On the day of a great feel good story from the Melbourne Cup, I found Timmy on the mend.
I’m not much of a fan of horse racing, but have to admit that the story of Michelle Payne, the wonderful horse Prince of Penzance, her brother as the strapper, and the trainer/connections story is one that fairy tale dreams are made of. See the story here.
Steven the Strapper to qoute the article; “Steven, who has Down syndrome, was responsible for drawing Prince of Penzance’s number one barrier, and correctly predicted the horse would be “in front at 200 metres [to go]“.
And rather than go up market, they have stayed with their roots and enjoyed the evening at a battler’s pub in St Kilda.
Love it when we stay true to our convictions.
Now its not that I don’t like horses, I’ve photographed a few of them in my time, and its not that I don’t enjoy a good day at the races. Love the food, the atmosphere and the excitement of country racing. Just don’t fancy seeing my money going into an endless pit, and watching an endless parade of horses around a track. Now before some one calls me, I really believe that horses love to run. And to run fast, and to jostle and parade. It’s just that I don’t get the gratification thing for humans.
But back to Timmy.
You’ll remember when we left our hero that he was looking a bit down in the wardrobe department with the mysterious departure of his beautiful tail. So we paid him a repeat visit today, and another fairy tale come true.
Timmy has begun to replace the missing wardrobe piece.
Still as active as ever, and just as vocal, and still chasing and harassing the females in his territory. So tailless or not, life has gone on for Timmy. What a great story.
Enjoy
What is that I see behind you. Oh, a tail.There you are. And starting to look a lot better already.No tail, but a big voiceYeah, I know not the most flattering of views, but. Look its a tail.Well done TImmy, a feel good story to warm my old heart.
At first glance all seems well, but on a second take, well, its obvious. Timmy doesn’t have a tail. And there-in lies the tale.
Was working with a pair of Willie Wagtails and had been sitting quietly for perhaps 15 minutes or more as they worked out strategy and tactics for building of their new domicile. If all goes well, expect more of that story.
When suddenly up pops Timmy. And at first glance I thought, “Oh, another Fairy-wren”, but then it was obvious that something wasn’t right.
Happen to be reading “blink: The power of thinking without thinking”, by Malcolm Gladwell. A good book for bird photographers as it suggests that the power of making choices in an instant. Actually its more about the power of marketing, and why we all recognise a can of Coca Cola, even if we don’t drink the stuff.
But, it didn’t seem right. So I looked, and sure enough Timmy is Tail-less. Otherwise a perfectly healthy Male, Superb Fairy-wren, and quite able to defend vocally his territory. Also seems to have a flotilla of females in a bush area some 30m from where I was sitting and they all treat him as usual. (That is giving him lectures from bushes).
So what happened to Timmy? Something disastrous, or is he also helping nesting and has lost his tail in the process, or has he had a bad attack of the moults? Or is its even more complicated. Perhaps someone has some info on what might have happened.
In our backyard, there are two resident Blackbirds. For most of the early part of the season, they seemed to be engaged in battles that were more than courtship, and occasionally I’d see quite a few feathers fly, and find a few on the patio. Now, as they settle to nesting, and don’t seem anywhere near as aggressive, I’ve noted that both of them are tail-less.
Other Blackbirds I’ve seen in the area are well tail endowed, so its just this pair.
Did they manage to pull each one’s tail feathers out in the ensuing battles?
Will keep an eye on Timmy, will be interesting to see if he regrows his glory.
What is wrong with this photo?Timmy the Tail-less is however quite well vocalisedTakes a second to grasp what has happenedBut he is quite busy in territorial dutiesAtta boy Timmy. Even without a tail, you are still the champion
Fresh from watching Alfred the Brown Falcon give hunting pointers for snakes, we were out at the WTP in the wind and the cold this afternoon, and to our collective surprise, a Magpie plopped down in the grass nearby.
With in a few seconds it emerged and with much delight took to the air with a snake in its beak. Then we were lucky enough that it landed on a roadway about 50m up and so we went to looksee.
Maggie wasn’t that impressed with spectators, and after a bit of relocating sat down to the work of despatching said snake.
The high wind made it a bit more difficult for Maggie to concentrate, and to be honest, I think it was quite cautious about its approach and even when the head had been removed after some difficulty, any slight movement of the carcass would have Maggie on the defensive and two steps back.
But it persisted and eventually got down to enjoying the remainder of the meal.
Well done Maggie. And just to add a word of warning to others as much as ourselves we had not more than 10 minutes before been standing in that area working with a Black-shouldered Kite. Time methinks to reconsider where we are standing.
Enjoy.
Maggie was on the alert all the time, any movement was considered with apprehension.When you’ve only a beak, sometimes you have to be clever in the pickup.Quickly consumed.If it moves give it a jolly good shaking.Hold, Rip and devour.
I just about know this bird well enough now to give him a name, so Alfred it is. I haven’t really met his lady as she is quite hidden amongst the tree with a nestling.
Alfred has a tree at the end of the Office carpark, and will often be seen looking out over the paddocks. Such was the case on Friday afternoon.
He is pretty dismissive of the human kind and simply sees them as passing traffic. So its not to hard to move around to get a good angle on this lovely bird’s rich coat. Almost from the moment he landed, twas obvious that something had his attention. No preening, just a constant scanning. At first I thought it might be he was a bit wary of the resident Black-shouldered Kites.
However after about 10 minutes or so, he dropped quietly off the tree and whiffled down on to the bike track opposite. After standing on the track for a few minutes, he stepped into the grass and again seem engrossed in an area just near him.
Then.
He struck.
And immediately lifted off with a small snake as prize. Off to the nearest perch, the fence line, and a few minutes to enjoy his meal.
I am pretty certain that I can conclude that not long after he landed in the tree that he spotted the snake, and then worked out a best place strategy for his attack. Then again once he landed on the biketrack there was some fine tuning of his planned approach and then finally the single stroke attack.
As Mr An Onymous said, “What incredible eyesight to spot it from that distance.”
Alfred just sat in the afternoon sun, grinning.
Dropping into his well sited lookoutAlfred and his lovely markings. Looking out over the paddock, I think he has already spotted the snake.Pondering the right moment of attack.Ready to attackOne single movement. Strike, grab and lift off.Closest perch is the best.Now to settle down for a well deserved mealTime for a pose for a photo from his adoring fans and then a break for a little restI reckon he is grinning
We’ve been up around the Newstead area this past week. Went up for the annual Werribee Birdlife (Formerly Werribee Wagtails) camp out.
On one afternoon in the RIse and Shine Bushland area we were quietly travelling through the forest, when I was pretty sure I’d heard the familiar “Peter, Peter Peter” of Jacky.
So we stopped and eventually I reckoned it about 500mm further down so we went to look. No doubt about it, a Jacky Winter, and quite vocal, and very busy. The EE spotted a pattern of flying into one tree, and a few minutes later announced, like some magician about to pull a rabbit from a hat. “Look, she is building a nest!”.
Now of course you have got to have seen a Jacky Winter nest before to have any idea what you are looking for. Mr An Onymous who was with us peered into the trees, scratched his head, got out his ever dependable Nikon binos and looked again. “Where?” Which is a pretty good question as Jacky doesn’t exactly go in for high class up market building. If there was one of those ‘reality building’ shows for birds she’d be among the bottom of the backyards.
And there on a tiny Y in branch was an almost imperceptible bulge. And pretty soon Jacky confirmed that by adding some more spider web to hold it all together.
Hope she is successful.
Enjoy.
Ahh, Hello, JackyNow that is a pretty determined flight patternLook no furtherNot likely to add a wide screen tv in here.Good luck Jacky the species is in good hands.
I posted a couple of weeks back about the Alan (Curly) Hartup Exhibition at Newstead.
We took the time to drive up for the day, (well actually we stayed up for about a week, but that will become clear as more posts are placed).
Alan Hartup was, for those who are interested, a remarkable local identity at Newstead. He ran the local service station and so came into contact on a daily basis with most of the locals. His other passions included photography and wildlife.
I had the good fortune, almost serendipitous luck, to have worked with him at several photographic conventions and national and international judging panels over the years. But always that infectious smile and the humble ability to take the time to listen to questions and help the person find the answer around them would lead to marvellous personal discoveries. In the bush he was the consummate bushman. I’ve travelled the scrub over the years with many fine bushmen(and women), but none I think rivalled his ability to find, to read, to take note of, to ponder, to investigate and to tread carefully across a landscape as Curly.
He worked in a time of slow ISO (ASA in those days), black and white film, and colour film that had impossible slow speeds. Think 50ISO agfapan.
No mulitburst, nor long focal length lenses for Curly. His work was patient, persistent and thorough. A nest might take days to set up a hide, to wait for the light, to brave the elements and to wrestle with cameras, tripods, flash units and cables that were built by little elves with a weird sense of humour. And 12 exposures on the beat-up Mamyia C33 was your lot mate! Still.
In the end it was never the photo to Curly it was the story of the bird.
Seeing his work harmonising together on the wall the other day as a body of work, (not of course his complete story), it was quite astonishing to come to the realisation that in a visual way Curly exemplified much of what Jon Young calls ‘building the thread’ It’s based on the story of the Kalahari bushman who says that each time he sees a bird a small thread is established which grows to be a large rope connecting both man and bird.
Curly’s pictures are a visible expression of that thread. The amazing story of the Wedge-tailed Eagle with the damaged wing. The intimate portrait of the Rufous Fantail at nest. The exquisite shots of the Possum taken from his living room while watching tv!! The stunning find of the White-browed Babbler on a nest. A bird for most who now walk the Newstead forest areas have yet to see in the area.
Complete involvement. Can’t be taught has to be experienced.
We had, that morning, early before the sun was up, enjoyed the company of a pair of White-faced Herons and their three delightful young on the nest. We’d moved locations to be entertained by White-browed Scrubwrens several of which were happy to feed not only at my feet but alongside my elbow resting on a log for support. To stare into those little bright eyes and ponder the intelligences going on in there. And then just before we went to the exhibition opening; to be enamoured by a pair of White-throated Treecreepers (See EE on Flickr for those – see here), as they worked hard on a tiny opening in a tree to provide their soon coming family with a safe secure home. Building threads. Surely the reason we’d travel that distance.
So what a thrill it was to take the time to enjoy again the work of such a man, and to enjoy the stories that he wanted to tell.
More power to Geoff Park (he of Natural Newstead blogsite – see here), and the Hartup family for bringing together such a body of work for a new generation of photographers to enjoy, and more importantly to experience.
Here few shots of the day under the old Railway Station at Newstead. What a great way to use the building and what a pleasure to have been part of a bustling crowd that filled the platform and gave a small feel of what it might have been like as new and old stories were played out.
And there over it all, the portraits that said so much about Alan Hartup and his care for the lives of the creatures.
Newstead Railway Station, now the Newstead Railway Arts Hub.Waitin’ for a train. Nope. Packing the station for the opening address.What a grand location for an exhibitionCan’t fit another body anywhere.Geoff Park unfolds the story of the exhibitionGood food, great conversation, amazing photos.Each room, formerly the Stationmasters residence, made a lovely setting for the photos.Tried really hard to get the Eastern Yellow Robin shot in.And outside more food. What a great day.
Just too much, fine light, a great afternoon and a Brown Falcon that seemed to relish the warm weather.
This is the bird that is one of the pair at one end of the paddock from Kitty and Kalav.
The rich evening light really seems to make your average Brown Falcon glow, and this bird is not average.
But, the Kites, Magpies, Wagtails, Magpie-larks and Ravens all take exception to its presence.
The pair were hunting for mice and had developed, I think, a strategy to deal with the harassment.
While one bird hunted on the ground, (Browns are good at this), the other flew slowly up and down to attract all sorts of attention. Leaving the bird on the ground free to hunt. And, successful she was.
Enjoy
Wing stretch in the sunshineTypical Brown Falcons upright stance.Wagtail sliding down Falcon’s back. A pretty well co-ordinated attack.Two Wagtails were among the team of harassing birdsTree sitting to attract attentionShe gets to leave with her nice mouse dinner. She has just transferred it from beak to leg for the journey back to the nest.
Last Sunday, the weather people, correctly, predicted foggy morning. That was enough to send us to the Office.
Not only did we get some grand misty moody shots, but caught up with Kitty and Kalav – the Brave.
Kitty now has settled on the nest and he is still bringing food on demand.
The Brown Falcon came and gave us quite a lovely half hour or so sitting and preening waiting for the sun to break through.
And some fine little Superb Fairy-wrens stopped by to entertain us.
Art Morris has been writing a bit of late on High Key portraits, and the mist gave both an ideal light and an excellent backdrop to play the little birds against.
Enjoy
To wing. Brown Falcon on a missionA party mouse, bringing its own streamer decorations to the eventThe dramatic pose as the sun broke throughHigh Key WrenGame of hide and seekMore high key.Whistling Kite, waiting for the fog to lift
No one needs to be told that today was a cold day. Oh, 14degrees feels like 3.7, so the weather dude said. 3.7??? Now how can you predict that accurately?
Anyway it wasn’t even close in the strong winds running in to the 50+kph, it felt more like -3.7 say -4, whose going to quibble over whole numbers.
Cold. When the wind rips through a Driazabone jacket, I’m here to tell its COLD.
Had a date with Kalav -the Brave. He was going to be in a lot of trouble hunting in this wind. But, did you notice Brave in there somewhere?
By the time I’d arrived, he’d already decimated one part of the hunting ground and had moved to new premises. Seemed more interested in keeping Kitty well supplied than in a silly old dude in a Drizabone pointing a lens at him.
4 mice, in 10 minutes. And all within a stones throw, (not that I threw stones at him) of where I was hunkered down behind the the fencepost, the only protection around.
Onya bloke. You deserve a rest for a few hours.
Steadying in the wind was a real effortOn targetAt lift offOne foot techniqueTucking up the mouseOh, Kitty, where are you, Kitty, Kitty.
Bet you thought you’d never see that head line again ah?
We needed to go to the Melbourne Airport. For the geographically embarrassed that is about ohhh? 15 mins from Woodlands. So.
Why don’t we leave early, have a look at the Red-caps and then go to said airport?
We did
Which was pretty amazing as we met Nina out there and she had had a good morning seeing among other things a Fantail Cuckoo. The carpark near the cemetery was abuzz with Thornbills and so many Grey Fantails. So after farewelling Nina, we set off for Red-cap country.
And we found a couple of female birds quite quickly, but no male. Then a couple of Rufous Whistler females seemed to be having a tiff over a male, and he happily responded with his usual “Echong” call. All very nice.
Enter stage right a Shining Bronze Cuckoo, and things were looking up.
Till.
The rain came. As come it must. By then we’d ventured into the (in)famous Backpaddock, only to discover its still a quiet place for birds.
More time with the Red-caps, and I began to wonder if one of them at least might be the previous season juvenile having just moulted in as she has a very tiny red cap.
By now, the rain was winning and the coffee shoppee at Greenvale was inviting, then off to the birdless airport we adjourned.
Red-capped Robin FemaleThey always seem to be able to take that little bit of extra time to pose the best possible wayWing over action. Seems to me that its main purpose is hunting to perhaps scare insects into movingIt certainly gives a great look at the wing patterningEeee ChongRufous Whistler FemaleOur very smallest bird. A Weebill.Always a pleasure to find a PardaloteHow about I pose here by the spider web. Yes, but turn around a bit more. Oh.
A wonderful exhibition of nature photographs by leading amateur photographer and longtime resident of Newstead, Alan Jesse Hartup (1915 –2004) will be opened at the Newstead Railway Arts Hub on Saturday October 10th at 3pm.
This exhibition is largely of bird life in Newstead and the surrounding districts, from Alan’s vast array of black and white photographs and colour slides. This selection of 20 works of black and white and prints from colour slides, spans over 60 years of Alan’s impressive output. Beginning with his beloved 35mm Voigtlander camera, he progressed to the brilliant level of work he achieved with his Mamiya and Rollieflex 2¼ square cameras and his great ability with dark room techniques.
Alan has been represented widely in amateur circles and has been a central figure in promoting, selecting and judging photography in Victoria and interstate. In preparing for this exhibition we have been reminded what…
Its been said, that I’ve lost my bird karma, and over the past few weeks, probably my weather karma as well.
Can’t recall a good day in the sunshine, so we’ve been, as we say on Flickr, practicing.
I’ve been keeping an eye on a pair of Black-shouldered Kites at The Office. (Werribee River Park).
And today, with some sunshine, I needed a place to practice, I’d been reading John Shaw and he seemed to have some pretty fine results using the Nikon 3D tracking, so thought I’d give it a go. Never been one of my favourite settings, I do have to concede.
Knowing I only had a few minutes, I grabbed the D7100 with the 300mm PF. A pretty nice combo now I’ve made some focus adjustments care of Reikan’s FoCal software.
After a little messing with some distant falcons and Black Kites, I was about to return home when sailing over the trees came a Black-shouldered Kite with a mouse, and pretty much immediately pursued by a female crying out for her food.
That was enough for me to drop into the open paddock, (among all the stinging nettles as it turned out!!! – that wasn’t in John’s book!), and see him come in with several mice over the next half hour or so.
Here’s a selection.
Alley Oop, Black-shouldered Kite style.He followed her back to the feeding perch.Well fed, its time to get on with the important house renovationsWhere is the nest again?Ahhh so that is where you are workingMouse eye view of the male leaving for a huntWhat’s that I see, oh, just another mouse dinner“Hold still will you, we are going to be on WordPress, and I don’t want to mess it up.
If you’ve been following for a while, and have a bit of a memory, you might recall that I put up a story of an aggressive Scarlet Robin Carpark attendant that took to the “mirror bird” reflected in the car.
Well time has moved on, so has the Scarlet Robin, but the carpark as it turns out is still there. So we pulled up there the other day hoping to find a few interesting bush birds as there is good piece of grey box forest on the far side of the fence.
What we didn’t expect, of course was to set up by the latest iteration of the Carpark attendant.
The “Blue Flash” Car Inspector. He came out of nowhere and immediately took to the mirror bird in the far side car mirror. EE said, if the window was down,” I could touch him.”
Next he proceeded all along the front windscreen, (I’d gotten myself and the 300mm lens out of the car by this time. Then on to the drivers side door and gave that a right hammering.
On looking at the shots, he does look like a young male who is just moulting-in to breeding plumage, the few grey feathers are still showing. So perhaps he is now the chief breeding male and needed to be sure he was in fact the only one in the area.
After about 10 minutes or so, he flew off across the carpark chattering at all the watching females and lesser males. They seemed to giggle at his arrival and they all took off back into the scrub.
Just down the road from our favourite Scarlet Robins, a pair of Eastern Yellow Robins have also decided that an early start to Spring means early nest building.
This one, I practically walked into, despite being told at the time, “It’s just there on your left, you are TOO close.”
Oh.
Gathering materialsShe always takes a different approach to the siteNestling nicely among the bark and sheltered by some wattleEach piece is carefully set in place.It’s all held together with cobweb which is wiped from beak, head and wings.Choice little bits needed to fill in spacesEven a bit of decorationAnd the site supervisor arrives on time with morning tea.Pondering where to put the widescreen tv?
Birds as Poetry —— Just because I WANDER doesn't mean I'm LOST 