Mid February, and in my Blackheath garden the banksia serratas are in bloom. They are loved by all the honeyeaters, but especially Wattlebirds and Eastern Spinebills. Bees are visiting the native lilly-pilly flowers on the bush outside Slurps café, in Wentworth Street. I know there must be
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WELL HELLO AGAIN GANG-GANGS! After not seeing Gang-gang cockatoos in my Blue Mountains garden for several years I was delighted when a lively group arrived a couple of weeks ago. There were lured by the ripening seeds on my various wattle trees (acacias). They have been returning
Read more →Have you ever visited Angel Place, just off Martin Place in Sydney? Its hanging birdcages are a touching memorial to the city’s lost birds, forced ever westward over the years of white settlement. If you listen carefully you can hear their recorded songs and calls over the
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THE SWEET SILVEREYES It’s hard to believe that many of these tiny birds migrate annually from Tasmania to as far north as southern Queensland. What an epic journey for them. Back in the mid 19thC a wild storm swept a flock to New Zealand, where they
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Introducing Mr Satin bowerbird outside his Blue Mountains home at; No. 1 Memorial Park BLACKHEATH 2785 This is a very well located, private property only a two minute walk to the village (twenty seconds in full flight).
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Some people say there’s not much to love about red wattlebirds. And yes, they are aggressive little blighters, with a rasping call. But the bird is actually quite striking, with a striated chest and pale yellow ‘undercarriage’. Then there are those little ‘wattles’ below the eyes that
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I have a great fascination for social history, and for our native, satin bowerbirds. Yes, there is a strong link between the two. When the adult blue/black male bowerbirds or the green juvenile ‘apprentices’ build their bowers they decorate them with anything blue they can find.
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This is what the bower of a satin bowerbird looks like (below right), with its collection of predominantly blue ‘treasures ‘, assembled to impress the ladies. I’m afraid the birds mostly use human trash these day, especially bottle tops. Bowers were full of plastic straws in my
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Remember British artist and designer William Morris and his famous Strawberry Thief design? Those thrushes ended up in homes around the world. I’m sure Mr Morris forgave them for raiding his garden by the stripling Thames. I don’t grow strawberries, but I do have lots of
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A CONTINUING KOOKABURRA CONNECTION In June or July every year a pair of kookaburras arrive in my garden at Blackheath, in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales. The rest of the time I only see
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