Chifley Chronicle #3

Second week of May 2006

I write this a little earlier than usual because I will be in Queensland all of next week. Little has changed, with much the same to be seen or heard in the garden or on the walks. I do these walks most days, with the dog, and we go up to the north-eastern side of Mt Taylor. Recently we have been going in the late afternoon except, that is, for today when we did the walk in the middle of the day.

Crested Pigeon

I have been seeing a couple of Crested Pigeon in the garden most days lately. Several chattering parties of Crimson Rosella seen on the walk suggested they were forming partnerships or sorting out existing ones. My group of Eastern Rosella was in the usual area but there were at least 8-10 birds so the group is larger than I had first thought. The White-winged Chough also had a larger grouping than I had seen recently with 15 birds together in the scrubby woodlands on the northern lower slopes of Mt Taylor. These birds divided into 6 and 9 which might suggest that they may have been two groups. I will have to keep an eye on them. Red Wattlebird continue to dominate the sounds from the suburban areas backing up against the Nature Park in which I walk. Occasional calls from Indian Myna also could be heard and at least one group of Noisy Miner is centred in the area generally about my garden. I see others to the south at the back of the next suburb. Australian Raven were evident in pairs calling in such a way as to suggest they are begining to declare their breeding territories. They nest early. I came across a small party of at leaast 4 delightful Yellow-rumped Thornbill not far from my garden. Occasionally a party of these thornbills will pass through the garden but not often. I stumbled upon another interesting group of birds towards my turning point on the walk. Several Spotted Pardalote were softly calling in some low Eucalypts together with a few Weebill giving their distinctive 'we we-bill' calls - just to add certainlty to their identity! With them was an Easter Spinebill and several Yellow-faced Honeyeater passed through. I found some more Weebill later at another site near the large water storage tank. A few pairs of Galahwere seen amongst the mature Eucalypts on the east side of Mt Taylor. They were probably interested in the possibilities for nest sites in the numerous hollows that are present in these old trees. Gang-gang Cockatoo were heard and Pied Currawong were furtively moving about amongst the cover without much calling.

Pied Currawong

I have heard the occasional party of more noisy Pied Currawong about my area of late but nothing very unusual. A mature plumaged female Australian Magpie was directing a plaintive juvenile food begging call to a smart looking male. Doubtless the dominant breeding female of that group!
On returing to my house I could see a group of motly plumaged young Crimson Rosella still feeding on the Tulip tree seed cones which they cut off and drop on the ground below, often it seems before fully exploiting the contents.