Up close and personal with a singing honeyeater family

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irwinm16
Up close and personal with a singing honeyeater family

I have just experienced something wonderful. A pair of singing honeyeaters (99% sure that is what they are) built a nest in a potplant, under the eaves, right outside the main side door of our house, and over the last 7 weeks have raised 2 babies. I have to admit to having become a bit obsessed with the whole process!

I also took a whole bunch of video footage including an actual hatching but my video editing skills are not brilliant so that will have to wait..

Very honoured to have been able to observe this...I hope you like the pictures...

Devster
Devster's picture

Wow can't believe how fast they grow.

While I enjoyed the photos, please be careful not to cause them too much stress.

A lot of sites don't even allow postings of nests or young birds so just be wary.

oconnore51
oconnore51's picture

These are amazing photos, thank you!

elizabeth

Woko
Woko's picture

Most intriguing.  And great to see birds breeding. However, Devster's words are wise words. Ms Woko & I recently watched a New Holland Honeyeater building a nest less than a metre from a hose which we use frequently. After one egg was laid the nest was abandoned.

I'm still curious about why the nest was built in the first place.

irwinm16

Thank you and I totally agree with the words of caution. I am very aware of the risks involved, and was so uneasy about observing, but the way it turned out just made the whole experience so amazing.....I waited until both parents were away from the nest and then only observed for a max of 2 minutes each day, most of the time only 60 seconds or so. From day 10 I did not observe directly, rather I set up a chair just inside the sliding door and observed from there. The fact that they built right at our main entry and exit door was amazing. They did not seem to mind us coming and going at all.

What has filled me with joy has been the fact that since they left the nest, at dusk the whole family have been coming back to the nest potplant, poking around a bit, and then mum and dad have settled the kids into a potplant only a few metres away. Mum and dad then disappear and the babies sleep the night.

Isn't nature just so cool....

laza
laza's picture

Incredibe sequence of photos 

Im guessing the parent birds are very use to urban interaction to build there

Thanks for sharing 

Dont take life too seriously, it never ends well

WhistlingDuck

fascinating series of photos from starting so tiny to fully fledged birds - thanks for sharing!

Woko
Woko's picture

Well done, erwinm. If you can look after the birds' needs while meeting your own it's, as the corporate speakers are fond of saying, a win win.

Dmenace
Dmenace's picture

Nice work, Woko.  Beautiful shots.

HelloBirdy
HelloBirdy's picture

Amazing sequence of shots, it's always good to be able to follow the entire development of nesting events, and especially when all the chicks make it.

Ryu
Canberra
Aiming for DSLR-quality shots with a bridge camera

Greyson
Greyson's picture

so well done

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