Silvereyes

SILVEREYE Zosterops lateralis

 

On these sunny late autumn days there are plenty of silvereyes about. They are generally in groups of ten or more and always seem to be very busy feeding. I can pick them out from a distance, by their bouncy flight as they move, talking to each other as they go from one place to the next.

 They are beautiful little  birds with strong yellow colouring.But of course the most obvious distinguishing features are their bright eyes; black pupils, white surrounds with a further black ring, before the yellow feathers covering the heads.We call them silvereyes but they are also known as white eyes. 

My books tell me that they are migratory bird, traveling in flocks, up and down the eastern coastline of Australia. Michael Morcombe's book Field Guide To Australian Birds, says that the birds move northward up the coast looking for  warmer climates. Large numbers, he says move across Bass Straight from Tasmania as the winter approaches, before moving back to raise their young in the late winter and spring. 

 

 They are such tiny birds. It is hard to imagine them flying across the windy stretches of Bass Straight.  

 

These were sighted along the railway line at Kilmore East.