I saw a bird in a tree on the weekend. At first I thought it was a grey shrike thrush, but then I observed that it seemed slimmer and had white markings on the end of its tail.
Sorry, I can't say much else. It sat where it was for a while, then hopped about the branches a bit, then flew off. It was in a tree with no leaves, about 20m off the ground, located in the suburbs of Melbourne.
grey butcherbird?
Nope, much slimmer, no large beak.
soakes
Olinda, Victoria, Australia
Noisy miner? little or red wattlebird?
Fan-Tailed Cuckoo?
Thanks for the suggestions, but no to all those :-(
Smaller than the cuckoo, not as colourful as a wattlebird or a miner. It was basically plain grey, slim, about the length of a grey shrike thrush and had white markings towards the end of its tail :-/
I think its bill was grey too, and narrow.
soakes
Olinda, Victoria, Australia
female golden whistler? grey fantail?
soakes, your description sounds like the bird sighting I had today - not much to go on. My sighting was "it was a bird; flew about 12 feet passed me out in the open and about 3 feet off the ground. It was coloured - couldn't tell as it flew passed too quickly. No visible markings. It was the size of a small rosella. It may or may not have been a small rosella or parrot. It was alone but nearby, and moments later a small family group of parrots or rosellas flew passed; higher and slightly going a different direction." My bird sighting is "anyone's guess as to what it was". Yours may be the same.
If I had to guess, and it would be a guess, I'd say your bird was a thin, perhaps young, bird finding it's own way and maybe looking for a mate/territory. Species = unidentified.
How about we rule out what it isn't and work backwards from there?
I'm at Tenterfield, NSW. (Formerly known as "Hyperbirds".)
Jacky Winter?
I think this might be it, actually. It would be very surprising, because I saw this bird in a location that I have never seen or expected a golden whistler to be, but it looks about right.
I'm just going to assume that's what it was until I see it again!
soakes
Olinda, Victoria, Australia
The Golden Whistlers migrate down from the high country to lowlying coastal districts in winter, they have to pass through some pretty marginal habitat en route. i've seen them in some pretty unlikely suburban situations in melbourne on occasion.
Very interesting. Thanks.
soakes
Olinda, Victoria, Australia