Turkeys in the Garden
Australian Brushturkey
I am currently in Sydney visiting family. When we speak on the phone, my grandchildren often tell me that they have just seen several Australian Brushturkeys in their garden. They live in Artarmon and they know, however, that I like to know what birds they are seeing. I guess that this is quite a common, unremarkable event for many Sydney residents. For me, however, it is quite an unusual event. I live near Adelaide in South Australia and I never get turkeys visiting my garden. On the other hand, having a kangaroo or two in my garden is not unusual.
Three visitors
Several days ago I was able to see the three visiting turkeys in the back yard. I quietly crept outside with camera in hand and managed a few good shots, some of which I have shown here today. They were quite unconcerned about my presence some ten metres away clicking on my camera.
Leaf litter
In that particular part of the garden, there are several large bushes which constantly drop their leaves. There is quite a thick layer of leaf litter underneath the bushes, and the turkeys really enjoy scratching around looking for beetles and other tasty morsels.
Australian Brushturkey checking out a toy cement truck
While taking the photos I observed one of the birds checking out my grandson’s toy cement truck (see photo above). I am not sure what it thought of the toy but it must not have considered it to be potential food. I never saw it peck at the toy or any other toys lying nearby.
Australian Brushturkey
On visits to Sydney, I have frequently seen Australian Brushturkeys. I have often visited the nearby Lane Cove National Park and I have seen the turkeys there strutting around looking for some handouts from picnickers, dropped scraps of food and other tasty items. I can’t ever recall seeing one sitting down like one of the visitors to the garden (see photos above and below). I guess it needed a rest after walking the nearby streets.
Australian Brushturkey
Australian Brushturkey
Australian Brushturkey
Good birding,
Trevor.
The beautiful Crested Pigeon
Crested Pigeon
A few weeks ago I was sitting at the table in my sunroom reading the daily paper. I was suddenly distracted by some birds at my bird baths just outside the window. This is a favourite place of mine to sit because I have an uninterrupted view of several bird baths strategically placed in my garden. During the warmer weather, there is often a steady stream of birds coming to drink and bathe in the water. Sometimes, the bird baths need daily replenishment. Many of the photos featured on this site have been taken of birds at the birdbath.
Once I saw that the bird was a Crested Pigeon sitting quietly on a branch near the top bird bath, I went to get my camera. It stayed there on the birdbath for a few moments, and then it moved to a nearby branch. It was then that its wing feathers caught the rays of the sun and showed up the brilliant iridescent colours (see the photos above and below). On most occasions, this species appears to be a dull grey with only a few white and black markings. In certain angles of the sunlight, the colours show up beautifully. When I zoomed in to take close-up photos, the beauty shows up even more – as seen in today’s selection of photos.
I have often written about the Crested Pigeon on this site, and I have shared many photos of them over the years. To read these articles and see the photos use the search button at the top of the page or click here.
The individual in today’s photos stayed around for about five minutes, enabling me to take plenty of shots in various poses. Bird photography can sometimes be a little frustrating because the subjects have a tendency to up and fly off – just when the camera has focussed on the bird. When they do pose nicely it is a wonderful bonus.
Enjoy.
Crested Pigeon
Crested Pigeon
Crested Pigeon
Crested Pigeon
New Holland Honeyeater posing
New Holland Honeyeater
During the warmer months of the year, there is a constant stream of birds coming to my birdbaths for a drink. On hot days many of them will also come for a dip in the water. What always amuses me, however, is the number of birds which also come for a dip in the water on freezing cold days.
Some of the birds which regularly visit my birdbaths include 8 different species of honeyeaters, 3 kinds of parrots, Australian Magpies, Little Ravens, Grey Currawongs, White-browed Babblers, Superb Fairy-wrens, House Sparrows, Diamond Finches, Common Starlings, Grey Shrike-thrush, as well as at least 3 kinds of pigeons and doves and many other species. Over the years I have written articles and shown photos of most of these species. To find those articles just go to the search box above right or the Categories list on the right-hand side-bar. Or you could check out the archives section.
It is now winter here in Murray Bridge, South Australia, where I live. Over recent days we have had some very frosty mornings and cold nights. The water in the birdbaths is very cold and may even freeze on a night like tonight with the temperature due to go down to minus 1 degrees Celsius (30 degrees F). The birds will still be happy to have a drink during the day and even a short splash in the very cold water. I don’t think that I will be joining them in a hurry. They can enjoy it all to themselves.
Recently I took a series of photos (above and below) of a solitary New Holland Honeyeater enjoying the water. The individual was quite unhurried seeing it had the water all to itself. This is unusual because normally there would be anything up to a dozen birds or more, all splashing away happily and creating quite a noisy party with all of their excited calls.
Good birding,
Trevor
New Holland Honeyeater
New Holland Honeyeater
New Holland Honeyeater
The beautiful Eastern Rosella
Eastern Rosella
The beauty of our Australian parrots never fails to impress me. One of the most beautiful to my eyes is the Eastern Rosella which I have featured in today’s photos. All of the photos shown in today’s post were taken in my garden on the outskirts of Murray Bridge which is about 80 kilometres south-east of Adelaide in South Australia.
This particular individual has been resident in my garden for several years now. I usually see it every day but I am sure that it roams over a much greater area than my 2 hectare (5 acre) property. One of the odd things about this bird is that it continues to keep the company of a family of Mallee Ringneck parrots. The ringnecks are also a resident species and they also roam away from my property most days. Some days they will hang around feeding in my trees for most of the day, sometimes creating quite a din with their noisy chatter.
One of the odd things about this rosella is that I am quite confident that it is the same one I am seeing all the time. They are not normally found in this part of South Australia. Their usual range is the extreme south-eastern part of our state. They are also quite common in the Adelaide region and the adjacent Adelaide Hills (Mt Lofty Ranges) where they have been introduced.
This leads me to two possible conclusions about this particular bird:
- It has escaped, or been released, from someone’s cage or aviary. (They are a common pet in Australia.)
- The species is extending its range, either from the south, or from the west.
I lean towards the first conclusion, mainly because I have not seen any more of this species anywhere around this area. Whatever the reason, I am delighted that it has decided to call my garden “home”. I am also pleased that it frequently visits the bird baths I have close to my sunroom. This enables me to get good photos of it every so often.
Up until this series of photos were taken, I hadn’t fully appreciated the beautiful markings on the back. The photo below shows these markings really well.
Good birding.
Further reading:
Eastern Rosella (view of its back)
Eastern Rosella
Eastern Rosella
World Environment Day
Eastern Rosella
WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY 2018
World Environment Day is celebrated on the 5th June every year. I cannot remember posting anything about this day in all of the years I have been writing on this site. This is a first for me.
I live on the edge of a large country town in South Australia. My property is about 2 hectares (5 acres) in size, with over half of it either natural scrubland (mallee trees), or planted trees and shrubs. I have lived on this property for well over 30 years and have kept a bird list for all of that time. The current list has reached 112 different species, the high number due in part to the presence of suitable habitat for a wide range of species.
Over those years we have planted many hundreds of trees and shrubs in addition to those occurring naturally. Not only have we taken delight in the wide range of birds that visit or are resident, we also enjoy the many flowering species of plants. Planting is one easy and very rewarding way of improving the environment. Even if you only have a small courtyard for a garden, having a few plants – both native and exotic – will attract our native birds for you to enjoy. The same could be said for those who live in a high-rise apartment with a balcony. Even having five or six plants in pots improves the environment, as well as helping your own well-being.
Another way I like to encourage the birds in my garden is to have several bird baths. I have placed these within close viewing distance from our sunroom. Over the years this has given me much pleasure. On really hot days, the birds flock to the baths in large numbers, either to drink or to bathe. Today I have included some recent photos taken of birds which have visited my bird baths. These were all taken when the weather was much cooler than our hot summer days, so even in cool weather, we have the delight of many birds coming to visit the bird baths.
Enjoy.
White-browed Babbler
New Holland Honeyeater
Galah