Red Hill Nature Reserve always has something of interest, with this morning’s excitement caused by a Brown Goshawk swooping me. I thought I had missed the opportunity to see the goshawks as I had been through this area without any interaction with them but one of them let me know they were still definitely around. I also had an enjoyable time photographing some Gang-gang Cockatoos as well as the usual assortment of birdlife in the reserve. I hope you enjoy the photographs below.
A Satin Bowerbird (Ptilonorhynchus violaceus) was in a tree in an area I would not normally expect to see these birds. It may have been a female. It was coming from a part of a tree that had a mess of foliage and twigs, so I was not sure if there was a nest in there.
A quiet, single, possibly female Satin Bowerbird
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 800, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/640 SEC])
Three Grey Fantails (Rhipidura albiscapa) were flying between some trees. I suspect there was an unwanted bird, as one of the fantails appeared to be chased away by one of the others.
Grey Fantail
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/320 SEC])
There was a group of three or four Gang-gang Cockatoos (Callocephalon fimbriatum). They were near an area where Gang-gangs have bred in the past but not actually at a tree used last season. There were at least two males, an adult and a juvenile. The two males were sharing a branch for a while before the adult chased away the juvenile. The juvenile bird did not go far but the adult assumed the higher position in the tree. I saw two females, but not at the same time so I am unsure if they were two separate birds or the same bird in two different locations.
Female Gang-gang Cockatoo
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/640 SEC])
She flew to some trees a short distance away
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/800 SEC])
Two male Gang-gangs, with a juvenile at the top of the picture
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/400 SEC])
There were a group of three to four Black-faced Cuckoo-Shrikes (Coracina novaehollandiae) flying around the northern facing slope of Red Hill. There may have been competition for mates or trees as it looked like birds were being chased away from perching locations. There was a lot of calling happening, which also contributed to the idea of competition between birds.
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/400 SEC])
A different one calling
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/640 SEC])
Three Australian Ravens (Corvus coronoides) were high in a tree. At one stage one of the ravens had a long, black feather in its claws. This bird was an adult but a juvenile was nearby; it approached closer to the adult bird after a few minutes. The adult bird was picking at the calamus, or the part of the shaft that is in the skin of a bird. The shaft is hollow and some of my photographs appear to show part of the calamus wall pulled up, so I am not sure what the Raven was after. Research has shown grebes eat their feathers, with the hypothesis that the feathers are meant to help with digestion. The implication is the whole feather is consumed where as in this case the Raven was picking at the shaft of the feather. It is possible the Raven was making a tool from the feather but I did not see any follow-on behaviour. The juvenile bird was pulling at the barbs of the feather, which almost seemed to indicate to me that the juvenile bird wanted food.
Australian Ravens, adult on the left and juvenile on the right, appearing to pick at a feather
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/640 SEC])
The adult looks annoyed at junior making a noise
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/640 SEC])
An Eastern Rosella (Platycercus eximius) was flying from tree to tree, looking into hollows. It did not enter the hollows too far, it just peered inside them.
Eastern Rosella at a hollow
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/640 SEC])
An adult Grey Butcherbird (Cracticus torquatus) was apparently searching for food for its young. The bird was preached on a branch, before it launched at something on the ground. The first time it struck, the bird was not successful but it found something the next time. After that success, it flew to a tree further away from me, where I could hear some plaintive sounds before they were muffled with what sounded like food entering a beak, like a juvenile bird being fed.
Grey Butcherbird looking for food to feed an offspring
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/640 SEC])
Brown Goshawks (Accipiter fasciatus) regularly nest on a certain part of Red Hill. I had heard they were around but I had not seen them despite going through that part of the reserve a few times. Once again I had gone to that part of the hill and did not see them. Until I heard a very loud “whoosh,” very close over my head, and a goshawk swooped low over me with another goshawk just off to its side. The birds flew into a tree in front of me, with the swooping bird calling continuously. The sun was behind the bird but a wooded area prevented me getting around the bird so as to get the light on a better side. I thought I could use some of the trees to shelter me from the swooping but a goshawk came in very close. I was happy enough with my photos so I left the area.
Brown Goshawk calling
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 800, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/640 SEC])
The second of the pair
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/800 SEC])
The Galah (Eolophus roseicapillus) pair I had previously seen at this hollow were still there. The female appeared to be gathering some leaves to line the hollow. A collection of leaves is the only nest building these birds do in the hollow.
A Galah pair, with the female doing some lining of the hollow
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 800, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/500 SEC])
There were the usual number of Eastern Grey Kangaroos (Macropus giganteus) across the hill, including kangaroos with joeys. I also saw a male kangaroo pawing at a female’s tail before smelling the female’s urine. Males smell the urine of the female to see if the female is ready to breed. This female must not have been ready as the male did not attempt to mate with her..
Female Eastern Grey Kangaroo and joey
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 117mm, f/8.0 and 1/400 SEC])
The male kangaroo, on the right, was checking the female ahead of him to see if she was ready for mating
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 12500, 200mm, f/8.0 and 1/320 SEC])