Watch out, Magpie
Australian Magpie (juvenile)
At this time of the year people throughout much of Australia are aware that the Australian Magpie is nesting. Some of our magpies are known to get very protective of the nest and the young. Getting swooped by a magpie seems to be a normal way of life in springtime Australia. For most people it can also be an unnerving experience at best and downright terrifying at worst. A magpie swooping at speed, often catching the unsuspecting victim from behind, can inflict a nasty cut. Those of us living in magpie territories learn to accept this as a part of spring and learn to even expect it.
What you don’t always expect is a magpie – possibly a juvenile just out of the nest – sitting in the middle of the road in a suburban street.
Especially at 11pm on a wet night.
On Friday night I almost ran over such a bird. Luckily it had learned enough road sense to flap out of the way in time. The reality is sadly much worse than this. While that particular bird got out of harm’s way, many thousands of young magpies do not. Road kill of young magpies – and many other species too – account for a very high mortality rate. In fact, from memory, I think more than half of young magpies who manage to leave the nest die as road kill within the first twelve months. Sad, but true.
Further reading:
Caring for injured and orphaned birds – click on this link to read how you can look after injured or orphaned birds you find.
Australian Magpie (juvenile)
Willie Wagtails fly the nest
3 Comments »17th October, 2010; Category: Baby birds, Bird Behaviour, Flycatchers, Garden birds, Nests
Baby Willie Wagtails just out of their nest
Over recent weeks I’ve been keeping an eye on a Willie Wagtails‘ nest in our garden. The birds were very industrious for a few days while they built their beautiful nest which consists mainly of spiders’ webs. I’ve shown the nest in the photo below.
I’ve been very busy lately and a few days ago I saw that the little ones had hatched and were sitting in the nest being fed by the adults. I made a note to myself to get the camera out and get a shot of them in the nest.
They beat me to it. Yesterday I noticed them flying around and not settling or posing for a photo. So I had to use a photo I took last year – or was that the year before – see the photo above.
You can’t win them all.
Happy birding.
Willie Wagtails' nest in our garden
Willie Wagtail sitting on a nest in our garden
Spotted Turtledove nesting
No Comments »16th October, 2010; Category: Bird baths, Bird Behaviour, Garden birds, Nests, Non-Australian birds, Pigeons and Doves
Spotted Turtledove sitting on a nest
We usually have several Spotted Turtledoves hanging around somewhere in our garden. In the hot weather they are frequent visitors to our bird baths – to see photos click here.
They are also a resident breeding species in our garden here in Murray Bridge, South Australia. Quite often they go about their nesting quite unobtrusively and we never get to see their nests. The latest attempt, however, was several metres from our sun room where we often have our meals. We watched the progress of the nest over several days as the pair flew to the ground, selected suitable sticks and twigs and then flew back to the melaleuca bush.
I was rather cautious approaching the bush for the photo above because doves and pigeons can be very nervous on the nest, often flying off rapidly when approached and either damaging the nest or eggs, or abandoning it entirely.
Since taking this photo a few weeks ago the young have left the nest. Click on the photo to enlarge the image.
Spotted Turtledove at Adelaide Zoo
Red Wattlebirds with young
Juvenile Red Wattlebird
Red Wattlebirds, a member of the honeyeater family of birds in Australia, is a common bird in our garden in Murray Bridge, South Australia. In fact, this species is a resident breeding bird in our garden. At any one time we probably have 5 – 10 individuals present, possibly more.
In recent weeks they have been a little more aggressive towards other species than normal, and that’s saying something! They can be very bossy at the best of times, especially to smaller birds like pardalotes.
A few days ago I discovered what I had suspected; they have been nesting. While their nest is not all that small, we do have many hundreds of trees and shrubs so it is hard to keep up with what is actually nesting.
I found them feeding two juvenile birds quite close to the house. If you click on the photo you will enlarge the image and be able to see the downy feathers of the young.
Juvenile Red Wattlebird
Juvenile Red Wattlebird
Little Ravens feeding their young
2 Comments »14th October, 2010; Category: Baby birds, Bird Behaviour, Garden birds, Ravens and Crows
Juvenile Little Ravens
The common raven around this district is the Little Raven. We sometimes get loose flocks numbering many dozens feeding in nearby paddocks and grassy areas. At times their persistent calling can be quite raucous, especially if they happen to be sitting on the television antenna or in a tree near the house. Sometimes they are bold enough to come quite close to the house, even on to the veranda.
Recently we have witnessed them carrying food to a nest in a tree in the neighbour’s front yard. A few days ago the young left the nest and come over for a visit. I caught two of the youngsters sitting in the grass at the base of one of our bushes. A few moments later by parents came along to feed them, but I didn’t manage to catch them actually feeding the young because they hopped around to the other side of the bush.
Juvenile Little Ravens
Juvenile Little Ravens
Update: This post was updated on July 13th 2015.