The Eastern Spinebill always looks so neat in his grey and brown suit teamed with a white shirt. Only measuring about 15cms, his curved beak is almost as long as his body. I like to imagine him as a legal clerk, dipping into a pot of black
Read more →The cuckoo dove is a delightful bird; gentle and trusting. However, the awful weather in the Blue Mountains that has tested us all is just as unpleasant for our feathered friends. Here is one story from a suffering soul. A CUCKOO’S COMPLAINT Honestly, it has been so
Read more →
MID AUGUST 2020 – I was creating a new garden bed recently when I spotted a currawong gathering roots for its nest. A yellow robin on the look-out for worms was watching on with a wary eye. The currawong nest was constructed high in a eucalypt (local
Read more →
We are a competitive lot in the Blue Mountains of NSW. At a Blackheath outdoor pool, this little silvereye was training for the 20cm breaststroke event in Birmingham, and yes, struggling a bit. Keep that head up! Oh the relief to get to the end! And an
Read more →
There was initially some reluctance on the part of our Wonga twins to attend nursery school in the garden. That nest high in the conifer was so snug and secure. The pair hatched in August and by mid September one parent was offering encouragement from an adjacent
Read more →
It’s such a privilege to be involved in the life of baby birds. A pair of native Wonga pigeons have been providing my husband Rob and I with this delightful opportunity over a number of years. They live in our Blue Mountains garden, and are as much
Read more →
What an unusually high temperature we had on Thursday. Even the breeze was warm. Maybe it doesn’t bode well for summer, but I did revel in it, and so did the crimson rosellas. Time to get out and about, much as I appreciate the delights of home.
Read more →
Deciding to produce chicks in mid winter was never going to be a good idea. However, our resident Wonga pair would not be dissuaded. We invariably get snow here in the upper Blue Mountains and sure enough, down it came in mid August. The eggs had only
Read more →
AUGUST 2020 AND THE WONGAS ARE STILL IN BREEDING OVERDRIVE. I BLAME COVID-19; THEY MUST FEEL THE NEED TO INCREASE THEIR NUMBERS IN CASE OF CROSS-SPECIES INFECTION. After producing two single chicks over a Blue Mountains winter (yes, I did tell them it wasn’t the right season)
Read more →
In this extraordinary year of 2020, our resident Wonga couple have been producing chicks throughout winter. Remember Peter Costello’s quote on offspring, ‘One for Mum, one for Dad and one for the country?‘ Well, they have truly taken this to heart. There have been two single ones,
Read more →