More birds from Downunder #3

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Singing its sweet little heart out.

Never seen this thread before Margaret, thanks for bumping...Super shots!! Really like the White-cheeked Honeyeater!

In the same tree, a fledgling Red Wattlebird.

Thanks Burd. I thought I'd resurrect it as it didn't have many posts and would allow people to see some birds I'd posted in the past, as well as the shots I took yesterday.

Another shot of the fledgling Red Wattlebird.

This is one of the fledge's parents. I'd say it is the female because of its smaller size and shorter wattles.

A little way up the embankment in a dead tree were three Rainbow Bee-eaters. Their colours had faded considerably since Spring, but they remain very beautiful birds, nevertheless. The female is on the left and the youngster is on the right, with its back to me. The adults were repeatedly coming and going and I couldn't get a shot of all three at the one time.

There were lots flying around a couple of hundred feet up, barely visible in the sky and mostly located by the sound they make.

Here, she arrives with an insect which gives the birds their name. They vigorously wipe the bees (or whatever insect they have) against a branch to remove the sting before eating it themselves or giving it to their young.

Offering the bee to the youngster.

The young one readily takes it from her.

A rotten shot, but I've included it to show under the wings.

The same bird arrived with a wasp a few minutes later.

Instead of rubbing the rear end against a branch as they do with bees, they rub the poor wasps head until it has been dislodged. Each of these shots was taken between rubbing it on the branch. I just wasn't quick enough to get any decent shots of this action.

I lied. I did kind of manage one shot. I feel so sorry for the poor insects. Horrible way to go.

The head has been removed and the Bee-eater prepares to swallow it.

"Gulp"

Back up the top to the Banksia tree and the Black Cockatoos, who were still chomping away.

This is a male, with the pink eye ring. These gorgeous big birds allow you to get really close. I actually had to go back into the bush or they would have been too close for the lens.

Another of the same male.

Nice Bee-eater set! I,m allergic to bee's, so I don't mind their demise however it may be. lol
Like your friendly Cockatoo's also. :)

Eww, bee allergies are nasty. Burd, the Black cockies are really suffering from habitat destruction.

I decided I'd have a break and go home to rehydrate. It was a hot day and in the two and a half hours I'd been there I'd already had a litre of water, but was still parched. I dropped by another area to see what I could see in passing and to cool down by the river for a while.

When I was walking back to the car, I could hear the Fairy Wrens kicking up a racket - well, a racket for them. I could see a raven-sized shape moving around in deep shrubbery and knew it wasn't a raven because it would have been out of character for them. It was this Brown Goshawk. It calmly walked out from under the shrub and casually flew onto a very low branch of a nearby tree before moving into a tree a little way off. I managed two shots before it flew off once more and I didn't see it again.

Beautiful pictures!

Thanks, June.

I went back later in the afternoon after the sea breeze came in, although it was still very hot. I managed a few more shots of the Rainbow Bee-eaters. This one hasn't lost its colour.

Another one with a bee. They are amazingly adept at catching flying insects. I wish I was adept at getting some inflight shots of this activity, but they are so incredibly fast and often fly some distance off to pursue their target.

Such pretty coloring on those birds...

June, when they are in peak colour in Spring, they are even more breathtakingly beautiful.

Not satisfied with just bees and wasps, this one had a hornet.

Nearly there. Almost as impressive as a Blue Jay with a beak full of peanuts.

"Gloomp".

This bird is one of a pair which has a nest burrow only three feet off the path. The council has put logs around the area to protect it from the lawnmower, which apparently went over another nearby nest an destroyed it. I saw numerous nests in parts of the embankment a little farther on.

Here's the nest burrow belonging to the last bird. I saw her going into it once, so steered clear.

I managed to get a couple of quick shots of a bird I'd seen in the area before, but had never managed to photograph. I've identified it as a male Mistletoebird. I've had to play around with it quite a bit as it was in full shadow with a very bright background.

Second shot of the Mistletoebird.

I'll finish with one last photo of a Rainbow Bee-eater.

I hope you enjoyed your visit to the urban bushland on the Swan River.

really enjoyed your outings , love those beautiful bee eaters, and the willy wagtails, and the black Cockatoos. I can look out and see the cute wax eyes. thanks margaret.

Thanks boots. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Thank you Margaret! Love seeing the beautiful Bee-eaters and Mistletoebird is adorable!

Beautiful.

This one is a gasper
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/p.php?pid=7504302

Pelle, it was such a treat to get home and realize that it was a bird I'd never photographed before (and had only seen once, previously).

Thanks, Mrs Ed.

Margaret, your photos are just spectacular! I enjoyed seeing all the beautiful birds and you've captured them perfectly.