Danika's Big Year 2021

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Alex Rogers
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Good shots, and I like the environmental one of the cattle egrets too :-) 

AbbyGrace
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Nice shots Danika! 

dwatsonbb
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Again it's been a while since I have commented on your work. That New Holland is goergous, you getting a great variey, with great photos as well. Thanks for posting.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

dannyka6
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Thanks everyone!

Sometimes you need a photo of birds in context to appreciate them I think Alex, the Cattle Egrets would be nothing without the cattle hey?

And nice to see another joiner to the ranks Annie - welcome :) 

Today was a little trip to the botanical gardens in the city with Abby, I snoozed on the start of it so didn't see as much activity as I could have done but I got a couple of nice shots, it was a beautiful day. 

147) Bell Miner

Replacement: Nankeen Night-Heron, White-naped Honeyeater - although you can't see the white nape you can see the edge of the red eye line

karentwemlow
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Love your pics Danika and it's inspiring me to get out more, thanks for sharing :-)

Alex Rogers
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dannyka6 wrote:

Thanks everyone!

Sometimes you need a photo of birds in context to appreciate them I think Alex, the Cattle Egrets would be nothing without the cattle hey?

Couldn't agree more. I found this guy with his matching cow last year :-) 

dwatsonbb
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Love your Nankeen Night Heron, they are regulars at Latrobe in the central north of Tassie (about 3 1/2 hours from me). Last time I went specifically to see them and Azure Kingfisher, got the Azure, but the Nankeens were missing in action, still had a great day.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

AbbyGrace
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Stunning shot of the Nankeen Night Heron Danika! I might need to go back in, to get a better shot. :)

dannyka6
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Terrific shot Alex, love how the breeding colours match up too! Beautiful

dannyka6
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I've found Nankeen Night-Herons hard to find this year Dale for some reason, this is only the second one I've come across all year, not sure where they all are.

And I'd definitely be in on another botanical gardens trip Abby, say the word!

sue818
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Great shot of the Nankeen Night-heron, Danny. They used to be regulars at Warriewood but are much more difficult to locate unlike the Bell Miners which have moved in. Keep them coming.

Devster
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Wow what a great set. Congrats on the lifers. Always a fun and eciting experience. It's funny you say the White-eared Honeyeaters are rats as I have never seen one. We don't get a lot of the New Holland Honeyeaters either. I really love the light on the Black-shuldered Kite. Not many up here at the moment. I think they have all gone down there to get the mice as I hear there are plenty about at the moment. You are setting a cracking pace. Well done

dannyka6
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Abby and I took another field trip out to Reef Island this week to see if we could finally track down those elusive Tattlers...no cigar but I got a useable shot for 148) Australian Shelduck - ok for ID so I'll use it for now as I always see them flying, and never get closer

Also we believe this is a Striated Fieldwren that sang for us, and it replaces my previous shot

TommyGee
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I love the Nankeen Night Heron. You really caught the look in its eye :)

Devster
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Nice. 2 Birds we don't get up here. Never seen a fieldwren

dannyka6
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Tommy, I really thought that Nankeen Night Heron was giving ME the eye!

Dev that's interesting that you don't get those species up your way - I'm always envious of the species we don't get but I don't realise which species we have that others don't get! The grass is always greener type of thing I guess...

dannyka6
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SO over the last two weeks there have been rumours flying all over Melbourne about Swift Parrots hitting our state on their way over from Tassie. It started in a couple of spots a couple of hours out of Melbourne that I wasn't quite prepared to drive out to on the off chance that I'd manage to find the birds, then they were spotted in Plenty then multiple times at Lysterfield now at Fawkner Cemetery, all within 40 minutes of me. I've only seen Swift Parrots once, maybe twice before so I was keen to have another go.

I've been keeping my ear to the ground (i.e. Facebook Birdline and Vic Birders) for these reports and trying to line up my days off work with good weather, but in the meantime Abby beat me to it and bagged some great shots at Lysterfield. I headed out a couple of days later and had one of those ridiculous experiences where my husband and I walked around the carparks where the birds had been seen, did our best, saw some of the birds being chased off by Red Wattlebirds, couldn't find any roosted, got back to our car to leave, only to find 3 birders and 2 huge cameras right behind our car pointed at 2 trees over!! I'm sure they weren't there before!!! So we got our Swifties!

And a Musk Dusk shot as a place holder

149) Musk Duck

150) Swift Parrot

sue818
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Well done, the Swift Parrot has lived up to its name as far as I'm concerned... have not managed to see even one! Congrats on hitting 150!

Alex Rogers
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Congrats on the Swift Parrots and your 150! Going strong :-) 

Devster
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Soooo jealous of those Swifties. Looks like you're well and truley on track to beat your goal of 200

TommyGee
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Awesome job on the Swifts! I have to ask... when I was at Lysterfield, I asked a couple getting back in their car what they were all looking at. Was that you? Small world if it was :) 

dannyka6
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Hi Tommy, yes that was me!!! How about that?? We've actually met, we just didn't know it. We'll have to meet up properly and go birding sometime. Sorry about my husband starting to give you the low down on swift parrots, he'd just learnt about them that day and thought he was a bit knowledgeable lol!!

He wants to know, are you the one who left a kid in the car to chase swift parrots?? Haha! He saw the pram in the back of the car and thought it was typical of a bird photographer to grab the camera and go chasing the bird before all else....a comment on me I think!!

dannyka6
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Thanks for all the kudos guys, it was fabulous to get the Swift Parrot, I'd love to see them again before the season is over, and great to get to 150 too - I'm feeling more positive about getting to 200, just need to settle on a plan for an interstate trip.

dannyka6
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I wanted to update my Crested Pigeon and Common Bronewing shots which have long been lacking style with new ones I took yesterday on my birdlife outing - I finally got a bit of colour on the wings!

From my weekend outing to Mansfield I also wanted to replaced my Scarlet Robin photo with this shot of a pair of robins which almost worked out beautifully then didn't, but still shows the pair.

And I wanted to add in my male Golden Whistler shot now that I finally have one!

And lastly I wanted to show you a gorgeous pair of Wedge-tailed Eagles that I found at the weekend which are just so good!

karentwemlow
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Oh nice work on the Swift Parrots and how funny you met Tommy :-).

Those Wedge-tailed Eagles are magnificent aren't they? I rarely see them landed anywhere, always circling way up high, so great shot.

dwatsonbb
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Swifties are one of my bogie birds, I have often heard them, but getting anywhere close is difficult. Guess I will try again when they return "home" to breed. Your getting some great photos, thanks.

Congrats on 150. Looks like we are going to have several with 200 plus this year, great to see.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

TommyGee
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dannyka6 wrote:

Hi Tommy, yes that was me!!! How about that?? We've actually met, we just didn't know it. We'll have to meet up properly and go birding sometime. Sorry about my husband starting to give you the low down on swift parrots, he'd just learnt about them that day and thought he was a bit knowledgeable lol!!

He wants to know, are you the one who left a kid in the car to chase swift parrots?? Haha! He saw the pram in the back of the car and thought it was typical of a bird photographer to grab the camera and go chasing the bird before all else....a comment on me I think!!

There you go, it IS a small world! You can tell your husband yes, that was me :) Sam was asleep in the car so I let him keep snoring while I got my Swifts. He didn't mind :)

Devster
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That is funny you both met and didn't realise it. Glad you know now. We need another Qld representative me thinks. lol

AbbyGrace
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Nice shots of the Swifts! And love your WTE shot as well.

sue818
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Stay safe and strong, Danika.

Alex Rogers
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Love your replacement shots Danika, looking good :-) What a great opportunity with those Wedgies. 

dannyka6
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Well after an EXTENDED break due to multiple lockdowns that have been frustrating my birding I'm finally back!!!! There's really nothing new and different to see in my 5km when we're that restricted, and it wasn't until we got let out to 15km that I started to get some enthusiasm back for birdwatching and photography. My new camera and lens have been woefully neglected!

So here I am with a few birdwatching expeditions under my belt since lockdown ended and finally a few new species to add to my tally!! YAY!!! Not sure that I'll hit the heights I thought I might when I was last out in June but I'm making the most of every opportunity now that we have no restrictions. 

151) White-Breasted Woodswallow - we finally got to drive out of Melbourne and up to Shepparton to visit my parents this weekend. They live on the edge of a man-made lake and it's a great spot for birds, but I didn't have time to do any real birdwatching this time. Nevertheless I took my camera, just in case, and I was shooting Moorhen chicks on the back lawn when a woodswallow flew over. I missed the flight shot but took a few shots from a bad position high in the willow tree. I couldn't ID it at the time and am pleasantly surprised to find today when I look in my book that it is a new bird for my list!! Bad shots, so I've included 2

152) Scaly-Breasted Lorikeet - Abby was so kind as to show me where to find these cute little lorikeets in a beautiful park in Narre Warren, Melbourne. They had obligingly stayed around in the same tree as where she had seen them a few days previously and were a real treat to watch! We saw a couple of young birds, quite fluffed up and just gorgeous

153) Musk Lorikeet - okay this one does come from lockdown back in June. The large flowering gum across the road attracts large numbers of rainbow lorikeets and seasonally musk lorikeets which I adore, and so I had to pick up my camera to chase this little beauty!

154) Sacred Kingfisher - in one day, over two outings, I saw 2 pairs of nesting Sacred Kingfishers!! Such an incredible thing to see! Watching them visit their nest holes, come and go with food and work together is amazing. Love springtime!

155) Abby and I had an amazing experience finding a Peregrine Falcon nesting hollow with not only both parents present but 3 juveniles, including one being fed by one parent!! A once in a lifetime chance! 

156) Another find of Abby's, we had to really hunt to get a shot because the fantail either kept to the shadows or flitted so fast we missed it!

replacement 93) White-Naped Honeyeater

It's SOOOO good to be back birdwatching, photographing and playing the Big Year game!!! I've missed it all very much!!

sue818
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Welcome back, Danika! We have missed you and are pleased to hear that you out again enjoying the birds.

What a wonderful group to come back with... love so many, Lorikeets and Kingfisher especially but to see Peregrine Falcons with chicks is truly amazing. Lucky you!

Devster
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Welcome back Danika. Yes I bet that lock down is demotivating, so glad you managed a bit more freedom in this not so free country any more. I particularly love the Musk Lorikeet as I haven't seen one of them and the Falcon photos, just wow. What an experience that must have been to witness. Hope you have many more chances to use your new gear.

dwatsonbb
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Love the Peregrine and the Kingfiiher, but they are all great. Hopefully lockdowns are a thing of the past, glad you can finally get out.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

dannyka6
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Thanks for the comments and feedback guys, much appreciated! It's great to be getting out regularly without restrictions: masks, time limits, kilometre barriers etc. I'm still trying to go where there isn't so much of a crowd but hey, good news is that as a state we're 90% vaxxed soon even though we've still got over 1000 cases per day.

Today I visited Woodlands Historic Park which is a popular birdwatching and walking site. I took a bit of a pot shot heading out today as there were showers predicted and I did get hit with a couple of short bits of rain but enjoyed the walk nevertheless. Unfortunately the light was pretty awful for photography but some closer shots worked out okay.

Here's a cute young Striated Pardalote to add to my list; they can be found regularly at the park and in fact I could hear them right around the park, but it took until the end to actually spot one!

AbbyGrace
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Awesome photos D, hope we can get out together soon.

sue818
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Well done, Danika. If I have it right, the Striated Pardalote is bird 157 for your list.

dwatsonbb
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Great little bird, nice photo.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

dannyka6
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Thanks guys! And yes Sue, I also have the Striated Pardalote as 157 so between us we're doing something right!! :)

Today I had a total surprise, well 2 total surprises!! I did a big birding day across 2 reserves with another birdwatcher and while we were hunting for Crested Shrike-Tit and didn't find it, we stumbled instead across the cutest Brown Quail. After today I can say that I've seen a Brown Quail up close, heard it call, and seen it fly! But boy did it make us work for our photos!! Hiding in dense shrubs and calling, scuttling through waist high grass...but in the end it perched on a log and let us take pictures. Sadly through that same waist high grass so there are blurry patches everywhere but I couldn't see them at the time - that's my excuse.

The other bird we were chasing was the Little Eagle and we got it! The pictures aren't great but you can ID the bird, and that's what counts!

Then for a total surprise! A bird that we couldn't ID due to the glary light and had to wait til we got home to assess, which turned out to be a Dollarbird! This is amazing because it is well south of its reported range!! So big excitement!!

So that's 160!! I wasn't expecting such exciting birds at this point so I'm thrilled! 

dwatsonbb
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That quail photo is stunning, well done. The other 2 would be lifers for me, so thanks for sharing them.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

sue818
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Well done, Danika... love the Brown Quail shot.

dannyka6
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Going back in time to Saturday 20th Nov, we had a Birdlife Photography group outing to the You Yangs ranges outside of Melbourne and the nearby Serendip Sanctuary where I picked up a few more birds for my list.

The first one was Magpie Goose, which has a specific population that lives in the Serendip Sanctuary (near Little River) from time to time. Last year when I was there I found over 150 birds, but this year there were only 8 birds that I could see. We were theorising that with all the rain across the state they have been able to spread out instead of being reliant on the lake at the sanctuary. 

The second encounter was incredible! We had extended views over 15 minutes of a Shining Bronze-Cuckoo devouring caterpillar after caterpillar, 6 in total while we got as many shots as we liked, albeit in challenging light, but a fabulous experience. All the while it was calling, then it had a fight with a Spotted Pardalote; it was all action! The tree must have been full of caterpillars because all the leaves were full of holes and it just found one after the other with no effort, it seemed!

In a couple of places from bird hides we could see Black-Fronted Dotterels which are always super cute and fun to watch parading up and down the shoreline. I love the reflection in this photo.

As a replacement photo I've put in a shot of a Black-Winged, or Pied Stilt depending what reference you use (also White-Headed!!). It's not as clear as I'd like, we were shooting from the hide from slanted Plexi-glass and it has affected the photo a bit.

dwatsonbb
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I would be happy with all of those photos. The Shining Bronze with its meal is a beauty.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

sue818
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Love the Shining bronze-cuckoo with the bug! I believe that your count is now 163, Danika, so you can keep a tally.

Easier if you could put a number before each new bird as I don't want to miss one out when I enter them on the spreadsheet. Some great birds coming from down your way.

dannyka6
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Thanks Dale and Sue!

Sorry Sue, I've gotten out of the habit of the Big Year! I'll make an effort to number my future posts :) 

sue818
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No worries, Danika, I just don't want to miss one in the text. Great to see you out and about again.

AbbyGrace
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Love these shots Danika! Envious of you seeing the Dollarbird! What a sighting!!

dannyka6
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164) This is one from the archives going back to an outing from April this year. I never confidently ID'd at the time, and I guess I forgot about it, but when I was going back over some photos recently I found it again and sent it to the Facebook Bird ID group and they confirmed my guess that it is a Pink Robin!! Very happy to add it to my list!

While I was going through my photos I found a few improvement shots, so enjoy!

dwatsonbb
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Enjoy them I am. Love the little yellow Robin, such a cute pose. Thanks for posting.

Dale Huonville, Tasmania

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