I visited a different part of Red Hill Nature Reserve than I usually visit on my morning walks. I am glad I did as there was a different variety of birds in this location. I had an extended view of a pair of Gang-gang Cockatoos as well as a fleeting look at a Fan-tailed Cuckoo. I spent a fair bit of time staying in a single spot photographing the birds around me, it was a lovely start to a Sunday.
Walking towards Red Hill I came across a Red Wattlebird. It was perched on power lines making its distinctive morning call. Its call alerted me to its presence as it is such a signature sound. It was not in a good place for a photograph with the sun basically behind behind the bird.
Getting onto the hill proper I came across a group of Australian King-Parrots. Usually these birds do not like humans too close but when they are feeding they seem to be more focussed on food than humans, allowing me to get closer. There was a group of three or four with at least a male and a female as can be seen in the photographs. The male has the all red head while the female is green. They were not easy to photograph as the sun was not yet fully striking the tree and the birds were in the branches. Still, they are beautiful birds.
There are always Superb Fairy-wrens. These delightful little birds were in a group with what appeared to be a single breeding male, who I saw briefly but did not get a chance to photograph. I was able to photograph these females. I am unsure if they are the same bird as these shots were taken facing two different directions. The birds were flying between a tree, to a shrub to the ground. I stayed still, just letting my camera move but the male never returned.
While trying to photograph the fairy-wrens I noticed a brownish bird fly onto the branch of a tree in the background. It was a Fan-tailed Cuckoo. The yellow circle around the eye drew me to it. These cuckoos lay their eggs in the nests of birds who make dome nests, so not an open nest. This seems to be an added challenge to deal with for the cuckoo. They also like eating hairy caterpillars, something I was able to capture in my photos below. Although these birds are very common this was the first one I had seen.
Close by in the location where I had seen the above birds was a dead tree, which initially attracted a pair of Eastern Rosellas. They did not stay long.
In the same tree there was also a Crimson Rosella.
The rosellas were disturbed by the appearance of a Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, who also did not stay long.
Continuing my walk I was really happy as I was able to see a pair of Gang-gang Cockatoos who were not in the least perturbed by my presence. I first saw the male, who was eating the bark of the tree. A female then came over to him. The photos are almost voyeuristic as the birds appear to be kissing like a human couple but this is actually mutual preening, which is part of the relationship behaviour in a couple.
The final bird I photographed that morning was this Australian Magpie at its nest. I had noted this nest in winter, hoping it would prove to be an active nest. I had seen a magpie in it before but it is not easy to get the right angle to photograph because the nest is hidden in the branches. I am guessing at this stage there may only be eggs as I could not hear any chicks yet. From past experience I know magpies in this area swoop so I will be keeping an eye on them. I am really trying to catch a look at the chicks poking up from the nest beseeching their parents for food.
Red Hill Nature Reserve has a lot of Eastern Grey Kangaroos, which can be a problem with the current dryness. You can see how desiccated the grass is in the photographs. The kangaroos are going further afield for grass putting them on suburban roads more and more, as they even roam onto people's front lawns and into suburban parks. These photographs show two different groups of kangaroos. I spent some time photographing the second group. I was even able to walk among them by moving at a slow constant pace while looking down to avoid eye contact. It was a lovely way to finish my morning walk.
