Grey Shrike-thrush

GREY SHRIKE-THRUSH

The shrike thrush is a very common bird around Kilmore. It has a beautiful voice with a huge range of songs. Gisella Kaplan, in her book 'Bird Minds'  describes the  "extraordinary purely tonal and varied song" of the bird. 

 

 

 

 

Michael Morecombe in 'Field Guide To Australian Birds; is even more expansive.  "..a rich and varied repertoire of calls and songs - high, clear and loudly ringing whistles, intermingled with mellow, musical notes and deep rich bubbly sounds."  

This thrush is found over  wide area, from town gardens, farmland where there are trees to forested hills.











The thrush is omnivorous in feeding habits. I see them often scratching amongst leaf litter and under logs, for the insects, small lizards and seeds. They are known to take young nestlings, frogs and mice.




 



This young bird was busy along a very dry creek at Willowmavin this morning. All creeks around Kiomore are dry at the moment.

It has a light band of colour along it's brow, an indication of a young bird. It was very sure of itself, continuing to feed, with just one eye on me.

Silvereyes

SILVEREYES Zosterops lateralis

These pretty little birds are in some places called wax-eyes or white eyes. It is not hard to see why.








 They are itinerant birds moving to the northern end of their patch in the autumn and then back to the south to nest in winter. These are in Kilmore today. I assume that they have arrived from the more northern part of their territories since I haven't seen them here for many, many months.    

My books tell me they are omnivores, eating insects, and large amounts of nectar and fruit. They can be a nuisance to those with fruit trees and orchards.

Brolga

BROLGA Grus rubicunda

 

 

 

I was very pleased to hear that a pair of brolgas had arrived in the district.

 The person who informed me, said that each year a pair, or sometimes two pairs of brolgas, visited a particular area of Willowmavin. One of those pairs was back in the area.

 

 A pleasant walk through some open paddocks on a dry afternoon, showed they were indeed in residence.

The first sighting was from a long distance. Being such large birds it was possible to identify them, even from several hundred metres away. Feathers in the paddock also identified the birds.

 

 

 

First look was last Saturday, today, Wednesday, I was able to get a little closer and get some better photographs. Not perfect but quite nice.

 

 

 

 

 It is a pity that we have only the one pair this year.

 

 

 

Perhaps there might be a nest with young amongst the rushes around the dam, where they were seen this week?  

 Softly, softly!