Little Ravens caught thieving
Little Raven about to steal some of the mat on our back veranda
Over the years I have found that many birds can be quite enterprising in their daily endeavours. One such example occurred a few days ago on our back veranda.
Little Ravens are very common in our part of the world here in Murray Bridge, South Australia. I often see a dozen or more flying overhead. Sometimes they gather to feed in a loose flock of many dozens in the paddock opposite our block of land.
Recently I had seen several of them close to the house and in the garden. I’d also seen them carrying nesting materials. A few days ago I looked out through one of the windows overlooking the back veranda, only to see one of the ravens tugging at the mat on the edge of it. In the photo above you can see how frayed one end of it has become, so I gather they’ve been thieving from our mat for some time.
And I thought the mat was becoming worn through wiping our muddy shoes on it!
Silver Gull eating a rabbit
Silver Gulls, Victor Harbor, South Australia
Silver Gulls are the most common species of gull in Australia. They are found in all coastal regions around Australia as well as far inland near to water courses and lakes. Here in my home town of Murray Bridge in South Australia they are quite common along the River Murray which is about 4 kilometres from my home.
Last Saturday morning on my way down to the CBD of the town I needed to avoid hitting a Silver Gull feeding on, of all things, a dead rabbit in the middle of the road near our place. Silver Gulls are known for their scavenging habits, but this is the first time I’ve ever seen one eating a rabbit.
I didn’t have my camera with me at the time. My readers are probably relieved for that; the dead rabbit was not a pretty sight!
One very lucky penguin
My daughter sent me a link to a Youtube video about one very clever – or lucky penguin.
It is certainly worth taking out two minutes to watch it. Click here to view it.
What I want to know is – how foolish are the observers? There they are sitting in a rubber dinghy in a sea boiling with killer whales only a metre or two away.
Yikes – I’d be terrified too – move over little penguin!
White-browed Babblers
White-browed Babbler
White-browed Babblers are a resident breeding species in our garden. Hardly a day goes by without them coming quite close to the house and scratching around in the mulch or leaf litter under the trees. At other times they hop all over nearby trees, searching under the bark for ants, beetles and spiders.
Usually they come in a family group of between five and eight, sometimes more. they move through the garden in a loose flock, constantly calling to keep in contact with each other. They are quick movers, hopping quickly through the foliage, along the ground, across branches or wherever they are feeding at the moment. If one looses close contact with the rest it with fly low and fast to make contact with the group again.
Because they are always on the move I have had a challenge getting good photos of them. On this post I have two reasonable photos but they are still not great. I guess I’ll just have to keep on trying.
White-browed Babbler
Galahs lose their home
Galahs at nesting hollow
A few months ago I wrote about a pair of Galahs investigating a hollow in a large tree in our garden. Every day or so they would come and do a little more in the hollow. I even saw them lining the nest with fresh gum leaves. But it didn’t happen. Their happy homemaking never resulted in the happy – noisy – squawk of little ones.
In the meantime I noticed that they would come every few days, sit at the entrance and screech loudly into the hollow. This behaviour puzzled me. I wondered if some other creature – an owl perhaps – had taken up residence.
A few nights ago I found out what had happened – and I have photographic evidence of who had taken over their cosy love nest. The photos below tell the story.
Brush-tailed Possum
Brush-tailed Possum