildren more from how we live and speak than from anything we tell them to do, or even discipline them for. All discipline is meant in to be loving correction of bad behaviour BEFORE it gets out of hand, not for our own gain, but for the overall future good of the child. The types of discipline change with the growing child. God himself does the same with me, as she shapes my life and disciplines me when I become selfish and do things in a way detriment to his best for my life.

“My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline,    and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,  because the Lord disciplines the one he loves,  and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.”

  Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father?  If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all.  Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.  No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.’ – Hebrews 12: 5-11 (NIV)

Have a wonderful week!

NOTE: All photos, videos and music used on this website are photographed, composed, performed  by the site owner and remains his copyrighted property, unless otherwise stated. The use of any material that is not original material of the site owner is duly acknowledged as such. © W. A. Hewson 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018

 

Birding in Tropical Queensland – The Amazing Tyto Wetlands, Ingham (Part 4)

Posted by aussiebirder on August 5, 2018
Posted in: Australia, Australian Birds, Australian wildlife, Bird watching, Birding, Birds, Birdwatching, Far North Queensland, Fauna, Holidays, Nature reserve, Outings, rainforests, shorebirds, Uncategorized, waders, water birds, wildlife. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Leaving Townsville, we drive a hire car up the coast northward to our next stop, the Tyto Wetlands Centre in Ingham. Birders had told us this was a must visit place and we were not disappointed seeing several lifers, the first being the Crimson Finch, pictured above. These tiny birds were constantly flying and landing in the tall grass where they find their seed diet. The male is bright crimson and the female mainly around the head and tail. and juveniles mainly grey/brown. Click on photo to enlarge it.

Crimson Finch (male)
Crimson Finch male
Crimson Finch (male)
Crimson Finch (female)
Crimson Finch (juvenile)
Female Crimson Finch

The name Tyto is named after the rare Eastern Grass Owl (Tyto capensis) which is found there in the grassland during the latter part of the year. This wetlands is well cared for by the local council and has well marked walks, including crocodile warnings, which concerned my wife, though the only croc we saw while up north was a baby one in Reef HQ (the largest coral aquarium in the world, at Townsville). Crocs are river dwellers mainly, and can get washed out into coastal areas during the wet season.

 

Walking the circuit we saw several types of habitat including bush, open forest, grassland, lake, and pandanas forest.

The red-backed Fairy-wren was again a great delight.

One of the common birds seen up here quietly sitting in trees is the Spangled Drongo, which is usually identified by its classic tail and shimmering bluish/black metallic plumage.

We were surprised to find two kinds of Shrike-thrush next to each other in the woodlands both different races of Little Shrike-thrush, both lifers. These races (subspecies) are found only in this part of Australia.

(race parvula)
Little Shrike-thrush race rufogaster)
Little Shrike-thrush race rufogaster)

I had wondered where the Rufous Whistlers had gone during the drought, finding one here.

But another lifer brought excitement to my wife, the White-browed Robin which is only found in Far North Queensland, her namesake. The English have a Robin but we have 17 different species of Robin. No these are not the same photos notice the tail, a feature of the robins is how they flick their tails up and down while perched.

Another bird only seen this far north was this White-gaped Honeyeater. I guess when you have over 70 honeyeaters and many have white markings on their face, it gets difficult to name them accordingly, so this one is gaped.

Another passerine lifer was this Brush Cuckoo, which has the feature of looking like a cuckoo but without the usual white tips on the upper tail being obvious. If you look closely you can detect bands showing through the brown upper tail, this can make it difficult to call.

The most prolific bird seen here by the lakes is of course the Forest Kingfisher, beautifully attired in his bright blue vest, standing out against the brown mud and reeds. I managed to convince him to fly so you can appreciate his full beauty.

Forest Kingfisher resting
Forest Kingfisher resting with Peaceful Doves
Forest Kingfisher in flight

 Other classic waterside birds included the Australasian Darter and the Intermediate Egret, one we do not see much of down south.

So we come now to the lakes, the actual wetlands. Here is a panorama of the area, which includes the Comb-crested Jacana who was my first bird seen here on the water, and quickly hid from me.

But the most exciting find on the water was not the Hardheads which were close to shore, but the unusual looking birds afloat, way out in the middle of the lake, well away from us. My wife trained her trusty binoculars, which she proudly purchased from the London Wetlands Centre a few years ago, on these birds which turned out again to be lifers. The Green Pygmy-Goose and the Cotton Pygmy-Goose were peacefully together with the Hardheads and the Wandering Whistling Ducks. The Cotton Pygmy-Goose was a lifer for me not just in the wild but ever.

Green Pygmy-Goose pair
Green Pygmy-Goose with Hardheads
Green Pygmy-Goose
Cotton Pygmy-Goose and Wandering Whistling Ducks
Green Pygmy-Goose pair
Hardheads landing near Cotton Pygmy-Goose
Green Pygmy-Goose flying off

Notice the black eye marking of the male Cotton Pygmy-Goose and the lack thereof in the females, one fore and aft of the male.

And of course, there is always one lone Australasian Grebe, this one with some breeding plumage, in the lake. I am sure there are others somewhere else.

Our visit here had been a great delight, though the fear of crocs was a little off putting for my wife. We had seen several lifers. We would now make our way further north to the rainforest areas visiting Mission Beach and the Atherton Tablelands for some very unique birdlife, but that will be in my next post.

Check out my NEW Special Sightings page.  which shares special local birding highlights, unique and rare sightings. See my latest shots of the Powerful Owl with prey. Check out my HomePage for more birding tips, inspirational and info pages.

At Reef HQ in Townsville we saw many species of coral and tropical fish including the most unusual Clownfish which spends most of its time swimming in among the tentacles of the Sea Anemone. Sea Anemones are predators that attach themselves to rocks or coral. There, they sit and wait until a fish swims close enough to attack with its tentacles. Clownfish are one of the only species that can survive the deadly sting of the Sea Anemone.

By making the anemone their home, Clownfish become immune to its sting. These fish will gently touch every part of their bodies to the anemone’s tentacles until it no longer affects them.  A layer of mucus then forms on the clown fish’s body to prevent it from getting stung again. This relationship reminds me of living under my Father God’s loving care. As I grow from a child to an adult I am initially disciplined so as to learn to live a good life. 

“Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father?” – Hebrews 12:7

As I remain under the care of our loving Father we remain protected from the Enemy, that is not the Anemone, who we are warned, lurks about the world around us, seeking to lead us to destruction.

“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” – 1 Peter 5:8

Abnormal, selfish,  destructive addictive behaviour results when I make myself vulnerable to bad decisions and thoughts. I am only safe in my loving Father’s own prescriptive plan for a good life, which he designed and created for,when I remain in his loving protection close to Him, knowing He is always close to me. His Love Letter the Bible contains all I need for His best for my life.

‘Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge. “I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
    apart from you I have no good thing.” – Psalm 16:1,2

Check out my book “What Birds Teach Us” on my Birdbook page. 

Now that I have cut back from full-time work, my second book is under way, featuring  more Australian birds and their unusual characteristics. In a similar way to the first book, it is set in a counseling context, but for families, many of which are also in crisis and need of life skills to assist them with proven life experiences and life skills for making good life decisions. This book “Birds of a Feather – Family Forever.” will again be a unique work presented in a simple readable format similar to my first book. I have been greatly encouraged by many important people in my life, who are awaiting this much needed work, and hopefully will become another non-confronting counseling tool for all ages. This book will be an asset for young adults planning for relationship and family giving helpful tools and insights for a Together Forever life.

Please Note: Increases to postage, packaging and handling fees required the small increase in purchase price. However, buying here online remains the least expensive place to buy your copy compared to most retail shops which sell for $35 in Australia.

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NOTE: All photos, videos and music used on this website are photographed, composed, performed  by the site owner and remains his copyrighted property, unless otherwise stated. The use of any material that is not original material of the site owner is duly acknowledged as such. © W. A. Hewson 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018

 

Birding in Tropical Queensland – Magnetic Island Lifers (Part 3)

Posted by aussiebirder on July 27, 2018
Posted in: Australia, Australian Birds, Australian wildlife, Bird watching, Birding, Birds, Birdwatching, Blue-winged Kookaburra, Bush-stone Curlew, Far North Queensland, Fauna, Magnetic Island, National Parks, Nature, Nature reserve, rainforests, Townsville, Uncategorized, wildlife. Tagged: , , , .

Continuing our Far North Queensland birding adventure we share this week two major lifers. A true lifer for me is one that I spot and photograph in the wild in its usual habitat. It was in a beach side park on Magnetic Island, a resort island just off the coast of Townsville that we saw our first Blue-winged Kookaburra (see male above). Magnetic Island gets its name because of the apparent “magnetic” effect it had on the ship’s compass of Captain Cook as he passed the island when sailing up the east coast of Australia in 1770.  Click on photos to enlarge them.

Male
Female

 

The wonder of our discovery was that we saw both mail and female together in the same tree, and they were not afraid to sit and watch us give them so much attention. The key differentiation feature is their tail. The male has a blue tail and the female a brown (see above).

These Kookaburras not only look different to our Laughing Kookaburra but they also sound different. In their almost cricket like call, undertones of their cousin can be heard.

Both specie of Kookaburra are found up here. This Laughing Kookaburra was singing while he held his prey in his mouth. A pair of Blue-faced Honeyeater, which are known to be aggressive, looked like they were about to take him on but it was a stand off. They may have a nest nearby to protect.

The Laughing Kookaburra puts the true “Kook, Kook” sound into Kookaburra.

Seeing the the pair of Blue-wings was a real treat for us, especially seeing the male flying as you can see below. Here you can see the difference in species. They both have blue on their wing but the Blue-winged as much more.

Male
Female
flight shot

While spending a day on the island we saw several raptors including an immature bedraggled Brahminy Kite, a Whistling Kite, Rainbow Bee-eater, and two kinds of Kingfisher, both Forest and Sacred. It was interesting to see the Sacred Kingfishers on the beaches. We drove around looking for a lagoon we could not find access to and passed a grassed fenced cow paddock and saw these Agile Wallaby grazing as were Straw necked Ibis.  

As we admired the Wallaby we noticed two strange creature resting under a small tree right in the centre of the field, YES! they were the Bush Stone-curlew, we were looking for on the island, as we were told they are common here. They are usually in pairs, resting in the day and hunting at night where they feed on feed on insects, molluscs, small lizards, seeds and occasionally small mammals. They were some distance from the road.

Bush Stone-curlew on Magnetic Island
Bush Stone-curlew on Magnetic Island

The next day, back in Townsville as drove through a noisy intersection we saw a very large fenced oval in one of the suburbs, when my wife excitedly called out “There they are, pull over quickly!” There were about twenty Bush Stone-curlew occupying family groups all around the field, keeping distance from each group. They appeared safe from dogs in this closed area which they could move out from at night. They rested out in the open using their camouflage plumage and remaining completely motionless. They appear to stand looking male to female but this is pure protection as they cover each others back from all directions. It is safer to stand in an open field where you can easily see who is approaching,  so you have no surprise attacks, and there is time to fly to safety.

strutting to safety
resting while others are on the lookout
gathering around the waterhole
resting

A dog in a ute started barking while the car waited for the lights to change which set the bunch into alarm calls for a minute or more. The dog had been driven away, but they continued to cry for a time. This is how it sounded:

Here is some video footage from the same field:

That night we decided to eat at a lovely waterside restaurant on The Strand. To our amazement and delight we saw many Bush Stone-curlew walking around the streets,  waterfront reserve and beach hunting. Many people were also out going to and from dining venues and the birds kept their distance but seemed tame enough to walk around us walking away when approached, something they had possibly done for many years as they shared this space with humans at night. We often heard the screaming of these birds at night as they met socially and  hunted, however they appeared to hunt individually, returning to their safe havens by morning. This was a daily occurrence in Townsville and Magnetic Island. Sadly I did not have my movie camera with me to capture footage of this, but next time your in Townsville at night you can see it for yourself. So there you have it, two wonderful lifers we experienced.

So it was the sighting of these Agile Wallaby that caused us to notice the birds we were seeking, and could not find, as they were standing in the same paddock, but under the cover of a small tree.  God sometimes is trying to teach us something in life but we fail to see or understand what it is, even though the truth he wants to convey is right in front of us. So he positions the Wallaby to catch our attention and finally cause us to notice what is right before us, but standing under the tree. So often we look for life’s answers in the wrong place, from the wrong source or the wrong people, when God in his loving kindness keeps pointing us back to his promises and assurances given to us through faith access in Jesus. To do this he helps us refocus and re direction our looking by replacing the wrong with the right advice, from the right source by the right person. God’s book the Bible gets us back on track.

“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” – Psalm 119:105

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart’  and lean not on your own understanding;
 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight”. – Proverbs 3:5,6

“The mocker seeks wisdom and finds none, but knowledge comes easily to the discerning.” – Proverbs 14:6

Simon Peter answered him [Jesus], “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” – John 6:68

Take a look at my HomePage there is a new addition in Something Special.

Before you go you might like to view my personal Blood Moon shots from the lunar eclipse early Saturday morning on my BloodMoon page.

Thank you Takami from Japan and other followers who have recently purchased my book here online, and thank you for the wonderful encouraging reviews I have received. For those who have not checked it out, you can read for yourself Takami’s comment/review is on my birdbook page.  Check out the rest of my website for birding info at my Homepage.

Have a wonderful week!

NOTE: All photos, videos and music used on this website are photographed, composed, performed  by the site owner and remains his copyrighted property, unless otherwise stated. The use of any material that is not original material of the site owner is duly acknowledged as such. © W. A. Hewson 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 Should you desire to use any of the material published on this website please contact the author as a Comment  or by email via the AboutUs page

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Birding in Tropical Queensland – Coastal Woodlands (Part 2)

Posted by aussiebirder on July 20, 2018
Posted in: Australia, Australian Birds, Bird watching, Birding, Birds, Birdwatching, Far North Queensland, Fauna, National Parks, Nature, Nature reserve, Outings, Uncategorized, wildlife. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Continuing our birding adventure in Townsville, one of the birds we saw many times in large flocks, not seen in Sydney, is the Red-tailed Black Cockatoo. We saw several times small groups of immature birds playing and feeding together. Above is a mature male having the red tail. The female and the young have a patterned yellow/orange tale and spotting on the head and trunk. These guys were feeding by the road.

Red-tailed Black Cockatoo youngsters
Young immature male

We found the following small group of youngsters chasing each other about in between feeding from the plenteous native fruit trees. They circled and called for ages, unfortunately the wind made the recording impossible. 

A bird that we saw often around town, as often as our Australian White Ibis, was the Straw-necked Ibis. I love the way the sun catches the iridescence of its plumage.

Straw-necked Ibis
Straw-necked Ibis

Of course our Australian White was also present in good numbers there also.

 

The bird that caught our attention with its raspy call, in the thick darkness of the fig trees growing along The Strand, was the Great Bowerbird. Listen to its call:

Notice that the Great Bowerbird which is mostly white, has mostly white objects to attract the female in the bower, whereas the blue Satin Bowerbird has mostly blue objects.

Great Bowerbird
the bower
the bower
Great Bowerbird
Fig Tree on the Strand
Great Bowerbird

While we followed the bowerbird this Black-shouldered Kite landed on a dead tree some distance away to watch us, but soon took flight when it saw us give it attention.

It is always amazing to see so many raptors up far north, it seems the further you go the more you see, and so many varieties. The most common is the Black Kite, where often flocks are seen circling areas, usually over townships or nearby. The interesting thing is the Black Kite is actually brown not black.

The Brahminy Kite was another one seen frequently here. On Magnetic Island we saw a juvenile being fed and cared for by its parent. It fed on a pole on a wharf while the parent flew around, sometimes they would play together. Notice the head missing from the fish, the parent always eats this itself and leaves the body of the fish for the youngster and female partner, which is not present.

juvenile Brahminy Kite
adult Brahminy Kite
adult Brahminy Kite
adult Brahminy Kite
adult Brahminy Kite
Parent watching over teenager
juvenile Brahminy Kite

Here is some footage of the youngster, I had to trim the wind sound, but you can hear it call as it lands after trying to get the fish a lady had put out for it.

Here is some footage of the adult flying, it is one of the most beautiful raptors to see in full sunlight, unfortunately it was cloudy. In the last part the teenager plays with the adult for a second.

However, our most exciting raptor experience was to happen upon this Spotted Harrier who had just caught a mouse and had landed on a fence post and was about to eat it as we drove toward it. Excitedly I stopped the car and proceeded to photograph, it was a distance but its keen eyesight saw me and finally departed, catching the spotted plumage in the light. See the mouse in its mouth. Raptors are important for removing rodents and other vermin. What most people do not realize is that they eat many more insects as well in their diet than most birds while they soar.

Last week we saw the water birds of Townsville Common Reserve, so this week the passerines we saw in the common. We had only just past through the gate when we heard the sounds of many birds as we excited ly spotted birds we never see down south. The Varied Triller male and female (has the stripey tummy) made themselves known to us, as did the Chestnut-breasted Cuckoo as it silently and cautiously watched.

Varied Triller male
Varied Triller female
Chestnut-breasted Cuckoo
Chestnut-breasted Cuckoo
Varied Triller female
Varied Triller female
Varied Triller male
Varied Triller male
Chestnut-breasted Cuckoo

The Forest Kingfisher was a frequently seen bird around the wetlands and glowed in the sunlight. It differs from our Sacred in that it has white instead of buff markings and bright blue instead of greenish plumage.

The Spangled Drongo another frequently seen bird sitting in trees out of the sun. Its unusual tail and shiny iridescent plumage make it an interesting bird.

Spangled Drongo

Blue-faced Honeyeater were also common here, but were more common in town where the many fig trees are. Notice the juvenile having the yellow face. It will become blue as it becomes a mature adult.

Blue-faced Honeyeater

We were also blessed with a lifer the White-throated Honeyeater which looks so much like the White-naped cousin. The Yellow Honeyeater was also one we do not see down south, but saw several times here. The White-cheeked Honeyeater was present also.