167) Local Rarities

Winter has arrived (such as it is in OZ). This means that some hard to find birds have moved down into our "local areas." We have been trying to get a good view of a Rose Robin for a long time. We followed the news of a flurry of sightings in the last month and miraculously located this gorgeous guy at an area new to us. Given their bright colors they can be remarkably hard to see - their all-charcoal grey backs blend into the woods quite well!

We're fond of the Bush Stone-Curlews, they show up in the most unlikely spots, like this one at the ferry terminal parking lot.  They freeze when they know you've spotted them, hoping you'll forget they're there and wander away, putting them out of danger.  At night, their wails carry far and wide, if you're lucky enough to camp near to them (we have been). 

The Golden Whistlers are gorgeous no matter how many times we see them.  And we finally figured out the little gray birds with the yellow under the tail that always befuddled us.  They're the female Golden Whistlers.













Dirk's favourite pardalote pair are still working on the hole for their nest.  They're very industrious little birds, it's still amazing to see that such tiny beings exist.

A charming White-throated Honeyeater. Unfortunately I did not catch the Yellow-faced Honeyeater which was a new one for us.

I was so surprised to see this Black-Shouldered Kite so close at hand, I had to go home and get Dirk's camera to take his photo.  He was still there when I got back, because he was using this tree as a base station for his morning hunt.  Birds of prey, they hover masterfully in the air before diving to take their prey. We marvel at his red eye and snowy white plumage.







Nancy takes a crack at using Dirk's fancy camera to capture a Golden-Headed Cistocola image.  This one's in non-breeding plumage, because of the stripes on his head.  In breeding plumage, well, he has a golden head.  They flit about in the tall grasses, calling then dropping out of sight again.  This one was extremely cooperative, however.  We want to see their cousins, the Zitting Cistocolas, just because we like the name, but they're up north, and may be a difficult find.

Another Nancy photo of a saucy Double-Barred Finch glancing over his shoulder.  This is an amazing site for birds (the Kite, Cisticola, and Finch are all from the same place), moreover because it's a tiny wetland at the edge of the parking lot of a huge stadium next to the train station.  They have plans to build a tavern at this site, in preparation for the 2018 Commonwealth Games.