A Walk of the Estate

From time to time I do a “Walk of the Estate.”

Translated, this means I wander around our five acre block of land on the outskirts of Murray Bridge in South Australia. This is about an hour’s drive SE of our state capital, Adelaide.

Our “estate” consists of mallee scrub, orchard, garden and an open paddock. Over the years I have recorded 113 different bird species, with over 30 of those breeding here. I have kept a monthly list of species seen or heard over the 22 years we have lived here.

The European Goldfinch is an introduced species in Australia and is common in many parts of Australia. It does not appear to have bred up in large numbers here in Murray Bridge, though I have seen a few from time to time, often near the Post Office. We have not seen them very often here on “the estate” until recently.

This morning I saw four of them out in “the paddock”. I’ve seen or heard them on three or four occasions in recent weeks. Perhaps they are seeking out new feeding grounds. Our winter has been abnormally dry so this may have forced them to seek food elsewhere.

Whatever the reason, I think they are a delightful species to have in our garden – despite being “foreigners.”

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