25 Jul 2016 Werribee

Werribee water treatment plant is a wonderful spot for all birds, with around 200 or so species. But its a very special place if you like raptors. It is incredibly rich. Today was a brown falcon day - this was the best shot...

It was as chilly winter day, as the next photo shows. The poor zebra finches were frozen, huddled together for warmth!

3 Jul 2016 Werribee

Today was a day for the raptors.

Nankeen (or Australian) Kestrel

A brown falcon (above). And three shots of kites (below). The ones in flight are of a black kite. The one perched is a whistling kite

6 Jun 2016 Fine Feathers tour Port Douglas

2016 was our second trip in successive year to PD and our second day trip with Del Richard and his awesome Fine Feathers full day tour.

Del has been around these parts for decades. He knows where to go, what to see and how to get the birds to appear using electronic or manual bird song imitations, to get the dudes to fly out of the trees and see what is going on. We saw 89 species in a day, many of which were new to us. Below is a short sample of some of the rarer birds:-

Bush stone curlew

Double eyed fig parrot

Dusky honeyeater

Forest kingfisher

Goulds bronze cuckoo

Horsfields bronze cuckoo

Great bowerbird in his bower

Female leaden flycatcher

Lemon bellied flycatcher

Spectacled monarch

A rare white browed crake

Yellow bellied sunbird

Yellow honeyeater

Yellow oriole

4 Jun 2016 Port Douglas

2016 was the second successive year we visited Port Douglas just before the main school holiday season kicks off. Early June can be changeable in terms of the weather but the town is quiet and there are still lots of birds to see.

The footie oval was particularly fruitful. We spent time watch the courting ritual of a pair of bar shouldered doves. Mrs seems pretty unimpressed!

Fig birds were plentiful. The figs had clearly just ripened,  see picture of the female below.

The best way to get around PD was on a hire bike. They had big baskets for all the camera gear. We found ourselves returning to the footie oval twice daily, as there was so much going on. At the top of the one of the floodlight towers was an osprey nest, with two adult ospreys in it.

Rainbow bee eaters might be very common but I love them. So colourful and those long tails are amazing.

In 2015 the most common kingfisher was the Forest - this year we saw far more Sacred Kingfishers...

And most ended in a civilized manner, with a beer on the Inlet, watching the sun go down

22 May 2016 Cape Paterson

We occasionally are treated by a flock of black cockatoos. Its often related to when their favourite snacks are ripe. Today we were lucky...

21 May 2016 Bald Hills

Bald Hills Creek Wildlife Reserve is one of our favourite spots for birds and other wildlife.

Bald Hills

It will appear regularly on this blog. The nature changes dramatically with the seasons - two trips are never the same.


















Grey shrike thrushes are common at Bald Hills. And so too are wallabies...

15 May 2016 Manningham Wetlands, Parkville

Manningham wetlands is a wonderful city oasis, just by the end of the Tullamarine freeway. This was my first foray with my new EOS80D and RAW images.




Chestnut teal















Willy wagtail

New Holland honeyeater

Red wattlebird

29 May 2016 Werribee water treatment plant raptors

You never quite know what to expect when you visit a regular site. But at Werribee you are guaranteed raptors. Just which ones??

We saw three kite species today - the first is the most common at Werribee, the Whistling Kite.

Similar, but much darker and with different wing colours is the Black Kite:-

BIF, or bird in flight is the holy grail for bird photographers. I am by no means expert, but working on it!

And the last kite variety today was another common spot at Werribee, the black shouldered kite:-

One of my favourite raptors is the Brown Falcon:-

There were a few hobbys around and some stayed long enough for a decent photo!

And last but by no means least, a bird that lead to a lot of work in the books and online. I thought this was a wedge tailed eagle but I am reliably informed its a juvenile white bellied sea eagle.

22 Apr 2016 Wonthaggi Wedgies

Sometimes I think my love or raptors, especially big raptor is a sign of my novice status as a birder. Many of the "serious" dudes I see a bird sites seem to be over this, focusing on finding smaller, rarer species. I am no there yet. So when I was driving to Wonthaggi and I saw some wedgies circling about Dalyston I pulled over and took some shots.





















I drove on towards Wonthaggi and another wedgie pair passed overhead. Am pretty confident this was a different pair of eagles. And one of the almost landed on the car, opting instead to perch precariously in a tree a bit too small on the other side of the road. I managed to take this shot without leaving the car, which would have frightened the bird.

28 Mar 2016 Yandoit

Our good friends Gordy and Jodie had a block in Yandoit, Victoria. Its a wonderful spot for birds and and other wildlife as readers will see from future blog entries.

Crested shrike tit

A rather timid wallaby

White plumbed honeyeater