With the current COVID-19 pandemic we have to be responsible about going out as we do not want to inadvertently spread the disease. With that in mind it has been a challenge to find locations to photograph so to ensure that I avoid crowds but still get out to exercise while taking my camera with me so I can also photograph. This post is predominantly about a walk I did around the base of Black Mountain but I have also included some extra recent photographs from around Canberra. Unfortunately, the Sunday that I visited Black Mountain was very windy and cloudy, making the lighting unpredictable as the clouds moved across the sun. I was still happy to get out for a walk and because I was able to photograph some birds, particularly the Spotted Pardalotes. I hope you enjoy the photographs below.
A Scribbly Gum with a branch that has fused to the trunk
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 800, 100mm, f/14 and 1/100 SEC])
Looking from Black Mountain across Lake Burley Griffin and Spinnaker Island towards the south
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 160, 100mm, f/14 and 1/80 SEC])
A group of Spotted Pardalotes (Pardalotus punctatus) were moving through the canopy of some eucalyptus trees at the very start of my walk. The pictures I took were of a male, easily identified by the bright yellow throat colouring. He may have been looking for small insects in the canopy and these birds tend to like the high canopy where they easily move through the leaves. Unfortunately, due to the wind, getting them in a steady position for a photograph was a real challenge.
A male Spotted Pardalote high in a gum tree looking for food
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 640, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/400 SEC])
I actually did not realise I had photographed a Yellow-faced Honeyeater (Lichenostomus chrysops) until I processed the photograph. At the time I notices a Red Wattlebird was chasing some birds out of a particular tree and I thought it was pushing away the pardalotes. It was only when I cropped in did I realise that it was a honeyeater. The honeyeater almost appeared to be hiding in the shadows in this shot because every time the wattlebird saw these honeyeaters it chased them across the road into the closed Australian National Botanic Gardens.
Yellow-faced Honeyeater hiding in the shadows from a Red Wattlebird
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 640, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/640 SEC])
There were possibly upto six Grey Fantails (Rhipidura albiscapa) whirling around a group of shrubs. They were making their distinctive whirring call, while they flew in their energetic way where they would launch off a branch and then immediately loop back around. They would also fly to a branch where another fantail was and that bird would fly off. Sometimes it looked like one bird was chasing off the other bird but at other times it just looked like the birds were moving around the area. I ended up watching these over active birds for a little while but I could not make much sense of what they were doing, still it was fun watching them. I confess that I am still trying to get the ideal fantail photograph of a front-on shot with the tail nicely fanned out behind. One day I hope I to get it, but until them I am happy to keep watching these fun, insect eating birds.
A rear view of a Grey Fantail displaying
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 640, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/640 SEC])
This male White-throated Treecreeper (Cormobates leucophaea) was on a tree further along the walk. The Grey Fantail was from a different group to birds I photographed above. Neither bird seemed fussed by the other’s presence. The treecreeper stayed on the sunny-side of the tree as it climbed in its unique vertical stance, not the normal spiral method of climbing that I usually observe. It did move around the trunk further up, into the shadows unfortunately. It would occasionally call out, with a very loud call for such a small bird but I did not hear any responses to it. The bird was going well with its food gathering as it had an insect in its beak in a few of the photographs.
White-throated Treecreeper looking for food not bothered by a 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 1/400 SEC])
There were a number of Black-faced Cuckoo-shrikes (Coracina novaehollandiae) calling throughout the morning but it was hard to find where they were. This one was high in a tree with a second one directly below it on a lower branch. The top bird did not call itself but seemed to look whenever it heard another call. It preened itself at some stage while I was watching. Later, first the lower bird flew down and away, while this bird moved back along the branch to a clump of leaves in the crown of the tree. No other birds came towards the tree so it was not clear what prompted this sudden move.
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike
(Canon EOS 7D Mk II with a Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS II USM [ISO 125, 400mm, f/8.0 and 1/400 SEC])
I suspect this Faggot Case Moth (Clania ignobilis) was abandoned with the caterpillar having transformed into a moth. It was still stuck to a eucalyptus but blowing freely in the wind and appearing a little dirty. I am amazed at how a caterpillar can build this cocoon with its limited limbs to manipulate the small twigs. I am glad I was able to capture the top ends of the twigs or faggots so the it is clear where the caterpillar has chewed through these small bits of wood.
An empty Faggot Case Moth on the bark a eucalyptus tree
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 100, 100mm, f/6.3 and 1/5 SEC] three shot focus stack)
At the end of March I went for a paddle on the Googong Dam, with the intent to try photographing from my new kayak but this kayak is a sea/touring kayak which is a bit tippy so it may be a while before I feel confident enough to take shots from this platform. However, at the end of my paddle I went for a little walk around a knoll to shoot the landscape and I came across a Meadow Argus enjoying some flowers. I was glad I was able to get some shots that morning, as the dam was low, about 36%, so the exposed shore was not a good spot for many birds to use. You can see in the final of the three landscape photos that I posted below where the water was supposed to reach, to the edge of the foreshore walk. The substantial vegetation indicates that the water has not reached that level for a very long while.
Watching the light play along the hills around Googong Dam
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF70-200mm f/4L IS II USM [ISO 160, 200mm, f/14 and 1/200 SEC])
Another view of the dam’s surroundings
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF70-200mm f/4L IS II USM [ISO 160, 200mm, f/14 and 1/200 SEC])
The foreshore walk and jetties where the water used to lap
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF70-200mm f/4L IS II USM [ISO 400, 79mm, f/11 and 1/160 SEC])
This Meadow Argus (Junonia villida) was flying around a fairly rocky headland with these few hardy flowers. The wind had picked up but this butterfly was not going to be put off getting some nectar. I was using my 70-200mm lens but I was happy with the results. While this butterfly is native to Australia and parts of the south-west Pacific, it has also found its way to the United Kingdom where it is surviving in a substantially different habitat.
Meadow Argus on a flower
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF70-200mm f/4L IS II USM [ISO 400, 200mm, f/8.0 and 1/500 SEC])
This Sulphur-crested Cockatoo (Cacatua galerita) came to our backyard and it had been raining for a few days so I put some bird seed out for it. It was joined by a Galah that stayed at the base of the feeding stand. This cockatoo seemed happy to eat while I moved closer with my camera and macro lens. I really like my macro lens as it is a prime lens so it is easy to get very sharp photos with it.
Sulphur-crested Cockatoo in our backyard
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 500, 100mm, f/6.3 and 1/250 SEC])
This tiny Concealer Moth (Olbonoma triptycha) was resting on this plant frond. They are called concealer moths as in their caterpillar stage they normally ‘conceal’ themselves inside curled leaf litter or cocoons while they are feeding. Because the concealer caterpillars are feeding in leaf litter, they primarily eat dead organic matter, in the case of this species, they have been noted eating dead wattle leaves. They are nutrient recyclers, so very good for the garden. I hope this moth was the product of a small caterpillar chewing up some of my leaf litter or was about to lay eggs to create a new generation of nutrient recyclers.
Concealer Moth on a plant fornd
(Canon EOS 6D Mk II with a Canon EF100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM [ISO 100, 100mm, f/8.0 and 1/180 SEC] with Yongnuo YN14EX Macro Ring Lite and three shot focus stacking)