Australian Kestrel – Birds as Poetry —— Just because I WANDER

Rockin’ and Rollin’ in Raptor Alley

July 17, 2015September 30, 2015Posted in Australian Kestrel, Black Kite, Western Treatment PlantTagged Australian Kestrel, Black Falcon, Black KitesLeave a comment

Just a quick look at any weather forecast over the past two weeks would draw the conclusion we’ve been having a spot of weather at the moment. And you’d be right. The mushy cloud days, the biting cold, the wind and the rain. And mostly the lack of Sunshine.

Its not much fun for a photographer to venture out for small birds as the forest is wet and its hard to get much light in under the canopy. Big field birds become grey blobs against even greyer backdrops.

So it was a bit unusual last Wednesday afternoon to see the sunshine sweeping along streets. “Grab the cameras and let’s go to Twenty Nine Road”, EE suggested.

So we did.

Two of the major roads that run through the Western Treatment Plant complex,- and don’t require a permit-, are The Beach Road, and Twenty Nine Mile Roads. They both have huge paddock areas that these days are no longer used for the original purpose (the disposal of the waste from Melbourne), and are now farmed over for a range of farm products. (Not for human consumption). One of the crops is maize and it is ready for harvest. I assume they use it to feed the stock cattle.

One of the benefits of all this production is off course that the mice see the left over and dropped seed and corn as an indication of bounty, and begin to multiply. And as they do, the raptors, not likely to forego a mouse dinner move in to match the increase. Which of course helps the mice produce more, and more raptors move in. …. fill in the blanks.

On a sunny afternoon, its nice to be able sit along the roadway near the harvested paddocks and watch the various hunting techniques. Kestrels and Black-shouldered Kites hovering. Whistling Kites and Black Kites hunting from the air, Goshawks swooping through prepared for anything that moves, and of course the Kites being prepared to wrestle food from the smaller hunting falcons. Add to that the pair of Black Falcons who believe any food is rightfully theirs and are prepared to out-fly anyone to get it, and a fine afternoon’s entertainment is assured.

So, rather than ramble here is a small selection from a few hours work.

Raptor Alley. The Beach Road looking toward the bay. The sharp eyed might even note a Black-shouldered Kite high on the rhs tree — Raptor Alley. The Beach Road looking toward the bay. The sharp eyed might even note a Black-shoudlered Kite high on the rhs tree

Australian Kestrel with an afternoon snack

First time I've ever seen a Goshawk just sitting. — First time I’ve ever seen a Goshawk just sitting.

When I grow up I want a nest just like this. Superb Fairy-wren sitting in a disused Magpie Lark's nest — When I grow up I want a nest just like this.
Superb Fairy-wren sitting in a disused Magpie Lark’s nest

Pair of Black-shouldered Kites resting together

These are the bird of my youth, Sitting on a gate post

Australian Kestrel, tail preening in the sunshine

Black Kite landing. The post is an old sluice to control the waste.

How tough is this mouse — How tough is this mouth

A late entry into the field Brolga at sundown

The Curious Tale of the Clever Kestrel

July 4, 2015July 4, 2015Posted in Australian Kestrel, Western Treatment PlantTagged Australian Kestrel, Western Treatment Plant9 Comments

Don’t you just love a mystery! You know where all the pieces sort of come together and then. There is always one more thing to learn.
Just when you think you’ve got it figured out, the birds will come up with a new story.

If like me you watch closely then its likely you’ll see something that makes you say, “Well, I’ve never seen that before!”

Such was a sunny morning on Friday.

We were on the Beach Road a the Western Treatment Plant and about halfway along between 29 Mile and the Beach Road boat ramp. Near a crossroad marked on some maps as “Chirnside Road”.

The paddocks here have been growing maize for cattle feed and have recently been harvested. This off course means the stubble is still in the field and a good chance for the average bright minded Kite, Kestrel, Falcon, Raven, Magpie, Goshawk and others to take advantage of any mice or other tucker, (think rabbits for the big birds), that might be out in the open area.

For the part of the mice, the harvest has obviously left much corn and seed among the stubble. So with the population being diminished by the birds and plenty of food available for the next generation, the fecundity of the females comes to the rescue and a small explosion of the population erupts.

Which brings more Kites, Kestrels, etc into the area. So to your average alert photographer. (Well at least us, so ignore the alert part.

On just about every vantage point the big birds sit, and wait, and then fight and argue over a single feed. In the air, the Kestrels and Black-shouldered Kites are hard at work tracking the mouse spoor with their ‘UV googles” or whatever the bird equivalent is.

The Black-shouldered Kites in view of the abundance of food are already planning their own expansion of the species. And several are either well advanced in nest construction or perhaps even at work on hatching. The Kestrels, are simply interested in stocking up on body weight for the long nesting/hatching season later in the year.
So enter, on stage right, our Kestrel.

We had been parked hard up against the fence-line, 1. To keep us clear of the sometimes busy road, and 2. to keep us clear of the sometimes very busy road.

We had to watch as the birds hunted just out of camera range. Swinging across occasionally, but for the most part the far side of the paddock obviously offered the best hunting.

We watched as a female Kestrel, with all the gliding hunting skill of her species sat motionless in the light breeze. I remembered my early youth and watching for hours these beautiful birds as they worked their way around the edges of wheat paddocks. In those days they were it seems to me now, in large numbers.

She caught a mouse. Swung over the paddock, not to the busy side, too dangerous to run the gauntlet of Flacons, Black, Whistling Kites and Swamp Harriers and scooted low down toward the fence line near us. Perhaps she had intended the post near the car, it certainly seemed that way from her flight path, but at the last moment, she swung right and landed about two posts down from us. Cameras out, insert shutter noises here.

After checking out all was clear she mantled down (is down redundant there?), over the mouse and sat still for several minutes. We waited. Then for what seemed no good reason, she picked up the mouse, dropped from the fence and swished across the road to the far side fence post. I had to concede she might not have liked our presence, but we’d made no move on her position so that seemed unlikely. She sat, and then again mantled (see hedging my bets left off, down).

A few minutes later she stood, and dropped of the fence onto the grass verge and into some muddy area where the cattle had been standing, leaving hoof print holes in the mud, among the grasses. Then she hopped about, as you would with a mouse in one claw, and then seemed to lose the mouse. At first I thought it must have still been alive and had scampered on her. Then a few pecks in the grass, and she stood silent for a minute or more. By now it was obvious she no longer had the mouse. Gone!

Several more hops in the grass and she flew to the nearest fence post. Sat, and preened a bit, then in an obvious move, took to the air and with a short look back, was gone back to hunting.

Fascinated, I had to go and have a look where she had landed. And after a brief look about, there was the mouse. Tucked up tight in one of the deep hoof marks. She had deliberately placed it so that the overhang of the edge of the hoof mark would cover the mouse from most prying eyes, (think kite, falcon, magpie, raven -competition).

Of course the why and the what are questions that remain unanswered. Perhaps she was setting aside a snack for later if the hunting quietened down. She had made no attempt to maul the mouse at all. One thing that I think is like the ‘mapping’ I’ve been talking about with the light Falcon, is she took sometime to work out where to put the mouse and then some time to reexamine the area from the fence and then again to fly over and get a good idea of the location. I know, I might be reading in my answers, but its food for thought.

I’ve seen a female before – for those who’ve been with the blog for a long long time think Elizabeth,- who would take prey that Darcy bought in and stash it in hollows around the nest tree for when he was having a hard day’s hunting. (Not that he ever did, and the young fledglings eventually took great delight in finding the stashes, much likes kids on easter egg day.

So here is the photo version of that long winded discussion. Curious actions indeed. But to the Kestrel, all part of a day’s activities. Clever bird

Inbound. She swung past me to land on the next closest post

Sitting close, and alert

Sitting over the prey.

On the fence on the far side of the road, actually I think she is inspecting for likely hiding places.

and down from the fence to the grass

With a hop, step and hop, looking for the right hiding place

Now you see it. Now you don’t.

Carefully placed hard up against the edge to keep it hidden from all but the most inquisitive.

Time for a bit of a preen and clean. I also suspect that it was time to ‘remap’ the area so she knew where the mouse was located.

A hunting we will go. A quick glance back to be sure its all well.

Western Treatment Plant: Timing is everything

August 3, 2012August 22, 2012Posted in Australian Kestrel, Black-shouldered Kite, Brown Falcon, PhotographersTagged Australian Kestrel, Black-shouldered Kite, Brown Falcon, Western Treatment Plant3 Comments

There is no doubt about it, timing in the bird photo world is just about everything. You can come back from the Camera Exchange with some of the best goodies on the planet,(and a severe bend in the credit card), and walk about for days and not see much at all.

You can turn up with your old gear, not well prepared and not expecting much, and it suddenly all happens around you.

We, Dieter, Dorothy and I, took an early morning mark down to the Western Treatment Plant on Thursday.
Weather was supposed to be cloudy overcast, and we mostly went for the cups of tea, the chats, the play with the cameras (two of us are breaking in new kit from Camera Exchange), I had to make do with my ‘old’ technology stuff. Feel almost antiquated now.

We strarted out on the river on the road to Ryan’s Swamp. A female Nankeen was in the dead trees in the creek, and was pretty happy to let us get close enough for some good shots in the early morning light. A good start, but it got better.

As it turned, the sun burnt of the soft mist clouds by mid-morning and we had some decent sunny-breaks.

Down near the outflow at the end of 15 East Road ( I Bet it has a name, I just don’t know it), we were greeted by a small flock, yes, a flock of Black-shouldered Kites at play, or mating, or territorial. Bit hard to work out when they don’t put up signs.

Anyways, these four birds were engaged in aerial combat right over our heads, some times coming alarmingly close. What a great sight. What a great picture opportunity. A couple of unfortunate Silver Gulls found themselves the target of this aerial mayhem, and were hopelessly out gunned.

The main feature of the event was birds that locked talons and then spiralled down. I wonder if the bird who gets to turn head-first wins? while the other has to be unceremoniously twisted backwards? No one I guess seems to know.
A female sat on a post on the beach, and offered lots of screaming encouragement , and then too joined in the foray.

At that point we would have been satisfied for the day.

We drove back along the track past the Bird-hide by the beach, and found a Brown Falcon (think it be the same bird from a previous post.) It sat while the team inched up toward it, and then the magic line was crossed and it was airborne. All of about 5 metres. And again, and again. Good stuff.

I drove the car up to where it was perched on a box-thorn bush on the side on the road, and it didn’t flinch. Needless to say the team got some good pics, while I positioned the car. We moved on. About two minutes later it passed by the driver’s side window of the car about 3 metres off the ground and about 5 metres away. It paced us for a few seconds then sped up, and sat on another box-thorn bush. This time I assembled the camera kit and edged the car up to where it was. Again it held its ground.

So there we were, me and the bird. It was so close, even a vertical could not get it all in, so I opted for head and shoulders portraits. We are thinking of name it Elvis, as it just didn’t want to leave the building.

It flinched when I started the car, but held its nerve and we drove on leaving it in peace. A nice day’s work.

A little further on, I spotted a female Nankeen Kestrel on a post near the road, and at first thought she must have damaged a leg as she was having difficulty on the post top, but she flew to the next post, and lo and behold, she was holding a mouse in the foot, and couldn’t get a grip on the post. Then she settled herself and enjoyed the mouse from one end to the other. Lots of mouse fur flying in the strong breeze.