I paid a quick visit to the canefield wetland spot again today...the farmer has gradually reclaimed most of the grass back again as I guess he does every season. the birdlife has changed and thimgs look very different. I was very happy to find a pair of black fronted Dotterels .... very coincidentally just after ALex's lovely shot of the red kneed version and Peter BFD. I got to see for myself just how small they really are...was looking at them for quite a while before I realised that it had a pair of legs and wings ....soooo tiny.
The cattle egret were in the now harvested cane fields and in full breeding colours
Looks like the White necked Heron has changed from his Juv colours to the plain white neck now
The white faced Heron seemed to be very dark...does anyone know why this might be?
Here is a shot of the two just to show how much the water has receded...soon there will be none I guess and they will all move on :(
Great habitat shots, birdie. Thanks.
Yes Woko, it made me realise that the land is so cyclic...and it isnt till you go back and back to the same spot that you really get this. What I thought were wetlands , in reality, were probably just a nuisance for the farmer who owns the and, althoguh he keeps a well watered and good sized pond across the road next to his own house. He is gradually reclaiming what the heavy long wet rains stole from him . I suppose it will all start again if we get some goodo summer rains...... but then it will be a different season and I guess....different birds maybe.
There is a Malaleuca swamp there, which remains damp all the time I guess.
Sunshine Coast Queensland
It's certainly very instructive observing the same habitat over a long period of time, birdie. In relation to who stole what from whom, I guess another view would be that the heavy long wet rains reclaimed what the farmer stole from the environment which shows the responsibility we humans have towards the environment of which we are custodians - for better or worse.
It always surprises my when you visit a spot through different seasons how much it changes not just the habitat but the birdlife as well. We see this quite often at the WTP.
The dotterals are so tiny they are hard to see sometimes so job well done. Arent they a lovely looking bird? Im very jealous of your cattle egret shot everytime i try to take one they fly away hmm they mustnt like me. I have tried so many times to take a good one and they all turn out crap but ill keep trying.They look stunning in breeding plumage. Can't answer your question about the Heron but its a great photo. I also love the habitat shot its nice to see where the shots were taken.
I was shocked on the weekend to see a large watering hole totally dry and cracked. I didn't realize it dried up like that. I think we take our land too much for granted at times. It is on the extremes that pull us up short and make us look at what is happening.
Karen
Brisbane southside.
Woko you are absolutely right of course, what I started to say and lost the plot on was that the huge stand of Melaleuca trees and swampy area ( where the harriers live) is greatly reduced from what I imagine it would have been at one stage. If you look on an aerial shot from google it is very small and has had a motorway put right through one side of it as well as a residential zone, and cane farms took out the other side of the road as far as the maroochy river which is nearby.There are stil big tracts of the forest in nearby areas but the motorway has cut it in two. Over the other side of the river about 5 KM away as the crow flies , is the maroochy botanical wetlands.... I imagine this is how the whole lot was once..and that part is teeming with tiny birds and full of birdsong :)
Cath and Karen....birding really does make you look differently at the environment that is for sure
Sunshine Coast Queensland
Good onya Birdie, great shots.
Hey birdie. Thanks so much for the description of that area. It really put your bird watching & photography in context.
Hey Karen. What do you think caused that water hole to become "totally dry & cracked". Was it a natural process or induced by human activity?
This was a natural process, Woko. I see it in my own backyard sometimes when its been so dry and hot, the roots of the grass burn and the land cracks. Not as much as land that is usually under water though.
Karen
Brisbane southside.
Its just a pity that alot of others dont see what we see.Everythime we go out we always take shots of whats around us as well as the birds, sometime i think it makes a great story. We have a great spot near us where you wouldnt even think there is birdllife as its right of the highway. But once you find your way in its full of life.
A friend of mine is in to photography as well (takes lots of scenery shots) but her hubby has been bugging her as he gets bored when driving her around so they bought him a camera a couple of weeks ago. He likes alot of my photos that i put on facebook and now he has decided that he wants to start taking photos of birds.Might be another bird nerd soon. lol
As you said, Karen, it's usually the extremes that suddenly make us aware of what's going on around us. The real learning comes from becoming aware of the subtle changes that occur under different conditions. That naturally dried, cracked water hole probably harbours some interesting creatures down among those cracks. That Australia's wildlife so often survives everything that Nature throws at it makes it all the more awesome & worth protecting from everything that Homo sapiens throws at it.
Yes Woko, and that is what is so fascinating, every change brings something new, whether it is a bird or a frog or a reptile ..... the cycle of life.... I just love it.
I have done a screenshot of the area from the air ...to show you the context in which this wonderful little wetland exists as I know you are interested in that kind of thing.This is basically a foodplain, and therefore suits the wet roots of the Malaleucas etc. Over past yearss they have allowed residential use more and more, but recently a developer wanting to proceed with an extension of their aread successful and mature canal estate got a shock when , after the bad floods two years ago, the coucnil recinded it's planning pernmission so they are left holding the baby so to speak!! Funny how it is only when litigation threatens and insurance premiums take such a sharp rise, that the council will then act .
Sunshine Coast Queensland
Well Done Adrienne, nice to see you can see the same place under different conditions, which may not always please us but that's the harsh reality of nature. Love the W-N Heron as I have only seen one close by. The darker colouring on the White-faced Heron is a mystery. You would think it is something to do with the breeding season, maybe it used an SPF8 instead of full spectrum SPF30, what is that you just said in reply about being a smartarse.
Regards
Shane
Thanks for that overhead shot, birdie. Isn't it a classic example of what's happening in Australia? Those developers certainly put the roach into encroachment.
On the postive side, it's great that there's still a relatively natural part of the environment left so close to a housing development. No doubt, the council has educated the locals on keeping their pets, go-carts, hot-rods & other disturbance out of the area.
Well Woko, the houses that you see are a pretty recent development ( as in the last 10 years) and there is nowhere for them to go now with the motorway going through there. One good thing about the caneland owners I guess, is that by and large they keep those types of recreational types away from their land. Much of the land to the north of my little wetland is the wet forest anyway.... the motorway has culverts running through underneath it to allow the waters to pursue their natural course and then it runs into national park. No thought was ever ut into the Sunshine Motorway up here, hence we are stuck with an inadequate two lane track carrying way too much traffic in the peak season. I believe it was originally put in during the 80's and early 90's funded byy tolls and by developers ....the usual stuff. The trouble here is theh same anywhere... the best habitat for the wildlife is also where humans want to live sadly.
Sunshine Coast Queensland
Birdie, that's an interesting comment about the best wildlife habitat is where humans want to live. In the Mt Lofty Ranges it's interesting that most of the relatively intact forests & bushland are on ridges where the soil is rockiest & least suitable for agriculture & housing development. This means that the vegetation which is scarcest & most endangered is that growing in the valleys & on valley slopes. Thus not only native vegetation quantity but also native vegetation diversity has been severely compromised by development. A double whammy for the environment.