Blue-winged Parrot – Birds as Poetry —— Just because I WANDER doesn't mean I'm LOST

At the risk of starting a social-media-stampede, the past couple of weeks we’ve been waiting and watching to see if some Blue-winged Parrots would make the trek across from Tasmania to winter over among the saltbush marshes along Port Phillip Bay.

Nothing is prefect in the prediction of their arrival, or indeed where they might show up. But we do have a secret weapon: the dogged determination and persistence of EE when it comes to scanning through miles of seemingly endless grasslands.

Now the Blue-winged might not have quite the mystic of their Orange-bellied relatives, but given there are a few more of them in play the odds do increase a little.

However.
Our old nemesis the weather has contributed more than its fair share of cold, blowy, overcast days, and even finding them, the photo opportunities are slim. The little parrots are also quite ready to fly at an instant, so close approaches are hardly the order of the day.

We picked up a small flock, about 6-7 recently on the outskirts of a salty lake with some reasonable stands of gums among the saltbush flats.
Several days of very ordinary weather added to the difficulty, but at least they seemed more than just passing migrants and we located them a few times from recent trips.

The precious little birds gave us some good views and the opportunity to enjoy their company. As an aside, I once used “precious” in an article and was berated by the editor as I was putting value on some inanimate object. 😦

These days it seems copywriters have scraped the bottom of the adjective barrel as everything from icecream to sporting events or foodaramas are described as —blockbuster, awesome, mega**, sensational, crazy, off-the-chart, sustained performance— blah, blah, blah.

Here then is a handful to introduce the birds

Enjoy

Now that Melbourne has emerged from its fifth covid lockdown its time for the Doona Hermit to shed his old worn doona and venture out in to the real, (no definitions please) world.

#kneetoo and I had a little local journey planned, with a stop off along the way to look at a pair of Black-shouldered Kites and their young(?)

But as I pulled back said doona and checked the weather app, it looked like a beaut, clear, cold morning.
We had planned to do our quick visit and then be home by mid-morning for a relaxing morning tea, so I was not planning to load Earl of Grey into the thermos or grab a bikkie or two for the journey.
But.

On a whim, we decided that a morning driving around part of the Werribee Treatment Plant birding area would make the most of the weather, and who knows when if, ever, we’d have such a chance. Fix snacxks, load cameras, dress warmly and we were on the way.

As it turned out much of the area where we visited was pretty bereft of birds, but what we lacked in quantity we made up for in birds we’d not had the pleasure of seeing for quite awhile

Here’s a small selection.