Hi all,
New to site, this site is brilliant. I think the Bird Finder search engine is not great but the content amazing, love it!
I found you guys, and a new found love of birds, last year when working from home during the sprong. The arrival of the Channel-Biulled Cuckoo's and Common Koel were something I noticed for the first time, as the neighbourhood was quiet one week and full of shrieking the next. Trying to find out what they were led me to BirsdinBackyards and a delight in getting to know the species around us.
Anway, now being familiar with the 18 or so species in my area (Eastwood in Sydney) I was delighted when a flock started rosting in a nearby tree last week that I could not identify. They are very shy and flighty so hard to get a close look. There appear to be either two species or males and females together. One group look like wattle birds but have longer tail feathers and to date have not made any noise at all. The other look like starrlings, with dark olive plummage on the back and wings and light on the chest, with a glinting red eye. As I have not heard them nor been able to get a good look, I am a bit patchy on details.
Could not get a match on BirdFinder, was thinking this morning possible a group of juvenile Koel (male and female), I don't know if the move in flocks and maybe it is too early for them anyway.
Any ideas?
Spanker
G'day Spanker. My bet is they are Fig Birds. Male and female, the ones with the red eyes are the males. Ray.
Thanks for replying Ray.
I had a look at the figbird profile, as well as the olive oriale. From my crappy description, that was a pretty good guess. Female for both birds look about right but not so much the males, who were very dark. Could have just been the light though.
They seem to have moved on now but I will keep this in mind for next time if they come back and I get a good look.
Cheers
Spanker
G'day Spanker, dont forget that there are 2 subspecies of Figbirds, with the southern species in Sydney being a generally darker olive colour, whereas the northern subspecies is more yellow through the breast and underneath.
You description still sounds good for a male Figbird.
Hi Gelmir,
I am still very much a novice and have not yet reached out beyond species in my immediate area. Birds that pass by my area are all very new and hence I know straight away when something different is around.
Fig bird is almost perfect, the thing which makes me think it might have been something else was that the males looked a lot darker, almost like a starrlings and the very distinct metallic red glinting of the eye, I thought it looked more like the eye itself rather then an eye ring but perhaps I was wrong.
I'll just have to hope I see (and hear) them again.
Cheers
Spanker
G'day Spanker,Have you checked out the Olive-backed Oriole. Ray