Today’s contribution is, of course, a Sunday selection of birds from John Avise. John’s IDs and notes are indented, and you can enlarge his photos by clicking on them.
Australian Birds, Part 3
This week’s post continues a 5-part mini-series on birds that I photographed on a short business trip to Queensland, Australia in 2006. It shows just a few of the many avian species that inhabit the Land Down Under.
Great Bowerbird (Chlamydera nuchalis):
Grey Fantail (Rhipidura albiscapa):
Grey-headed Robin (Heteromyias cinereifrons):
Helmeted Friarbird (Philemon buceroides):
Laughing Kookaburra (Dacelo novaeguineae):
Lewin’s Honeyeater (Meliphaga lewinii):
Little Pied Cormorant (Microcarbo melanoleucos)
Arafura Shrike-thrush (Colluricincla megarhyncha):
Macleay’s Honeyeater (Xanthotis macleayanus):
Magpie Goose (Anseranas semipalmata):
Magpie Goose flying:
Thanks again for this series!
It looks as if the beak of the grey-headed robin is rather blunt. Is that the case? And if so, I wonder how it evolved that way. Undoubtedly because of food sources; do you know what it eats?
Ahhhh … refreshing!
How do you find so MANY different birds?! Awesome photos – love the blue feet on that Macleay’s Honeyeater.
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Nice collection!
Nice photos — as usual — of birds, some of which I’m not familiar with.
Question:
I live in the San Francisco Bay Area. My wife’s house includes a pool surrounded by pretty lush vegetation. This time of year a mallard couple will often decide to lounge in and by the pool.
They’re cute to watch, but their presence results in lots of mallard poop both on the perimeter of the pool and in the pool. Which is not fun for the kids and grandkids, and not good for the pool chemistry. Any suggestions for the best way to disinvite the mallards?
So far the only thing I’ve been able to do is to swipe at the birds with a long-pole skimmer net. But they often come right back. I’m considering buying a battery-powered, remote-controlled boat that looks like a crocodile head…
I’m not a certified expert on bird control, but having a battery-powered crocodile head roaming a swimming pool sounds like great fun regardless!
Ha! Yes, that’s what my wife & I were thinking, too. Would be even more fun if the crock’s “mouth” could open on command!
Thanks for the nice Aussie birds. I love birds with blue feet, I don’t know why…I guess blue is just unexpected but pretty. You sure captured a lot of birds on your Aussie visit!
I listened to the laughing kookaburra’s call on “all about birds” to see if its call explains its name. It does. Sunday’s bird pics always great.
These are great as always – nicely framed and expressive shots of fascinating austral species. Never heard of a Friarbird, but this one certainly looks like he (?) is preaching. The Laughing Kookaburra looks like it’s smiling.
He is smiling, as a prelude to the laughing that will follow!
Lovely photos, thanks.
We’ve all heard the kookaburra’s laugh on the soundtrack of old jungle movies, like the Tarzan series.
As a kid, I always thought, as presumably I was meant to, that that particular background noise was made by a chimp or monkey. I was a grown woman before I learned otherwise.