Usually I walk around Red Hill Nature Reserve early on a Saturday morning but as I was out on Saturday with an ANU Continuing Education course I was attending, I visited Red Hill on Sunday morning instead. (I will write more about the course very shortly, especially our field trip to Mulligans Flat.) I varied my route ever so slightly this morning, as I try to do regularly, which allowed me to see a few more birds than I would have seen on my usual path. Red Hill is such a treasure so close to where I live, it is always worth going for a walk. I hope you enjoy these photographs.
The first pair of birds I saw were one of my favourites, a pair of nesting Rainbow Lorikeets (Trichoglossus haematodus). They were in the hollow I had seen them in before. I heard one of them first, seeing it land in the upper branches of the nesting tree. Because I knew they were using the hollow I kept it under observation while also looking at the lorikeet perched high above. Eventually a lovely blue head peered out of the hollow. It circled its head through 180 degrees, almost like it was stretching its neck. It seemed a little nervous. often pulling back quickly into the shadow. The other lorikeet joined it by entering through a small hole in the top of the hollow. I was disappointed it entered that way, as I was poised with my camera ready to photograph it entering the hollow. These are such beautiful birds that are a joy to watch, although they are causing concern in other parts of Australia due to their strong defence of their territory, often driving out other birds.
One adult Rainbow Lorikeet peering out from the nesting hollow
Walking further north, along the back of the old Deakin Telstra building I saw two young Australian Ravens (Corvus coronoides) on the roof continuously calling. They seemed to be waiting for a parent to come and feed them. It was not clear if they were from the same brood, as they were almost at opposite ends of the roof. They also appeared to be looking for anything edible on the top of the roof, where there was probably not much to eat. One of them eventually flew off to the east.
An immature Australian Raven looking for food, note the red around the beak, a sign of an immature bird
A bit further on I was lucky to see a Laughing Kookaburra (Dacelo novaeguineae) fly into a tree at almost my eye level. It was perched quietly, just scanning its environment. The sun was 90 degrees to my right initially, not really ideal for photographing because of the shadows it causes. I was able to work my way around to shoot with the sun at about 45 degrees to me. The kookaburra turned to look over its back, reflecting the sun in a nice catchlight in its eye. I love kingfishers and I love this shot. The bird flew off to north-west, up towards Red Hill itself.
Laughing Kookaburra probably scanning for food
Behind the back of the Deakin Telstra building were these bird remains. I am guessing it was a pigeon with those reddish feet. Not sure what killed it but the skeleton does not look at all complete. It is possible that something larger killed it, with mother nature’s little cleaners, Meat Ants, doing their part to return the nutrients back into the food chain.
Meat Ants disposing of soft tissue on a bird carcass
To enter Red Hill Nature Reserve proper I went a little further north than usual, around a copse of large trees. This little group of trees was alive with birdlife, I was transfixed for may be 20 minutes photographing as well as just watching everything that was happening in these trees. There were three Silvereyes (Zosterops lateralis) high up in the tree flying between the closely spaced trees in that area.
Silvereye
I could hear a Satin Bowerbird (Ptilonorhynchus violaceus) making its strange, whirring mating call but it took me a while to be able to see it. Only when it moved higher into the tree was it obvious. This was the only photo I was able to take before it flew off to the north-west.
A Satin Bowerbird high in a tree
A pair of Sacred Kingfishers (Todiramphus sanctus) landed on a branch on the opposite side of the tree form me. Fortunately I was able to find a gap in the branches to photograph through. I was not able to get the pair together but I did see this bird with a dragonfly in its mouth. Despite the size of the insect this kingfisher swallowed it down without a problem.
A Sacred Kingfisher just before it swallowed the dragonfly
Walking further up the hill I saw a female Magpie-lark (Grallina cyanoleuca) walking on the ground. It did not seem concerned by my presence. The bird eventually flew into the branches, near to where a male was perched. They were very quiet, with no nest apparent to me. There were also no alarmed calls audible either, which led me to guess these birds were not nesting at this stage.
Female Magpie-lark
A little further up still there was this beautiful Crimson Rosella (Platycercus elegans) sitting with sun striking it directing from the front, the best lighting. I could not resist the shot.
Crimson Rosella, a beautifully coloured bird
Since I had come from this direction I decided to look at the White-winged Chough (Corcorax melanorhamphos) nest I saw being built the previous weekend. It was now complete with a lone chough sitting in it. The bird did not seem too concerned with my presence as it did not start calling its family group to help protect it.
A White-wonged Chough sitting on its cooperatively-made mud nest
There are always Sulphur-crested Cockatoos (Cacatua galerita) on Red Hill, including a pair who may have been inspecting a nesting hollow. These two birds established a presence on the dead tree before one of them looked inside a hollow and made a loud call, apparently directed inside the hollow. It then climbed down to perch at the bottom of the hollow, looking occasionally inside. It never went all the way inside. First one bird, then the other flew off without ever showing more of an apparent interest in the hollow.
Later on I came across this single bird, seen in the second photo below, high in a hollow; more towards the centre of the hill. It was not doing much, with one eye apparently half-closed like it was napping. It did open the eye later on. I am guilty of anthropomorphising again, as I had an image of a truly exhausted mum just catching a nap wherever it could.
A Sulphur-crested Cockatoo possibly checking a nesting hollow
I like to think this is a mother cockatoo grabbing a quick rest from the nest, possibly behind her in the hollow
This Australian Magpie (Cracticus-tibicen) was perched at a distance doing its morning preening.
A sightly unkempt Australian Magpie looks on
I saw this Striated Pardalote (Pardalotus striatus) emerge from the nesting hollow I had seen it at before. I wondered if it was feeding chicks, as it seemed to fly to other trees then back to the hollow. May be it was only my wishful thinking.
A Striated Pardalote with something in its mouth
Just behind the tree with the pardalote there was a Yellow-rumped Thornbill (Acanthiza chrysorrhoa) moving through the low grass probably looking for food.
A Yellow-rumped Thornbill foraging for food
I was fortunate this morning, as I had given up on seeing any Gang-gang Cockatoos (Callocephalon fimbriatum), even though I had heard them, and I had briefly seen a male flying to the north-west. While looking intently at a tree I had seen them at before, I failed completely to see the female outside of the hollow, but sitting quietly. The Striated Pardalote, mentioned above, flew to the tree, which was enough to disturb the female Gang-gang, making her move so I noticed her. She then went straight into the hollow, with the male emerging a little while later. He then flew off to the north-north-west. (Roughly the direction I had seen the other male fly off to. Unsure if they were heading to the Arboretum or some other known food source.) I also noticed a number of flies coming out of the hollow at this change of shift. I do not know if this is normal. Birds normally do not soil their nests so maybe the flies were just avoiding the heat.
Further on I saw another male Gang-gang sitting in some branches. He was calling very loudly but did not seem to be interested in any hollows.
On my walk home I think I noticed another possible nesting hollow. It was about 5 m up on the side facing the path near the golf course. I saw a male at the hollow, apparently inspecting it. I could hear a second bird in that tree, or the adjacent tree, but could not see the actual bird to confirm if it was the female.
The male Gang-gang first departing from the hollow, note the two flies around the hollow.
Another male further east around Red Hill
A possible nesting hollow on the Hughes side of Red Hill
Almost back in Hughes I saw this Pied Currawong (Strepera graculina) stretched out anting to remove parasites.
A Pied Currawong anting
As with most of these wonderfully camouflaged insects, you do not see them until you blunder upon where they have been staying quietly, then they have to fly away quickly to avoid being trampled underfoot. I was photographing a Gang-gang when a twig jumped out of my way. That twig turned to be this wonderfully textured Black-kneed Gumleaf Grasshopper. I only had my l00-400mm telephoto lens but the shots still came out reasonably well. This grasshopper remained so still after it had landed, even when Meat Ants were crawling around the area, bumping into it.
A Black-kneed Gumleaf Grasshopper staying as still as possible