Bird of the Week: 4th of February - garden

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Holly
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Bird of the Week: 4th of February - garden

Hi guys

This week's theme is 'garden' so lets see shots of birds in your garden - pretty straight forward so go crazy!

kathiemt
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Here's some from our garden.

Not common visitors to our garden but after one very wet day we found these two at the bottom of our driveway on the lawn.

Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
 

Araminta
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One of many birds in my garden.

M-L

Araminta
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would be easier to make a list, it would be as long as my arm though. So, I won'twink

So this is a female White-throated Treekreeper.

M-L

kathiemt
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You always get such amazing close ups M-L. I hope this year I'll get that new lens wink

Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
 

Araminta
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Thanks Kathie, both photos were taken with a standard Sony kit- lens, 75-300mm, nothing special. (I just get close to the birds)

M-L

kathiemt
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My 70-300mm doesn't get me in that close and I'm never able to get close enough to the birds to be right in their faces almost.  I have been real close to kookaburras and cockatoos but definitely not a Treecreeper or most other birds.

Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
 

Araminta
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Kathie, it was even taken with my old Sony SLT-A55V.  Shutter speed was 1/500 , ISO 1000. On AF , and I was about 3-4m away from the bird. (no secrets)

M-L

kathiemt
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lol, no secrets, except for how you can get so close to these birds frown

Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
 

Ms Wombat
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Ms Wombat
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And another from LMS - Miss Spoggy.  Common yes, pesky perhaps, but still cute & cheeky imo.

Araminta
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One  Red-browed Firetail I spotted a minute ago after I changed the water in their bath. It was just waiting in a tree to enjoy the cool wet.

M-L

Roly
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Again, terriffic photos!

Roly
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Araminta
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Those colours are outstanding Roly. Brilliantyes

M-L

laurius
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Beautiful photos. I should move from the city :)

Laurius

Roly
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Yes, Laurius, I love it here in Healesville. I'm so glad we moved. We went out today and bought a whole heap of grevilleas, banksias, correas, kangaroo paws, bottle brushes and some ground covers (which I have not idea of their name) in the hope that we will attract more birds to out garden. It cost me half my super - but it will be worth it if we get even one more bird visiting!!! wink

kathiemt
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We live in Selby Laurius, having shifted here 3.5 years ago from the Bayside area. We love it here. The bird life is gorgeous, it's quieter, less traffic and we have 2 acres so not right up against neighbour's home.

Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
 

nevilleve
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Hi folks,

From Arnhem land, can someone please tell me what it is called

Regards

Neville

Olympus OM-D EM-5, mZuiko 70-300mm, Zuiko 50-200 SWD, 1.4TC, Zuiko 12-60mm, mZuiko 12-50mm

Woko
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Hi Neville, lovely shots of (1) yellow-throated miners & (2) the rubritorquis race of the rainbow lorikeet (which used to be, & may still be, known as the red-collared lorikeet) which you get in Arnhem Land.

Assuming you live in the Territory can we expect more shots of the bird life from your way? I hope so.

cassie.c87
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Always happy to see a non regular in my garden

kathiemt
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We've had a few pied larks lately too. Been lovely to see them.

Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
 

nevilleve
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Hi there, Yes we live up here, at least for the next 12 months so I will see what I can do, inbetween the mozzies making it unpleasant to be outside until the wet season develops a bit more. The photo of the miners was taken through a not very clean kitchen window as they were too close to risk opening the door, and even then they were only together for 10 seconds at the most.

Regards

Neville

Olympus OM-D EM-5, mZuiko 70-300mm, Zuiko 50-200 SWD, 1.4TC, Zuiko 12-60mm, mZuiko 12-50mm

di.anneslegacy
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Attached is a photo of a female fairy wren in  my bird bath, we now have the whole family who visit us on a daily basis.  They have 3 babies and they are a delight to watch, just like little kids.

Diane - Canberra

kathiemt
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Lovely Diane.  I've been enjoying watching birds in our bird bath too and have been making sure it's kept topped up. We've had a rufous fantail visit over the past week but I can't get a shot of it. It's too flighty and notices me, even through the window.  One day perhaps...

Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
 

Roly
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Yes, Dianne and M-L, it's lovely to get those action shots.

I just can't get near enough to them - but I'm still trying.

I guess yesterday's bright yellow T-shirt was not the best for sneaking up on them!!! 

Araminta
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One more young New Holland Honeyeater in my garden.

M-L

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It's only a Turtledove,but oh well...

kathiemt
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Yes, and a lovely clear shot it is too Nathan, with a beautiful blue sky behind which helps enhance the colours.  Seems you had its attention.

Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
 

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Thanks kathie,it was wary of my presence,and flew off shortly after I took the photo...

kathiemt
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Well, this was a visitor in my garden this week, sitting on my clothesline.  And the black cockatoos come for the nuts in the trees.

Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
 

kathiemt
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NathanY wrote:

Thanks kathie,it was wary of my presence,and flew off shortly after I took the photo...

That's what makes the challenge of bird photography so exciting.  They all do that, or most of them.  It's all about the hunt and how close we can get and the shots we can get, and we all hope that the next one will be 'the' shot! At least, that's how it is for me laugh

Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
 

Roly
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Kathie, we have a group of three black cockatoos which live somewhere near us. We can hear their distinctive call and, occasionally, they swoop across our place - but they never come to visit for me to photograph them!!!

Lovely photos.

Roly
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Hungry juvenile Galah, incessantly squawking at its long-suffering parents. I think dad's body language (leaning away towards mum) says it all!

nevilleve
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I have to confess these two were shot in the garden last week not this week. The first, I believe is, the Imperial Pied Pidgeon, the second OK,its common and alot easier to photograph than the black cockatoo...

Regards

Neville

Olympus OM-D EM-5, mZuiko 70-300mm, Zuiko 50-200 SWD, 1.4TC, Zuiko 12-60mm, mZuiko 12-50mm

nevilleve
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Once again any help in naming these two very frequent friends would be much appreciated for this fledging birder. They were both happy for me to come up within two metres. The eBook shows the black and white close to a butcher bird but its too small.  I thought first it was a lark but it doesnt have the right markings

Regards

Neville

Olympus OM-D EM-5, mZuiko 70-300mm, Zuiko 50-200 SWD, 1.4TC, Zuiko 12-60mm, mZuiko 12-50mm

kathiemt
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rolyd wrote:

Kathie, we have a group of three black cockatoos which live somewhere near us. We can hear their distinctive call and, occasionally, they swoop across our place - but they never come to visit for me to photograph them!!!

Lovely photos.

These are very flighty and take off quickly so I have to be careful how I venture into my backyard to see them. I got a few shots that day and it is lovely to see them.

Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
 

Araminta
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nevilleve wrote:

Once again any help in naming these two very frequent friends would be much appreciated for this fledging birder. They were both happy for me to come up within two metres. The eBook shows the black and white close to a butcher bird but its too small.  I thought first it was a lark but it doesnt have the right markings

Your ID is spot on,two Butcherbirds, No1 an adult, No2 juvenile. (I'm thinking Grey Butcherbird, but am happy to be corrected )

M-L

nevilleve
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Thank you for your help. 

Regards

Neville

Olympus OM-D EM-5, mZuiko 70-300mm, Zuiko 50-200 SWD, 1.4TC, Zuiko 12-60mm, mZuiko 12-50mm

Woko
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I think grey butcherbird, too. However, because of the lack of white lores I'm wondering if this is the race argenteus from the Top End. Are you up that way, Neville?

nevilleve
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Yes the lack of white lords threw me off too. According to my book it would be colleti, not argenteus because we are in Arnhem Land, too far east. However I don't have a comparative drawing of either of those, only torquatis and leucopterus

Regards

Neville

Olympus OM-D EM-5, mZuiko 70-300mm, Zuiko 50-200 SWD, 1.4TC, Zuiko 12-60mm, mZuiko 12-50mm

Woko
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Ah, yes, Neville. You're probably right. I reckon both argenteus & colletti lack the white lores. Argenteus is more to the west while  colletti is, as you say, in Arnhem Land (& around Darwin) according to Morcombe's map.

cprohm
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A couple from my yard

Roly
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Superb pics!

Araminta
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Very nice photos of a Blue-faced Honeyeater, a Superb Fairy Wren, a Yellow Robin, and a Grey Shrike-thrush. Thanks for sharing.

M-L

Woko
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And a young grey shrike-thrush at that due to the striations on the front.

nevilleve
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They are right when they say they look like a broken branch with some lichen on it, I was trying to photograph adult butcher birds playing with a juvenile when through the lens I noticed this out of focus branch ruining the background. Here is a female Podargus phalaenoides I believe.

Regards

Neville

Olympus OM-D EM-5, mZuiko 70-300mm, Zuiko 50-200 SWD, 1.4TC, Zuiko 12-60mm, mZuiko 12-50mm

Araminta
Araminta's picture

Neville, these are the funniest (funny in a positive way) photos of a Frogmouth I have seen in a long time. Could be living in Sesame Street, and be a good friend of Bigbird.

M-L

nevilleve
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cool

The only thing letting me know it wasn't a stick was the eyes open. First off the eyes were closed in a slant. What was really funny that I didn't catch was the butcher bird rolling on its back with a feather from a cockattoo trying to play with its juvenile! We had a pet rainbow lorikeet back in NZ that used to do that, but I had never seen (probably becuse I hadn't tried) other birds playing that way.

Regards

Neville

Olympus OM-D EM-5, mZuiko 70-300mm, Zuiko 50-200 SWD, 1.4TC, Zuiko 12-60mm, mZuiko 12-50mm

kathiemt
kathiemt's picture

A small rufous fantail has been visiting our front garden and enjoying our bird bath for the past week or two. It's so fast and it detects me through the window so it's impossible (so far) to get a really good shot of it. But I was able to sneak up beside the window, out of view last night, to get these shots. So cute.

Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
 

Araminta
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They have the biggest most beautiful eyes, don't they?

M-L

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