Just down the street from our house are some wetlands that make for a great evening walk. The bird life in the area because of this is amazing. There are the usual generic ducks, but there is so much more than just ducks. Maybe's personal favourite are the chickens - at least that's what we call them. They are funny little blue/purple birds with a white patch on their butts and they run like chickens.
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| A "chicken" - or Purple Swamphen |
Recently some of the chickens have had babies, they are tiny little black fluff balls that are fun to watch.
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| Baby chickens |
There are also quite a few storks and mystery birds like the one below. One day we thought we saw a snake in the water, and after watching it for 30 minutes realised it was actually a bird. Thus we named them snake birds. Unfortunately they've been camera shy lately.
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| Weird bird and duck having a staring contest |
Sometimes on our walks we'll see an airplane soaring through the sky. Then watching it I'll realise that it's actually a pelican. I absolutely love watching the pelicans move around. They really do move like airplanes. Though perhaps it's airplanes that move like them...
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| Pelican! |
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| Dinner time for the pelican |
My other favourites are the white ducks.
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| Quack! |
When we first moved here there were the two brown ducks and the white duck that were always together. They were the three musketeers, never apart and always noisily quacking away. Then one day another white duck appeared with the chickens and ordinary ducks. At first the three ducks wanted nothing to do with the newcomer. A few weeks later they became a group of four and we haven't seen them apart since.
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| Duck BFFs |
Occasionally we will spot a black swan or two. This year we were lucky enough to have a swan next, and the babies just hatched a couple weeks ago. Maybe loves them and once even tried to play with them but I don't think she realises that they could kick her butt in an instant.
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| Swan family |
Then there's the cockatoo. These guys are always flying around squawking. We have named them all Buster.
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| Buster on our back fence |
Another favourite of mine are the Gallahs. They always seem to hang out in pairs and make a really nice chirping sound.
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| Gallahs on our back fence |
Once in awhile we'll see red rumped parrots flying around. They are a really pretty turquoise colour and blend in really well with the grass. We usually don't see them on the ground, just when they take flight.
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| Cute little red dumped parrot |
These colorful lorikeets are easier to hear than see. They usually fly high overhead while chirping away. They love hanging out in gum trees and can work up quite a racket. They blend in surprisingly well, though the red and yellow on their chests makes them easier to spot.
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| Lorikeet |
Last but not least are the clown birds. which are apparently called Corella. They are relatives of the cockatoo and hang out with them quite a bit. Lucy and George are hoping to one day be able to eat one to see if it tastes like chicken.
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| Cockatoo, Cockatoo, Clown Bird! |
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