One good tern deserves another. The Great Crested Terns look good in their spring plumage, crests raised to impress the opposite sex. White-fronted Terns winter here are are about to leave, while Common Terns are just arriving from the northern hemisphere.
Red Wattle Bird
Red-browed Firetail
Horsfield's Bronze Cuckoo
Pink Matchheads (Comesperma ericinum)
Feeling very much like spring on our walk today.
The Cattle Egret is apparently a relatively recent colonist of Australia from Asia, with the first birds recorded in the Northern Territory in 1948. Since then they have spread to most of the continent. There are large breeding colonies around here on the Central Coast and Hunter Valley.
Early for an appointment at Warner’s Bay, I sat and watched the Little Corellas playing birdy games. Around sixty birds were hanging out between the lake and the road, digging for grubs and just mucking about.
An interesting time on the rock platform at the moment with the Double-banded Plovers in full breeding colours ready to head off to New Zealand to breed, and North-South migratory species arriving in the remnants of their Sunday best, including Red-necked Stints, Grey-tailed Tattler, Curlew Sandpiper and Red Knot.
The Swift Parrot is very active feeding on blossoms and lerp high in the tree tops, and moves constantly from tree to tree with a very fast, direct flight. They are endemic to Tasmania, wintering on the Central Coast of NSW only when conditions are favourable, and they are endangered with only around a thousand breeding pairs. So I was pleased to see them fairly close-up and have the opportunity to grab some photos, as I’ve only been aware of them a couple of times passing overhead – alerted by their distinctive flight call.
