I have an eastern whip bird living in the shrubbery outside my bedroom window. It took me a while to identify it as I have never seen one before, and it was the last thing I expected to see here, but I am now certain. I think it is a female as while it scrabbles around in the leaf litter around dawn, it makes a choo-choo sound. I have never heard the whip-crack sound around here, so I am wondering about its chances of staying here and/or breeding. I live on 5 acres and have plenty of bush surrounding me.
Hi there, seeing you haven’t given any clues to what area you live in, I can only tell you about where I live. I’m probably in a similar location, I’m surrounded by bush with some very dense undergrowth, ideal for the Whipbirds and I also have some Lyrebirds near a creek. I have yet to see the Lyrebirds, although I know they come into my garden, because I find some scratchings. But the Eastern Whipbirds are just on the other side of my fence. I hear them all the time ( at the moment they are quiet), but they almost never come in my garden. Only earlier this year one baby ventured into my shrubs by mistake. Just long enough for me to get some photos, them the parents made it leave again. To cut this long story short, I think it depends on your garden, if there is enough dense foliage for cover, they might stay.
I wish you luck, it would be awesome to have them close to your house.
Any photos yet?
M-L
Sorry, should have mentioned that I am near Mittagong in the Southern highlands of NSW. No chance of a photo I'm afraid - I only ever get glimpses and never when a camera is in my hand!
I haven't seen a lyrebird here but have seen one crossing the road about 5 km away. The birdlife here is amazing though, compared to Sydney!
Hi pokarekare. Is that native understorey outside your window?
Mostly not, I think Woko. There is actually a verandah, then a narrow row of shrubs, a paved path then a fairly extensive area of dense shrubberies. I didn't plant them but there is a wide mix of exotic species. There is also a garden arch there and I have watched a pair of bower birds courting on that, although the only bower I have found is about as far away from the house as it can get!
Thanks, pokarekare. While native birds will use some exotic species I've found where I live on the s.e. slopes of the Mt Lofty Ranges in SA that as I've replaced exotics with native, especially indigenous plants, the biodiversity has increased significantly.
I saw one in my garden last year and managed to get a few (bad) shots. Haven't seen it since. Hoping it might happen again though and I'll be waiting.
Kathiemt
Selby, Victoria
I repost some photos here, (I had posted under "best photos" but didn't create a lot of interest) , so here they are again.
this one is a juvenile that turned up in my garden for a very short time. Enjoy.
M-L
Nice photos Araminta - how do you do it! My bird looked more like that the first time I saw it, although when I first glimpsed it I thought it was black, with a crest, but it now has full adult plumage I guess - I can clearly see the white patch on its cheek and the olive-green in its plumage! I got a good view of it yesterday moving around one of the shrubberies here. I am seeing it more and more often.