BIRD NEWS:41

I will start today's post with a few shots of the youngest pigeon preening and then settling in my tree. These were taken in the middle of May.

As you can see, this Bubster-Pidge is not at all fussed by my camera - phew. Big brother, Teen-Pidge, is somewhat more reserved, however. These next two shots show the difference between this years brood - the friendly and the not so friendly...

Bubster-Pidge likes to observe me when I read in the evening, which I tend to do for around 30-45 minutes before work. Although I read silently, to myself, it is as though he can mind-read as I go. Perhaps he just picks up the calm vibe. Whichever if either the case may be, attentive he is.

Of course, pigeons are not the only birds in the yard - even if they appear in most of my blog posts. There has recently been an abundance of young starlings. These are quite noisy, specially when sitting in the nursery tree and spotting a parent bird with a beakfull of something tasty appear. A loud, eruptive, screechy rattle-scream appears in my ears at such times. The birds could in fact be a band of musicians - with the starlings as percussion, pigeons as bass, and blackbirds as lead guitar/singer - and the sparrows providing backing vox, lol.

BIRD NEWS:40

One last shot of the dove greedily letting the pigeon know he was eating in her territory...

...before moving on. The second week of May was drawing to a close and I stood at my open front door enjoying a coffee, when I became aware of a fluttering to my right. Expecting a sparrow, I spotted a great tit munching grubs from the fuchsia and azalea! The following day, while sipping at a jahe wangi at my open front door, a blue tit decided to forage in the pieris tree.

Yesterday evening, I had turned off the computer and changed into my clothes ready for work. I was settling down to read a chapter of a book before leaving, when I spotted someone staring in at me.

It was Bubster-Pidge, the youngest of the year so far. Already more pigeony than the last time sighted, he settled in the tree, pigeon-cooed, and proceeded to preen. I caught him mid-preen in this next shot.

As I read, the pigeon settled down, lazily, meditating along - until a flock of baby starlings landed in the tree with much noise. The young pigeon regarded the young starlings amazed at the screech-rattling going on. This young starling was just as amazed by the huge young pigeon...

But both soon settled down while I finished my chapter before putting out some suet and seed and then disappearing to work.

BIRD NEWS:39

I have 2 more shots of the magpie to share with you to start today's post. Meanwhile, in the yard activity is increasing as many youngsters learn about their new habitat. I was baking an apricot pastry this morning, and happened to glance out of the kitchen window to spot Curio taking a bath in the plastic tub. Before she had finished, a host of new-from-nest starling descended upon the veg plot in front of her, full of curiosity.

They stared at Curio, one upped its beak as if to ask for food, another bounced into the long grass and disappeared briefly, another landed on the sill and stared in at me before joining its siblings. Curio beaked them away grumpily.

My next shots are of of Ditty trying to stop Pidge enjoying his meal. Pidge was quietly enjoying the seed in the bird table when Ditty landed with a plop on top of the roof. Pidge looked out and up to ensure it was not a hawk, magpie, jackdaw or other danger - only to find Ditty puffing up and trying to look bigger than Pidge - as if to say 'this is MY cafe, pigeon, be gone!' Pidge looked rather alarmed, fluttered his wings in pigeon-fight fashion, but Ditty did not attack him pigeon style...

BIRD NEWS:38

Let me start today's post with a shot each of the two youngest wood pigeons - Teen-pidge and Bubster-pidge. Teen-pidge was puffed up and observant yet again, while Bubster-pidge swooped in for fodder on the sill and did a Naboo - diving out of camera shot! Next, onto the doves. Here is a shot of Ditty or her partner sheltering from the gales in my tree.

As you can see we are back to the blurry foliage shots due to wind interferences! Soon after taking the shot of Ditty during the end of the first week in May, Magster landed in the tree for long enough to take some photos. It was the start of the next week before I got a decent photo of him, though.

By the start of the second week in May I was certain that Ditty and partner had taken up nesting residency in the laurel tree - situated behind my main bedroom-view pittisporum tree. They often hung out in my tree, eyeing the windowsill, scared a pair of wood pigeons from my tree, and always seemed to disappear 'behind' the tree when departing from sight.

Generally, the old back yard looks a fairly good spot for birds to inhabit - as I am sure you will agree from this next shot. One negative aspect of the multiple tree-hedge-shrub-plant-weed-pond patch however is that cats also enjoy it. This detracts somewhat from the birds pleasure. My idea is that the back yard should be for NATURE. This means that whilst I can sadly allow a sparrowhawk or fox the rights to munch one of my friends, I am not so lenient with 'pet' cats and will chase them on sight.

BIRD NEWS:37 & weeping with sadness

Before diving down the youngster pigeon hung about the branches, watching me as I read/held the camera, ready...

It appears to be quite inquisitive as well as tame. Big brother pigeon, now a teen, has also been hanging about lately, observing me, fascinated. This next shot taken on the first weekend in May.

Of course, pigeons are not the only birds to have been caught on camera recently, although predominating my shots due to their curiosity and their not flying away by the time I grab the camera. Here follows a shot of Mr Black eyeing me from 'the tree'...

...but we are soon back to pigeons. Here is another shot or two of the teenage pigeon, seen around a week before the youngest bubster pigeon.

I have not seen Plate-face or Mr Bob for a long time now, and assume both are busy nesting, rearing young, and able to find much food. Two of the starlings appear to have young, as they scoop a beakful of suet pellets then fly away fast. I spotted a couple of goldfinches briefly again this first week in May, but as before, they were in the tree and out. The doves seem to be hanging around a lot, and I am thinking their latest nest might now be in the laurel behind 'the tree'.

Finally - a link HERE to recent post in a UK newspaper that brought tears to my eyes. HOW can 'us' ladies wear parts of our friends....? I guess it as the same as some of my fellow humans eating my friends, eating their produce, and mistreating them - but... I could not live with myself if I wore my friends.

BIRD NEWS:36

The youngster pigeon with tameness and curiousness was sitting in the tree early May. It then swooped down onto the sill and began to munch. I took a few shots, but none came out very well - except the last one. It had finished munching seed and decided to take a peek in at me.

The first week of the new month had turned spring from delightful and real spring into rainy and real spring, also turning a tad colder again. Still, much activity was going on in the yard. I was cooking my lunch one day in the first few days of May when I spotted a group of starlings all enjoying the water tub at the same time. Luckily I had my camera in my hands before they left and managed to take some shots of them enjoying the water.

The starlings have been quite active of late, although only two seem to have swooped down for suet pellets as soon as suet and seed appeared on the sill.

Later that evening, the youngster wood pigeon without fear was in the tree again - looking, hopefully at my sill...

BIRD NEWS:35

On the very last day in April, I was in the kitchen - without camera alas - when a very young pigeon landed PLOP on the windowsill, right in front of me. Luckily, it waited a while then flew down into my veg plot, enabling me to dash upstairs and grab my camera. It sat itself down and began doing 'I am hot' styled wing exercises, oblivious to me and my little pink metal box.

It eventually stopped wobbling its wings in the cool sunshine and just sat there for a moment. It looked around as if to investigate lazily the new territory it had entered after its nest and tree. Soon, it began to move around a bit and to nibble things.

I am hoping this youngster will now be aware that it can safely come close to me without harm and that the little metallic pink box will not harm it either. Each year I live in hope that the younger generation will trust me more than the last years' young - but I have yet to see true tameness, the way my pigeon flock back home in Wollongong showed.

BIRD NEWS:34 & the effects of the quake & nightingale noises

The last few days of April presented me with more opportunities to photograph the pigeons. Firstly, one of the older pigeons decided to land on the stone bird bath whilst my camera was handy...

 

...allowing for some decent-posed shots. This is one of the fairly young, but not very young birds of the group. Next, I caught a parent bird on the bird table, peeping at me through the rose arch debris.

That last shot is not a pigeon - but a dove. Later on, I had my camera upstairs and managed to catch a few shots of Ditty and partner hanging out in my tree. They were staring at the windowsill as if to say - 'well, sometimes there is food there...' Alas, I did not want to scare them by replacing what had already been gobbled with fresh seed, so they had to go without. They did however offer me the chance to grab a few pictures.

HERE is the link to an article concerning the effect of the recent quake...

HERE is the link to a recording of a nightingale.