David Jenkins

Saturday Evening Post: A Magic Place

May 4, 2024Posted in "Western Treatment Plant", Saturday Evening Post, Western Treatment PlantTagged Saturday Evening Post, Western Treatment Plant5 Comments

I was first introduced to the Western Treatment Plant by a birder who had been visiting the area for many years. He delighted in showing people the best of the area, and his enthusiasm was infectious.

On one trip, we were sitting on the rocks in the grass overlooking Ryan’s Swamp. It was at the time carrying a good depth of water. As we sat eating lunch, we chatted about the history of people bird watching in the area. One character, Fred Smith, had been visiting the plant for many years and in those early years, he would catch a train to Werribee Railway Station and then ride his bike down to the plant. In those early years, access to the bird-watching area was through the town of Cocoroc.

He then said two profound things that have stuck with over the years. As we sat in the early autumn sunshine, with Kites and Falcons keeping us entertained with their aerial skills, he said, “This is a Magic Place.” A little later he continued, “It is a great privilege to be able to have access here.”

Times have changed, transportation has become easier and now the ‘Farm’ is running the risk of over-familiarisation. Where once it was possible to see maybe 5 visitors in a day, now, the numbers approach 50 or more when a ”special” bird is in residence.

At present an international wanderer is causing excitement on social media, and the area where it is currently over-staying is in danger of becoming a traffic jam. And the environmental pressure around the pond had resulted in Melbourne Water closing a lot of small side roads with gates and signs and to issue, a fairly strong worded edict to birdwatchers, photographers and general visitors.
Here is part of that document.

Incidents include:

walking off tracks and roads and entering vegetated areas and margins of ponds for photograph opportunities
inappropriate driving on site including riding in the back of a ute tray whilst in motion
entering restricted areas on foot and by vehicle that are off limits to permit holders
riding bicycles on the birdwatching route.

To protect yourself and the health and safety of these species, please:

stick to the tracks designated in the WTP Birdwatching Route Map

stay near your vehicle at all times – you are not permitted to walk more than 30 metres from your vehicle

abide by the prescribed speed limit of 30kmh or as designated by signage

follow instructions on all signage

DO NOT ENTER areas are strictly no-go zones – you are not permitted to enter

ROAD CLOSED sign means the area is closed both to foot traffic as well as vehicles

No bicycles are allowed on site – cars only

It seems that we no longer adhere to ‘a privilege’ to be there. The view of the bird, and the ultimate photograph are more important.
And overcrowding to get that social media ‘hit’ is not limited to birding. Places like Venice are charging tourists to enter. In Japan they have erected a large barrier to prevent people stopping in the middle of the road for that ‘perfect’ picture of Mt Fuji. And there are many others.

It reminds me of International Photography Exhibitions during the 1970-80s. There was a division for “Nature Photography” and -the hand of man- was not to be seen in the photo. As competition for these events was high, much ingenuity was used to obtain the prize winning picture.
For quite a few years photos, (and this is in the days of filum) were made of nesting birds by finding a nest, setting up the camera rig, and flash units, close to the nest, and then chopping off any branches that might obscure the ‘perfect shot’. One I know of used a motorised camera with a 250 shot back, and a motion release. He’d set it up, retire to the local motel for the day, and then on the following morning go and collect his gear and prize winner. Leaving the bird nest now totally exposed to predators and the weather.
Another series that did the rounds for awhile was pictures of Sacred Kingfishers in nest. This was achieved by digging a trench next to the nest and then scraping away the earth to reveal the young in the nest being fed. Again, driving away leaving the nest exposed. Spotted Pardalotes nest in holes in the ground, the entrance very well camouflaged. But it was nothing to clear it all way to get a shot of the bird emerging or entering the nest space.. And walking away leaving the nest unprotected. Fortunately in the end we were able to have such practices banned.
However the pictures still did the rounds.
Bowels, Robins and Flycatchers of Australia, has a number of photo plates where the pruning around the nest is quite obvious.

BIrdLife Australia has a code of practice for photographers. I hope for the sake of both the privilege to visit the area and the Magic of the Place, that notice is taken.
It would be sad to loose access to such a special place.

That’s all very well. But. How are we going to get in?

Wednesday Wanderings: Good News Story

May 1, 2024May 1, 2024Posted in Black-shouldered KiteTagged Black-shouldered Kite4 Comments

Very early this year, about five families of Black-shouldered Kites fledged their young over about a three week period. The mice seemed also to have had a little population explosion of their own in one of the near-by fields and the families moved in to both train their young and feed them. Some of the more advanced young were quite capable of hunting on their own, but it didn’t stop them trying to score a meal from a harassed father as he flew in with a mouse for one of his young.
For a week or so there would as many as 16 Kites all airborne or sitting on fence posts consuming a meal.

But, as it works out, as the young grew stronger and the free feeding ceased and no doubt the mice went on a well deserved holiday, the young Kites began to disperse. The adults that had flown in to supervise, also moved back to their own territory. The female of the home pair also took off, not unusual to see that happen as she needs to build up her strength after 8 weeks or more of sitting on eggs and young. The male continued to stay around and watch over the territory.

Two young juvenile Kites continued to roost together down at one end of the paddock, and as they both had a fair cover of juvenile colouring for several weeks we concluded they were from a clutch and hadn’t yet felt the need to move on.

However as time went on, and the juvenile feathers began to fade and the body language changed, it became clear what we were looking at was in fact a new pair. No doubt they had met up during the paddock mouse madness days, and well, like nature taking its course they became a couple. Now that their juvenile has mostly faded, and their eye colour is still a rich brown, it’s probably to early to conclude they are going to nest anytime in the future.
But it is rather charming to see them sitting happily together. Ahh, those teen-age years.

Enjoy

They have quickly established a spot at the end of the treeline as their own territory.

Saturday Evening Post: The Holy Grail

April 27, 2024Posted in Pink Robin, Saturday Evening PostTagged Pink Robin, Saturday Evening Post7 Comments

We all in our own ways have that “Holy Grael” that Sir Perceval was seeking. However there are other lesser dreams we have that don’t involve messy stuff, like cleaning up after the “Fisher King” in his land of desolation. In fact, trying to read Joseph Campbell’s book: “Romance of the Grail” might in itself be one of those Great Quests.

Climbing Mount Everest is such a pursuit. Landing man on the moon. Playing a hole-in-one on the golf course and ever so many other Great Quests are challenges that people stand up to meet. So many great acts of, “Decent People, doing Decent Things” as I alluded recently regarding Arnold Dix

But there are also little wins we each make. Some birders are on the look out for the next big bird thing. A nomad, or wanderer that turns up unexpectedly. Enough to have them drive across the state or on some cases the continent and further.
We have been watching and waiting of late for the return of the Flame Robins from the high country. Just occasionally we might see a Rose or Scarlet, but rarely a Pink Robin. Not unheard of, but they tend to be birds of the forest I think, and our wide open plains are more to be flown over on their migration south on their quest for some suitable forest to winter over.

So, it was, as they say, a “Sir Perceval” or Mt Everest moment the other day, when as we searched through the underbrush, a small brown shape flashed from one wattle bush to another, and then intrigued by our presence, (well, I like to think that), she popped out on a branch, cocked her head to one side, paused long enough for a few frames, and then in the twinkle of her eye.
Disappeared back into the wattle branches.
Gone.
“Pink Robin, Female”.

Might not be Mt Everest, or a hole-in-one on the golf course, but a highlight of the day.

Enjoy (We did)

Saturday Evening Post: There and Back

April 20, 2024Posted in Black-shouldered Kite, Saturday Evening PostTagged Black-shouldered Kite, Saturday Evening Post8 Comments

Many will know I’ve mentioned my theory about Brown Falcon’s ability to ‘map’ out an area and fly, following that internal map.

I came across an article in The Smithsonian Magazine recently titled, Why Do Some People Always Get Lost.

The interesting part to me is toward the end and titled Mental Mappers. I can’t provide a direct link, and it’s a long scroll down. It refers to “….the specific skills that are hallmarks of good navigators These include the ability to estimate how far you’ve traveled, to read and remember maps (both printed and mental), to learn routes based on a sequence of landmarks and to understand where points are relative to one another.” ” Two of those skill are ‘Route Following’ and …and what’s often termed ‘survey knowledge,’ the ability to build and consult a mental map of a place.”

When my Mother-in-Law was getting on in years the family pointed out she was unable to move around on her own as, “She didn’t know where she was.” Now, I had to take exception to that as I’d travelled about with her quite extensively and was more than confident in her ability to go from home, to the shops, pick up a bottle of milk and return safely. And to venture in and out of several stores along the route. I discovered that they were judging her lack of ability because they had taken her to a shopping centre she’d never been to before and she had asked, “So, how do you get out of here?” I’m certain I’d have done the same. New place, new location, no mind-map.

As a young tacker, I grew up with a highly respected bushman. He could wander about for hours and still know where he was, where the start point might be, or the next spot to go visit. His simple secret was he named locations as he went along. Easy to remember names, like places, “The Eiffel Tower”, “The Burnt Log”, “Wombat’s Home”, and others. The landmarks would be no more than 200-500meters apart. So if he was somewhere, all he had to do was find one of his landscape features and follow back from there. When I walk the Eynesbury Forest, or the Woodlands Historic Park, I still use that system.

I’ve sat for an hour so so with so many Brown Falcon’s and watched them watching. Then when they fly, it’s a deliberate run at almost ground level, to swoop on something, or onto the next chosen perch. As they slip past a bush here, around a plant there, through an opening in the grass, it’s hard not to be impressed at their mapping ability.

And just in case you never leave home without GPS, here is a conclusion from the study.

…A follow-up with 13 of the volunteers three years later revealed that those who had used GPS the most during the intervening period experienced greater declines in their ability to navigate without GPS, strongly suggesting that GPS reliance causes diminished skills, rather than poor skills leading to greater GPS use.

We’ve also been following a pair of Black-shouldered Kites. They fledged two young about two months ago, and the young, as normal have now moved away. As soon as her young fledge, the female usually hands responsibility of their care and feeding to the male. She then takes a few weeks extended leave, and goes off to replenish her system from the 8 weeks or so of sitting on the nest.
For some reason this female had not returned for about two months. Her male kept station and I was beginning to think he was on his own.
However the other day, we found them both hunting in the paddock.
The picture on this page is of her sweeping in with a catch. Not sure if she took the mouse, or if he’d passed it on to her. Will have to wait to see what, if anything develops.

Saturday Evening Post: The Variations of Colour

April 13, 2024April 13, 2024Posted in Brown Falcon, Saturday Evening PostTagged Brown Falcon, Saturday Evening Post8 Comments

If you assemble a group of half a dozen birders together and ask a question about bird id, you’ll likely get about 10 or more different answers.

Birds don’t make it easy. Some have unusual juvenile plumage and are easy to spot. Some don’t. Some differ between breeding and non-breeding plumage (Consider the Red-necked Stint, it’s most unusual in Australia to see them fully coloured up rich red).

Discussions begin about the intricacies of variation in moult patterns, in feeding styles, of nesting and a whole range of features and characteristics.
Discussion also turns to cover all sorts of anecdotal material, and some wise birders seem to be able to determine not only the sex of every bird, but on which side of the tree the nest was on.
It’s enough for the beginner to shake their head and wander away thinking, “I only wanted to know if it was a Sparrow or an Emu!”

Most birds don’t have a wide variation of plumage so its pretty easy to settle on what a Little Pied Cormorant looks like, and why it’s not to be id’d as a Australian Pied Cormorant. Or, some are distinctive enough, think Laughing Kookaburra, as to not be easily confused.

But when it comes to Brown Falcons

This past week my Flickr and WP friend Eleanor, had made a trip to the Western Treatment Plant, and photographed a bird which, at first blush looked like a Nankeen Kestrel. It certainly started some conversation around my group of birders.

Browns are birds of the open plains and open forests.
As the text books say, “Brown bird with a variable plumage.” Which is where the problems of id begin to surface.
And variable is what seems to make id complicated sometimes.

Browns can vary from dark chocolate brown, through a marbling light brown on white, to white chests and underwings.
At a distance, a light morph Brown is easily mistaken for a Nankeen Kestrel

Here are three that show some of the variations. All of these are local birds that I’ve come across in the past couple of years.

See. “With variations”
Here is one that is similar, (if not the same bird, but I’m only guessing) that Eleanor found

For a greater discussion there is an interesting PDF file from the publication, The Emu 2003.
Much of the research was made at the Western Treatment Plant.

And here is a lovely cover of an old Gould League of Victoria publication with paintings by Susan McInnes. As can be seen, this particular book has had a long journey in our family.

It used to be said, that light coloured birds were from the wide open plains and darker birds from forested areas. But, like all anecdotal stories, they may only be true under certain circumstances. As a young tacker growing up in the wide ranging open fields of the Mallee in Victoria, it was not unusual to see light through dark birds.

Long term readers know we regularly have contact with a pair of Browns. She is of the mid-tone marbled chest, but her handsome male, that I call “Alistair” is a very light morph bird. Here he is on a turn.

To add to the complexities, some like Alistair have yellow cere and eye marks, while others are a grey-blue.

And for completeness, here is a young bird that had only been fledged a couple of days, the baby down is still showing on its head, as is the rich apricot colours.

Good Luck with id.

Enjoy.

Along the Track: Down to the Sea…

April 11, 2024April 11, 2024Posted in Along the TrackTagged Along the Track6 Comments

The entrance to Port Philip Bay is know as either “The Heads” or “The Rip”.

It is a narrow waterway that connects the Bay with the Bass Strait. The large tidal flow of water, into and then out of the bay create substantial water pressure through the narrow channel, and the shallow water over the rocky seabed are is quite dangerous for maritime vessels. The area has claimed numerous ships down through the years.

EE and I had planned to visit the Point Lonsdale Lighthouse on the western side of “The Rip”, at sunset to catch the last glimpses of the sun setting over the water.

Just as we arrived, a Pilot Boat, that takes out a Pilot to guide in large ships, was returning into the bay.
To say the windy weather was blustery would be an understatement, to say the run of the waves was treacherous would be fool hardy.

As I watched the Pilot Boat rise and fall through the waves, I was rather glad that the sea-faring gene had bypassed me. There are some jobs that need to be done, and traversing that boiling water was not one that I was cut out to do.

As I watched I gained a great respect for the danger these folk put themselves through every day.

A little later as the sun had set the large vessel they were shepherding came into view.

The following day we saw a Pilot Boat going out for another run. In the calm of the harbour and the lovely afternoon light, things seemed much more sedate.

Some quotes from a poem ‘Those Who Go Down to the Sea in Ships’ by James A. Tweedie, a poetic paraphrase of Psalm 107:23-30

Those who go down to the sea in their ships

Saturday Night Post: Connections

April 6, 2024April 6, 2024Posted in Saturday Evening PostTagged Saturday Evening Post8 Comments

In his book, “What the Robin Knows”, author Jon Young writes about how birds reveal the secrets of the natural world.

He tells a story of the time he was in a meeting in a full glassed office, and looked out to see a bird looking and acting very agitated. He exclaimed, “Oh, there is a cat coming along the footpath.” The others looked out and of course there was no cat. They were in a completely different frame of mind at that moment.
A minute or so later, a cat strolled down the path past the window. And everybody’s jaws dropped. Perhaps they were in the presence of a man with physic powers? Jon then explained the actions of the bird had led him to follow the story outside and that’s how he knew the conclusion.

EE and I usually work with only a small number of birds, we don’t chase birds for accounting purposes, nor do we rush to see the latest ‘new thing’. I don’t have a problem with those that do, just. We don’t.

Just for the record, we don’t camo, sit in hides or ‘sneak’ up on birds either. We let birds establish boundaries, and try very hard not to cross those lines. If I put a bird to flight, the loss is mine and I try not do do it again.
Some birds seem to have more tolerance of the human condition than others and some that have chosen to work in high human density areas are tolerant almost to the point of disdain. Ibis, Ravens, Gulls, Sparrows, Wattlebirds, and Magpie-larks and more, consider our wasteful practices to their advantage and readily move around us without fear.
Many a sausage on a BBQ has been lost to a marauding Kookaburra as it swoops down unannounced from the tree above. 🙂

Other birds just simply grace us with their presence.
My friend Martyn, has a Sparrowhawk that is using his fence as a perching spot, and has become quite predictable. I featured a wonderful video sequence of his a few posts back. However, see Martyn’s Flickr page here for the latest in the ongoing saga. Here is a bird that has become a regular.

Being able to take the time to observe such a bird, one can begin to learn about its character, and begin to see things from the bird’s perspective or at least to appreciate their perspective. It may only be a Sparrow, or Blackbird, or New Holland Honeyeater that regularly turns up in the garden, but there are things to know about the bird that are special only to each of us.

As Jon says, in a story of the San Bushman, “We develop connections with all aspects of the creation.”
As awareness grows, appreciation grows, as appreciation grows, so does empathy— Jon Young

This is one of two young Black-shouldered Kites that are just coming out of juvenile colours. This one is now quite grey of head and only a few chest colours have yet to fade. For us it’s an interesting story, as we are either looking at two siblings, and there were two fledged in the area a couple of months back. Or, two young birds that have formed a pair-bond. At present the jury is out, but if they stay around together, it’s certainly going to be a pair-bond.

Enjoy

Along the Track: With a Yo Ho Ho…

April 3, 2024Posted in "Australasian Gannet", The Pope's EyeTagged "Australasian Gannet", The Pope's Eye8 Comments

Truth be told, boats, ships, water vessels and the like, are not my thing.
Strange, as the family archivists inform me, that the family tree runs its course through what appears to be a stream of Cornish Pirates. Oh ahh, oh ahh meheaties.

But. I don’t think the call of the ocean managed to sneak down the gene pool to me. Take me to the edge of the beach, let me enjoy the water lapping over the rocks, or on a stormy day explode in force in anger against the land, and I’m satisfied.

However EE on our wandering down the Bellarine coast had booked to take the Queenscliff to Sorrento ferry. Now you’d probably conclude that there were several reasons for that. And the one I’ll share today is The Pope’s Eye.

Sounds pretty much like some ecclesiastical mystery that involves, black coats and stuff, but as it turns out, The Pope’s Eye is a small man-made island that was to form the foundations for fort to protect Port Phillip Bay from intruders, such as old Cornish Pirates 🙂 etc.

It’s located about 3km from Queenscliff and can be easily seen. No longer the military might, its the home to a large flock of Australasian Gannets that breed there. It’s also a great place for divers and has a wide range of underwater forests of kelp and the like.

The name comes not from any religious significance, but from the name of one of the men who was working at establishing the large basalt rock foundation.

Why chose the ferry. Well tis possible to hire a boat and travel out to the site, but remember my first para. Not for me!

We took the ferry across to Sorrento, on the outward trip it runs quite wide of Pope’s Eye, but on the return to Queenscliff it does approach much closer and a long lens can provide excellent views.
We, of course, were hoping that the Gannets might at least be in the air, coming or going and some great inflight shots might be the order of the day. However it was Gannets sleep-in day and only a few were in flight.
Still, it made an interesting trip across the bay, and a fine meal in the Tara restaurant on our return.

Enjoy

Saturday Evening Post: Turn of the Season

March 30, 2024Posted in Flame Robin, Saturday Evening PostTagged Flame Robin, Saturday Evening Post10 Comments

I was going to title this “Return of the Mountain Kings”.
As April approaches, we start to get ready to look for the return of the Flame Robins and other winter flock birds.
From experience, we normally expect to see the first of the females turn up around the second week or so of April, and the males to arrive about a week to 10 days later.
They summer over and breed in the high mountain country and as the weather changes and the snows cover the ground, they move to lower country over the winter for food.

We were out following up on some sightings of Black-shouldered Kites and had been talking about how soon before the Flames would be around. As we crossed a fence-line and came toward the next gate, EE exclaimed, “A Flame Robin on the gate.”
And, lo and behold, there was a brilliant red flash in the sunshine out in the open on the top of the gate.
We followed him down the fence line as he hunted and eventually he disappeared. I guess when he’d flown about 200km or more to get here, 500m down the fence-line is nothing.

And as we headed back to iAmGrey there on the fence was a lone female.
The strange weather and the changes that seem to have affected both birds and trees and other wildlife has also made some adjustments to the Robins and their travel plans.

But we were quite pleased to enjoy their company and look forward to seeing the larger flocks arrive.

Came across an interesting article this morning on the bird that is the emblem of the official flag of South Australia.
The official name of the bird is “Piping Shrike”. It has been oft discussed as two birds seem to fit that discussion. The Australian Magpie, or The Magpie-lark
Here is a link to the discussion

And finally I came across this interesting partial quote by an scholar, Alcuin, he was, among many things, an instructor to royalty, including Charlemagne.

A Prayer from Alcuin (around 800AD)
Give us…..
Firm faith
Unwavering hope
A passion for justice.

In this present world, it is still has a lot of meaning.

Enjoy

Along the Track: Wednesday Wanderings

March 27, 2024Posted in Along the Track, Great Cormorant, Pacific Gull, Pied Butcher Bird, Queenscliff, Wedge-tailed EagleTagged Grey Butcherbird, Pacific Gull, Wedge-tailed Eagle5 Comments

“What about a couple of days down at Queenscliff?”, hung in the air for a few minutes.
Seemed possible. It is well outside my usual rule. Some may recall that we try not to travel more than 30 minutes or so to a birding spot. These days with extra traffic, we’ll fudge out to 45mins 🙂

So after loading up IamGrey with the appropriated changes of clothes, the right camera gear and bookings for accommodation all set. We too. Set off.

Any run down the Geelong bound freeway will call for a diversion off the highway and a run along the western edge of the WTP, along Pousties Rd for those who follow such things on maps.

I was looking right, EE looking left.—partly because that is the seating arrangement in IamGrey.

Not long before the call, “There is a Wedge-tailed Eagle on the fence!” came from the left side of the car. I should have known.
Said bird was about 100m down the fence-line from the road, but a handy short track to a fence managed to cover about 25m or so. The bird soon took note of our approach. Not wishing to put it up we stopped. But. Perhaps that was even more unnerving and it unfolded the wonderful big sails and before you could say, “There it goes”. It went.

Big grins all round, we continued on to Drysdale and the best pie shop around. There are rumours that I’d travel down there just for the pies, but you shouldn’t believe everything you read. 🙂

Armed with a fine pie, and a coffee we returned to the side of the Drysdale Railway Station, and enjoyed the repast in the lee of the wind.
Lake Lonsdale, right next to the Station, is usually a good place for wetlands birds and we set off. But water levels had changed somewhat, and most of the birds would have nested and departed. Still we managed a few worthwhile finds. But no Grey Butcherbirds that we had hoped to find.
Onwards down the coast we motored.

As it was going to be cloudless evening, we picked up some ‘fish’n’chips’ from the wonderful, “The Original Queenscliff Fish and Chips” in the main street and headed up to the Point Lonsdale Lighthouse hoping we might find some seabirds in the air in the strengthening wind.
We sat on a small table in the carpark area and opened up and enjoyed our humble meal. And both of us simultaneously saw a grey shape in the bushes opposite.

A Pied Butcherbird. Cameras of course were in the vehicle, way over the other side of the carpark, and one of us volunteered to go fetch. Knowing that by the time we were ready for photos, the bird will have flown on.
But no.
This bird probably used this area regularly and sat down tummy on the branch and watched the goings on around. Then a bit of preening, and we went back to the table. By the time we’d wrapped up the remains and were ready to head up to the Lighthouse, the bird was still happily perched.

At the top we were treated to a great view of the sun setting down the coast, and a pair of Pacific Gulls that seemed to relish the wind and the occasional wave spraying over their rocky perch.
And the sight of the Pilot Boat returning over the rough waters of “The Heads”—the flow of water between the East and West sides of Port Phillip Bay. But that will be another blog.(Please)

And top it off, as we drove back to accommodation, the full Moon began peeking over the horizon.

Here are a few highlights.

Saturday Evening Post: Digitally Modified at the Source

March 23, 2024March 23, 2024Posted in Saturday Evening Post, UncategorizedTagged Saturday Evening Post4 Comments

Seeing is a miracle.

Recently, on occasions, I’ve risen early in the morning while it’s still dark, and gone for a walk. Street lights abound in the area that I walk, but nothing is quite like the slow, steady, change from darkness to daylight as the sun begins to make its presence felt on the eastern horizon.

Lines and shapes slowly become clearer, colours that were muted begin to take on their own richness. The natural wonders of the world around me begin to stretch and open toward the light.

I meet a pair of Magpies on the corner, near a football oval. I greet them, and they always respond with a long carolling season. Just t’other day, I didn’t see them on a fence post as I walked by—it was dark— and they were quick and loud in the call, to perhaps cajole me for passing by without acknowledgement.

Yet is spite of all these little visual miracles, the vast population around me drive past in trucks, cars, buses and bikes. All blinded to the wonders that are right there. Peering through their windscreens.

Not that I’m totally aware of all that happens. Something will grab my attention, but in between, I am also struck by a disease of visual decline.
Marcel Proust said, “The real voyage of discovery is not in seeing new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

A wonderment with the world.

It is one of my great photo goals to make an image of a pair of Magpie-larks landing on a perch and doing their wing and call display.
I saw this pair approaching a tree and hurried to have a clear view, but.
By the time they landed, there was a leafy branch between me and the pair, and I missed the moment.
Looking at them, I turned the camera setting to monochrome, and dialled in some extra red filtration to darken the sky.
The result really shows the difference in the facial markings of the female in white, and the male in black.

As they now say in the best journalistic truth telling. “Digitally Modifed at the Source.”

Saturday Evening Post: I Fixed it up in Photoshop

March 16, 2024Posted in Saturday Evening PostTagged Saturday Evening Post12 Comments

When I was a wee broth of a photographer and served my time in a portrait studio, one of the jobs was “Spotting” the final finished prints of a client shoot. (Now it wasn’t always portraits, as products and insurance claims and the like were the bread and butter of the High St. photographer in those far flung days.
Spotting was—for the uninitiated—taking a fine brush, some suitable photographic ink, and carefully touching up any white marks that dust or fine lint may have marred the photo in printing. Dark marks were removed with a touch of “ferro”, (a highly poisonous product, called Potassium Ferrocyanide), which would, if carefully applied, (and you didn’t wipe the brush between your lips to get a fine point), slowly dissolve away black silver on the print to match the grey surrounds.

Another technique was hand colouring of portraits and wedding assembles. Careful note was made of the colour of shirts, dresses, hats, etc and passed on to the Hand Colourist who would carefully add the appropriate colour to the, usually toned to sepia (brown), prints.
One studio I was associated with had a reputation among the southern Mediterranean clientele. One of them finally revealed the secrets. Oh, we love your photos as they always give us Blue Eyes!
The hand colourist not knowing any different had just added blue to the eyes as she had always done.

Fast forward to the digital age. And among the first things just about anyone who was on the cutting edge of that revolution did, was to take a face and put it into a daffodil or rose. A person I knew, gained quite a reputation for being ‘creative’ as he showed prints of family and friends all looking good in the garden. And now most phones have a built in app for just about everything, including the famous tic-tok filters. Or was that snap-chat, I can’t recall.

I once had to ‘do’ a country wedding. Involved five sisters of the bride. Who wanted a group shot of the girls. Should be easy.
Makes photographing wayward birds a walk in the park. Literally.

Said girls all lined up. But to get them to look in the same direction at the same time for just say, 1/250th of a second proved impossible. Too many people to wave at, smile at or generally get distracted. In the end, I made about 10 shots of the group, and sent them on their way.
Loaded up all the images in Photoshop, did a quick softedeged cut and paste of each face, placed each on a seperate Layer in Photoshop and then carefully positioned it in the right location, body! Lots of hair, and hats and stuff to hide the edges so for all intents—it looked the part. Made the prints. No one complained.

I was quite astounded at the brouhaha, this week when the good Princess KaKa had the audacity to ship out a family pic of the royal brood, and of all things it seems to have “been fixed up in Photoshop”

Really. Must be the first mother in al history that has taken a shot of the kiddiewinks and then had the thought to clone out a hair or two, polish up the shoes, or get that crease out of the dress. When will that child learn to dress properly.
(Another reason to hire a pro. We check for things like that before we press the shutter as we are not emotionally involved in getting to all smile at the same time. )

How it all got past the sleeping Royal PR team is beyond me, but really. It was a pretty nice photo of the family, and normally, a print to hang on the wall.

But truth in the news business is as we all know, of first importance. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge.

Famed photojournalist Steve McCurry got himself in a lot of hot water a few years back for some off-handed ‘photoshopping’ on some of his pics.
Incidently, Steve also shot some of the last rolls of Kodachrome.
Don’t know Steve. Think Afghan Girl.
I remember the day I walked into the local newsagent and the latest copy of National Geographic was on the front shelf. I think I was mesmerised.

Been a quiet week for us. Between awful weather, a scarcity of birds and a few family activities we’ve been a bit of the home body has us.
But
I do want to share a link to a Flickr friend on mine. He live in Wales and has a Sparrowhawk come and land on his back fence. True!
He has made a few minutes of video of it preening. This is right up there with the best of Steve Mc, so click on the link and enjoy an invitation to the best front row seat you’ll get with a Sparrowhawk.

Thanks Martyn, Sparrowhawk.

Oh, and the header photo of Cassia, of Cinnamon, has had a little play around in Photoshop. !!@$$#W****&&^% 🙂

Saturday Evening Post: Rest or Nest?

March 9, 2024March 10, 2024Posted in Black-shouldered Kite, Saturday Evening PostTagged Black-shouldered Kite, Saturday Evening Post4 Comments

I’ve lamented in a few places the past couple of weeks, that we have been a bit bird depleted.
Many of the areas where we normally work, seem to be quiet to a point.

Over the past few months most of the Black-shouldered Kites, that we have followed for a number of years, have finished nesting and have departed along with their fledged young to places far-flung. Hard to understand what has changed. The food seems plentiful, the weather I have to admit is anything but helpful, and perhaps as autumn is around the corner, the birds know things that we are not privy to.

At Point Cook, one pair has had around 5 clutches over the past couple of years. But they too have fledged the young and the trees and paddocks are empty. The female normally would leave the nest area as soon as the young are ready to fledge and bulk up and return a couple of weeks later and begin to plan the next clutch. This time she doesn’t seem to have returned. Perhaps, she has grown a bit tired of this nesting business and is looking for a break.

The male, to his credit, has maintained his station in the area. But each time we pass by, I wonder if he will still around.

We were travelling a local back road the other day, and spied a lone white shape high up on an old tree. EE cried, Black-shouldered Kite.
We didn’t have time to explore, but were going the same way a couple of days later and stopped for a looksee. And there we found a pair resting in the same general area. She was quite vocal and in the end he got the message and took off down the paddock, presumably to collect an offering for her.

The morning was very overcast and now I was left with light-grey and white birds on a milky grey backdrop.
I had been thinking of setting the camera to Black and White mode so decided to see what would happen. This one was shot with the “Red Filter” setting—makes the red eye of the bird a little lighter grey.

Be interesting to go back again, particularly after this bout of hot weather, to see if they have intent to nest,or if it was just a nomadic rest spot.

Interesting to see how much larger the female is than the male.

Along the Track: The Long Walk

March 6, 2024Posted in Australian Magpie, Grey Fantail, White-winged Chough, You YangsTagged Australian Magpie, Black-eared Cuckoo, Swamp Wallaby, White-winged Chough, You Yangs7 Comments

We seem to be going through a cycle of seasons at present. Hot one day, cold the next, rinse and repeat.
Some birds that we’ve been following seem to have been completely misled by the changes of season and have already chosen to begin their winter moult.

After a great run of around 10 years, of a number of Black-shouldered Kites nesting pretty much continuously, (not the same pair obviously) the birds seem to have departed all the usual nesting sites.
One pair we followed for about 4 years in the one tree, disappeared over 7 seasons back, and never returned. No other birds have moved into the prime location.

A recent pair has had about 5 clutches—one was completely washed out in appalling weather. Now that the young have become self-reliant, they have left the area, and the female hasn’t been seen for a number of weeks. The lone male is still holding station, but, I suspect if the female has departed then he too will move on soon.
Normally, once the young are ready to fledge, the female leaves the nesting area, and bulks up for the next clutch. If they are going to re-nest, she would normally be back with a month or so. So it might be she has decided enough is enough and is out of the egg-laying business.

As Mr Anonymous was busy with his latest project involving grafting fruit trees, EE and I took off to the You Yangs. On a Robin Mission. But like everywhere it seems, there was little to be seen.

Mind, the day started with its own Warning Will Robertson—Danger Approaching, as we had hardly left home before we came to a fenced off and signposted road telling that we could no longer access the usual road to the Park. Hmm.
After a few turns, U turns, and a check of the GPS, we were back on the highway, bound south for the Park. Really if we’d have known we’d have gone that way to begin with and stopped at Gerry’s for a coffee.
But.
Things didn’t improve at the park. We had headed for a likely Robin spot at “Big Rock Picnic Ground”. But like the Arlo Guthrie song, “Alice’s Restaurant”: There was a big chain and a sign across the access road claiming “Close for Renovations”. (In Arlo’s song it’s for Thanksgiving, for all who know)

So with tail twixt legs etc, we moved on down the road, to another access point that required walking up hill. “Oh, a stroll will do us the world of good,” the ever optimistic EE.

Weather closed over quickly. And after a big loop around Big Rock, we’d only seen a handful of birds. Then a small shape flew into a tree off the track. And I only had the short lens, so not much hope of a great image. And no way to get close as the Bone Seed was impenetrable. As an aside, Koalas, and there are a few in the park, cannot negotiate through the Bone Seed and are prevented from reaching some of the favoured trees.

i made a few frames, in the gloom, and we pondered which Honeyeater it was.
Wrong.
When I viewed it on the screen it appeared to be a Black-eared Cuckoo. A new one for us. And one that is not well recorded in the You Yangs. Bonus.
More walking.

More walking. We changed locations to an area called Fawcett’s Gully. Used to an area that groups kept free of Bone Seed. But the dreadful plant has made a resurgence.
On to the “Seed Beds”. To find this area now overgrown with mostly native plants. But not necessarily endemic ones. The Seed Beds was used after a major bushfire to regenerate plants for replanting in the forest. A lot of the seed came from outside the area.

By now both sets of feet were well and truly sore, and we’d only had three families of White-winged Choughs to amuse us.
Hopefully as the cooler weather settles in and some winter visitors begin to arrive the forest will sing loudly again.

Enjoy.