The Sulphur-crested Cockatoo is one noisy, raucous, at times crazy and destructive larrikin of a bird, which can be heard and seen performing its unwelcome, though sometimes humorous antics in most parts of eastern and far northern Australia. In Sydney this bird is found in large flocks which breed and roost not far from us, as the forests provide the […]

On the public holiday in memory of Queen Elizabeth II my wife and I took a walk in Bottle Forest in our local Royal National Park at Heathcote. My wife had been tipped off about an amazing array of Waratah flowers there, one of the legacies of our recent abundant rainfall. The Waratah shrub (which is from the aboriginal word […]

Last weekend we visited my daughter, her family and brother and his wife in the popular seaside tourist town of Forster, situated on the Mid-north Coast NSW for a catch up after years of Covid restrictions. My brother graciously took us on several beautiful walks along the coastline of Forster, which included the Littoral Rainforest Boardwalk along the coast of […]

Having returned home from our Kimberley adventure we thought it time to check out our local park Oatley Park Reserve and see how it is doing after the rains. Thankfully the flooded and boggy tracks were now passable. Our first encounter was a small flock of Royal Spoonbill (also known as Black-billed Spoonbill) foraging at low tide in Lime Kiln […]

If you should ever bird The Kimberley region of Far North West Australia, one place you do not want to miss visiting while in Broome, is the Broome Bird Observatory (BBO). Broome is known as the Shorebird Capital of Australia since the extensive tidal flats of Roebuck Bay host and feed flocks of thousands of shorebirds and migratory waders each […]

We continue to share more of the amazing birds of the Kimberley region of far north Western Australia, including passerines not previously mentioned. Our first is the Great Bowerbird, a resident of Far Northern Australia, from both the west (race nuchalis) coast of WA to the east (race orientalis) coasts of Far North Queensland. Now we have seen both races […]

Continuing our amazing exploration of The Kimberley region in North Western Australia, my wife and I marveled at how many waterbird species and numbers of birds could be found in this hot arid region. The rivers, lakes and swamps form vital gathering, resting, watering and feeding places for so many waterbirds including ducks and waders, guaranteeing their survival until the […]

We continue sharing the wonders of The Kimberley region of WA, focusing this week on the many species of Honeyeater found there. Over a third of Australia’s bird species are found in this arid region, and many are honeyeaters. The amazing or ironic fact is that the native shrubs and trees of this region grow in the hardest and poorest […]

This week I will showcase the many raptors that frequent the skies in the Kimberley. Being mostly flat arid, savanna and open woodland country, away from human habitation, it provides many opportunities for eagles, kites, harriers, kestrels and Buzzards to soar, often endlessly throughout the day. The variety and the frequency of seeing one or more is a feature up […]

Finally, through the difficulties of airlines in chaos and widespread Covid in its now various strains, my wife and I returned safely home after our epic 3 week adventure to the Kimberley region in far north west Western Australia, where days of around 32-35 °C most days, without a cloud in the sky, in the middle of Winter. While down […]

Taking advantage of the weeks of sunny winter weather, and the close to La Nina, my wife and I set out on yet another birding date, this time along the river walk on Botany Bay, not far from where we sighted the Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo, showcased in a previous post. It was not long into our walk when we heard […]

As I shared in our last week’s birding date, a few days later I took my wife on another birding date, as I experienced a similar memory, recalling the Gang Gang Cockatoo flock being found in trees about 2 hours drive south of Sydney in the beautiful area of Palmdale. It was about 3 years ago I found them in […]

Well, we finally have had 4 consecutive clear sky days without rain, with the warm winter sunshine breaking through the cold crisp air, bringing record cold temperatures and now cool westerlies. A time when I remember that the Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo make their winter visit to the coast to find the many trees laden in pine cones and seed pods […]

Continuing with some of the birds we saw in our recent visit to Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney, we saw a lifer – The Double-eyed Fig Parrot. This was a bird we pursued when we were last in Far North Queensland, but never laid eyes on. It is a resident of New Guinea, but is also found in the forests coastal […]

Since my wife and I are unable to walk the flooded tracks of our local national parks we decided to use our post Covid Entertainment Voucher (courtesy of our state government) to visit our local Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney’s oldest and largest zoo, situated right on Sydney Harbour with stunning views of the harbour and city. Our main reason for […]