Being in Sydney over Christmas in 2019 was a chance to get away from the smoke in Canberra. It was also a great opportunity to photograph the shore life around the south-eastern side of Sydney Harbour, including the birdlife. Strangely, it was hard to find too much birdlife so I am not sure if the December weather patterns and bushfires had made it harder on Sydney birds than usual. However, I did enjoy photographing some Crested Terns and a Pied Cormorant, although they were at a distance from me so the shots are not the best. I also had the opportunity to do macro photography of some cool insects I found around the place. The weather was mostly pretty good with reasonable light, although there were some gusty winds at time. Still it was nice to enjoy the photographic opportunities I had. I hope you like the pictures below.
A fallen banksia resting in a flower pot
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 800, 100mm, f/10 and 1/125 SEC])
A garden cherub in a bird bath
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 1000, 100mm, f/16 and 1/100 SEC])
Long rock pools at Nielsen Park
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF16-35mm f/4L IS USM [ISO 400, 16mm, f/18 and 1/25 SEC])
The northern part of Bottle and Glass Rocks
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 640, 158mm, f/10 and 1/1000 SEC] multi-shot panorama)
Waves hitting rocks at Nielsen Park
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 100mm, f/10 and 1/400 SEC])
Rocky shore at Nielsen Park
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 1250, 100mm, f/14 and 1/80 SEC])
Shellfish on the edge of a rockpool
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 800, 100mm, f/9.0 and 1/160 SEC])
An anemone and mixed shellfish in a rockpool
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 800, 100mm, f/8.0 and 1/125 SEC])
This period in Sydney also marked my first foray into videography, albeit somewhat spontaneously. I went for a snorkel at Parsley Bay one morning and took along my GoPro Hero5. I was not really sure what I was doing nor what I was going to film but I thought I would give it a go anyway. So, sorry, my first video was not about birds nor set in Canberra but I did enjoy the experience which left me wanting to do more videos as well as to explore shallow, underwater photography, including in fresh water. I hope you like the video, which is the same video I posted to this blog here.
Two or three Australasian Figbirds (Sphecotheres vieilloti) were flying around the branches of a tree on the path beside the harbour. They were backlit against a blue sky so a bit of a challenge to photograph. These birds are related to orioles and do feed on figs, as well as other similar fruit producing trees.
Australasian Figbird
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/10 and 1/1250 SEC])
Crested Terns (Thalasseus bergii) were present on both days I was photographing around Sydney Harbour, but in slightly different locations. In one location the birds were diving into the water, while in the other location they were resting on a convenient wharf. In both locations there appeared to be juveniles with their distinctive mottled back colouration.
Crested Tern on a wharf
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/10 and 1/500 SEC])
Crested Tern with a juvenile on the right
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 640, 400mm, f/10 and 1/1000 SEC])
A lone Pied Cormorant (Phalacrocorax varius) was on a wharf pylon preening itself. I was disappointed it was so far away as it would have made a good photograph if I could have got a bit closer.
Pied Cormorant on a wharf pylon
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 250, 400mm, f/10 and 1/500 SEC])
A pair of New Holland Honeyeaters (Phylidonyris novaehollandiae) were in a tree near the harbour. One of them appeared to have a good amount of pollen on its forehead. They were flying off their respective branches before circling quickly back.
Two New Holland Honeyeaters in a tree catching the morning sun
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 400mm, f/10 and 1/500 SEC])
This Delicate Skink (Lampropholis delicata) was moving along a stone wall bordering a garden. It did not move away as I approached. Eventually, it started to move away from me in slow bounds, but took its time while it was in the sun.
Delicate Skink
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 500, 100mm, f/9.0 and 1/200 SEC])
I could only capture the underside of this Golden Orb Weaver (Genus Nephila), as the top side was pointing down a slope. This is a female, which is easy to tell because she dwarfs the males who may be waiting on the edge of her web to mate.
Underside of a Golden Orb Weaver
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 2000, 100mm, f/6.3 and 1/160 SEC])
This St Andrews Cross Spider (Argiope keyserlingi) was in full display in the morning in a garden I walked past. I lent in to take the photograph but I did not want to go too far in as it was somebody’s property. Again this is a female given its size and colouration. The ‘cross’ can just be seen in the white lines running through the web away from the spider. Scientists are still speculating on what these lines are for. One theory is that because those lines are effective in reflecting ultra-violet light that could be a way to capture insects. Another theory sees them as warnings to birds to stay away from flying through the web because the bird will have to clean the web from its plumage if it flies into the web.
St Andrews Cross Spider
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 500, 100mm, f/9.0 and 1/200 SEC])
Walking along one morning a Jumping Spider was moving around on a broad green leaf. Unfortunately I only had my zoom lens but I still like the shot, with the spider isolated against the green background.
Jumping Spider
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 1250, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/250 SEC])
I photographed this Eucalyptus Tip-wilter Bug nymph as it crawled along a wooden fence railing. I am not sure of the species but I was attracted by its bright colours, which also serve as a warning to other animals to not eat it as it tastes disgusting.
Eucalyptus Tip-wilter Bug nymph
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 2000, 100mm, f/6.3 and 1/100 SEC])
This Green Treehopper (Siphanta acuta) was on the same wooden fence as the tree-filter nympho above but further along. These little insects always appear so mysterious to me, with their big, green body, which often just suddenly appear on you. Then when you touch them, they jump so quickly and far, it is hard to follow them. These are sap-sucking insects so it would not have found much sustenance where it was.
Green Treehopper
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 2000, 100mm, f/6.3 and 1/160 SEC])
This second Leafhopper was so tiny, I initially thought it was droppings from a small creature. Undoubtedly, that was also part of the camouflage it was trying to portray.
Leafhopper
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 1000, 100mm, f/8.0 and 1/200 SEC])
This Common Flatwing (Austroargiolestes icteromelas) damselfly came to rest in a public garden. I was able to lie down to get this photograph, crawling forward after each shot to get slightly closer. It was a very patient insect, allowing me to get very close.
Common Flatwing
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 500, 100mm, f/9.0 and 1/200 SEC])
Several Green Long-legged Flies (Austrosciapus connexus) were on some broad leaves in a garden. These are very common insects with their bright colours being hard to miss. While these insects belong to the true fly order they are not pests, rather they are beneficial in the garden as they ear many of those insects that gardeners do not like, such as aphids.
Green Long-legged Fly
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 1250, 100mm, f/10 and 1/125 SEC])
This Splendid Ochere Skipper butterfly (Trapezites symmomus) was doing its thing and skipping over some flowers, a behaviour that gave them their common name. It landed in just the right position for a photograph. Its antenna are a dead give away with their turned ends.
Splendid Ochre Skipper Butterfly
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 1000, 100mm, f/8.0 and 1/200 SEC])
I stumbled upon this Mantid Lacewing as I was trying to shoot a distant shot of the skipper above. This Mantid Lacewing was very small, concealing itself on the underside of a leaf. I tried to shoot a side shot but as I moved it decided to jump away and I had no idea where it went.
Mantid Lacewing under a plant stem
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 1600, 100mm, f/8.0 and 1/200 SEC])
The ants consuming this dead Honey Bee show that nothing is wasted in the garden jungle. I am not sure how this bee died but it was resting on this vine leaf where these ants had found it. Despite the ants being much smaller than the bee they were busy using their jaws to cut it up. There was no line of ants so I am not sure where they were going to take the parts of the bee but it was fascinating seeing this work happen quietly, hidden away on this leaf in a bushy part of the garden.
Ants starting to cut-up a dead Honey Bee
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 3200, 100mm, f/8.0 and 1/160 SEC])
This spectacular little creature is a Geranium Plume Moth (Sphenarches anisodactylus). Again, I found this wonderful insect on the underside of a stem and I was once again on my stomach to get a photograph. I had seen photographs of plume moths so I knew what it was when I saw it, being very excited to see one in the flesh. Its caterpillar feeds on geraniums as well as similar plants, hence why the moth has that name.
Geranium Plume Moth
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 2000, 100mm, f/8.0 and 1/125 SEC])
Initially, I thought this Apple Looper Moth (Phrissogonus laticostata) was a dropping at the end of leaf, it was only in looking at the photograph later did I see this little expert in disguise. This is a male, as the males have those tufts projecting from the fronts of their wings. The caterpillars are known to be a minor pest on apples as well as eating the blossoms of other plants.
Apple Looper Moth
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 2000, 100mm, f/6.3 and 1/125 SEC])
I saw this Robber Fly hobbling along some the rocks near the harbour at Nielsen Park. One of its wings was stuck out at a slightly strange angle. I am not sure if it was injured but no other creature was around. While these are flies, they do not wait to find something dead, they actively go out and hunt down their prey. You can see the claws at the end of some of its feet that will be used to hold the prey, before it injects a poison that not only kills the animal but turns the prey’s insides into a goo that can be sucked up by the Robber Fly. Sorry, this is not a macro shot, it was on a rock away from me so I used my telephoto lens instead.
Robber Fly
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 400, 330mm, f/8.0 and 1/400 SEC])
A Mud-dauber Wasp was getting a bit of sun on some wide, green leaves. It was cleaning itself as well.
Mud-dauber Wasp
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 500, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/200 SEC])
A tiny Fungus-eating Ladybird (Illeis galbula) was crawling over some plants in the garden. As the names suggest they feed on fungus and black mould so they are good for the garden.
Fungus-eating Ladybird
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 1250, 100mm, f/9.0 and 1/160 SEC])
Below is a bug, or more likely a nymph, I found while taking in our dry washing. I had my camera with me but it was hard to hold the washing and get a photograph, while a southerly howled on through.
Bug
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 500, 100mm, f/7.1 and 1/125 SEC])
Marine Slaters (Ligia australiensis) are relatives of the land Slater or pill bug but have adapted to life on the coastal fringe, especially the rocks. This one may actually be the Ligia exotica, which is how William Dakin in the classic Australian Seashores classes it. Ligia exotica is an introduced animal that has found a home in Australia. The ligia are isopods that need to stay moist hence why they remain in the intertidal zone.
Marine Slater
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 1600, 100mm, f/8.0 and 1/400 SEC])
A Red Rock Crab (Plagusia chabrus) was so busy feasting on a sea star it did not notice me standing on the rock above. If I had been a bird then the crab may have become a meal itself. It seemed to be enjoying its food and did not want to move, even when a wave washed over it. The steadfastness of the crab is shown in the three images below the main shot, as it hung tenaciously to both the rocks and the starfish.
Red Rock Crab eating a star fish
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 1250, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/250 SEC])
The Tubercled Noddiwink (Nodilittorina pyramidalis) is a common shell encountered in the intertidal zone which eats algae.
Tubercled Noddiwink on a wet rock at Nielsen Park
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 3200, 100mm, f/9.0 and 1/160 SEC])
Common Periwinkle, or Little Blue Periwinkle, (Nodilittorina unifasciata) is prolific along the shores. I love its bluish colour. These shellfish are also algae scrapers.
A group of periwinkles
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 1250, 100mm, f/9.0 and 1/160 SEC])
Six-plated Barnacles (Chthamalus antennatus) were common on the rocks but being out of the water they were all shut up to stay moist until tide comes in to cover them with water again.
![Six plated Barnacle(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 800, 100mm, f/13 and 1/80 SEC])](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5b474d53b40b9dfc79289e98/1581748713915-P2V042EPN51BFERJZ6AY/Six-plated_barnacles_Sydney_5711_20191228.jpg)
Six plated Barnacle
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 800, 100mm, f/13 and 1/80 SEC])
The Waratah Anemone (Actinia tenebrosa) is named after the floral symbol of New South Wales, the New South Wales Waratah. At low tide, when the anemone is uncovered by the water, it retracts its arms into itself and appears to be a red blob, but unfurls again when the tide comes in. The smaller anemones around the large one may actually be the offspring of the central anemone. This species produces fully matured young that are ‘expelled’ out of the mouth of the parent and the young ones attach themselves to the nearest rock. Keeping the family together.
Waratah Anemone
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 2500, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/800 SEC])