The Old Bloke's Pixels: 2018

Sunday, 2 December 2018

November 2018

Christmas is nearly with us, so I wish everyone a wonderful time.

The three young Frogmouths successfully fledged and set off to explore the world with their parents. Hoping to see the adults return sometime in the New Year.

Three hatchlings watching me

Disinterested Dad with the three fledglings

Have a number of Kangaroo Paws in the garden this year - all doing well. Will plant more next year.

One of our proteas did not survive winter but another did. This is its first bloom.

Crimson Rosella bathing in the creek

Rainbow Lorikeet with the bottlebrush

Christmas cactus bloomed very well this year

Morning light through the trees

Rufous Whistler (I could hear him every morning, but only found him once)

Spent a few days at Tuross Heads - a low formed off the coast, dust storms hit Canberra and the weather was 'not the best'.

Surf at Tuross

This helped to rinse the dust out of the throat though

Plantation Point beach

Pied Oystercatcher standing back from the surf

White-headed pigeon visited one morning

One Tree Point - Tuross Heads

Tuross Heads from the drone

Thursday, 1 November 2018

Dry, dry, dry.....

The Tawny Frogmouths hatched on or about 10 October, but our first view of junior was on 15 October.

First view of junior(s)

At the end of the month Dad is off the nest. When they were small, we counted three youngsters, but with the crowding in the nest, we are having trouble deciding if two or all three survived.

Now Dad is outside the nest

Kookaburras (nest hollow nearby)

Catkins in the morning light

Gibraltar Falls

Need RAIN

Black Cormorant at the creek

Looking towards the Brindabellas

Crimson Rosella

Flag Iris

Calothamnus - loved by the Wattle Birds

Tharwa Bridge

Looks Green from the ground level

Green drought

Large Eucalypt

Granite outcrop along the creek

Home garden flowers

White-breasted Sea Eagle at Burrinjuck

Kangaroo Paws in the garden

For Halloween challenge I submitted a Ljubljiana Dragon brought to life, and a view of the convict cells on Cockatoo Island.

Can you see the witch in the window?

Tuesday, 2 October 2018

September 2018

This month is focussed around the ACT and west as far as Young and Boorowa.

This King Parrot has became a regular visitor for a while, but now Spring has sprung, I guess there are other things on its mind.

Male King Parrot

Catkins against the sky

We spent nearly all winter looking for the Tawny Frogmouth pair, then late August we found them - roosting a lot lower than previously, and only visible from a certain direction.

Tawny Frogmouth pair

I had previously noted nest building in the tree they used last year, and in early September the male bird tried it out for size and comfort.

Frogmouth nest

Trying out the nest

On 6 September, I noticed the new nest partially destroyed and blamed the Pied Currawongs. The next day the male Frogmouth was reviewing the partially destroyed nest and I thought they would move on. The following two days the female Frogmouth was in her normal roost, but no sign of the male; then on 9 September we found him on a rebuilt nest high above the female's roost. We expect to see hatching activity on or around 9 October.