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#Post#: 14--------------------------------------------------
From The Bird Lover 1964 (Observations from Skipton)
By: archives1 Date: May 7, 2023, 11:08 pm
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10/02/1963
Often we see the willie wagtails riding on the backs of sheep –
they know that the insects which they like for food follow the
animals about.
16/02/1963
When we were going home last night we saw a pair of crimson
rosellas. They were sitting on the telephone wire and made a
very pretty picture. These birds are very colourful as they fly
about.
17/02/1963
A flock of silver gulls has been around for weeks. Some of them
are brownish in colour and have a funny call – they are last
year’s young ones.
18/02/1963
A beautifully coloured sacred king-fisher was resting on a fence
near the school. It was rather shy and flew off with a startled
cry when we approached it.
12/03/1963
Near our place is a swamp. When I go down there all the birds
are warned by the piercing cries of the spur-winged plovers.
They are very alert birds and the ducks do not need a second
warning when the cry rings out.
15/03/1963
This morning two eastern rosellas flew into a tree where I was
standing. They chattered away as they sat on a limb above my
head.
27/03/1963
The lovely whistle of the grey harmonious thrush made me look
towards the park. The thrush must have been happy because his
song was wonderful.
28/03/1963
THe silvereyes are in little flocks. A keen birdman told me that
the birds do not stay long in one place, but are almost
continually on the move looking for new food areas. We once had
a banded silvereye at school.
29/03/1963
A group of wrens was flitting about in the shrubs in the garden.
There was one blue-coloured one with three brown ones. One of
the brown ones would be the mother wren and the other brown ones
may have been last year’s babies. Soon they will have to leave
the family group as the father and other wren will want to nest
again.
03/04/1963
Mr. Austin of Skipton brought a bird up to the school for
identification and it was found out to be a female spotted quail
thrush. The bird had been found stuck on the front of a car
which had come through the Linton scrub. These birds, which are
quite rare, are related to the chestnut-breasted variety of
north-western Victoria.
05/04/1963
A flock of galahs was flying madly round our house about sunset
yesterday. They seemed to be having a mad race before going to
roost. Their screeching could be heard a long way off.
08/04/1963
This morning I found a moorhen lying on the road near the
bridge. It had been killed by a passing car. What a shame! The
poor bird had become so used to passing traffic that it had
become careless. This kind of thing often happens to our more
trusting birds.
12/04/1963
A pied cormorant was standing near the dam bank eating a yabbie.
As I came over the bank it flew away but left the remains of its
meal. These birds are great fish eaters so are not very popular
with fisherman.
17/04/1963
Mum says the blackbirds in our gardens are really a nuisance
because they scratch rubbish all over the concrete paths. I try
to remind her of all the grubs which the blackbirds find and
eat.
18/04/1963
Grace six pupils noticed a scissors grinder, sometimes known as
a restless flycatcher, outside their room. These birds are
easily mistaken for willie wagtails.
23/04/1963
Last year we often saw grey currawongs around the school but
this is the first one about this year. These birds have a
ringing call which is easily recognised. They spend their time
near the many plantations in this district. They love the tall
trees.
23/04/1963
With a flock of other water birds were two big, white birds with
large yellow spoon-shaped bills. They were spoonbills, of
course. We don’t often see them around here – not in any numbers
anyway.
29/04/1963
While the school sprinkler was on to water the lawn a magpie
came and had a bath under it.
05/05/1963
On a fence a red-capped robin was sitting. I wondered if there
were many such robins about. However, I haven’t seen one before
this year.
29/05/1963
Against a dark, clouded sky a flock of white cockatoos was easy
to see this morning. They could be easily heard, too, as they
screeched their way to the tall gums near the creek. It is
difficult to get near these birds even when they are feeding on
the ground because they usually have a sentinel perched on the
nearest high tree.
01/06/1963
Today a starling was sitting on the school roof. It was
mimicking the calls of the plover and the whistling eagle.
Starlings often mimic the calls of other bids.
05/06/1963
In a paddock near our house were two brolgas. They have been
around for some time now. These tall grey birds are rather rare
in Victoria. These two were not very frightened as they stalked
about near the sheep.
14/06/1963
Yesterday a flock of spotted zebra finches was feeding near our
hedge. There are many kinds of finches which are easily
recognised by their short, thick beaks – ideal for cracking
various seeds.
15/07/1963
We don’t often see the ibis just around here. Our teacher tells
us that he saw large flocks in the irrigation areas along the
Murray River. They are wonderful birds for the farmers because
they eat large numbers of grubs and crickets. These straw-necked
ibis nest in large rookeries. They move from place to place
following the best food supplies.
01/08/1963
Another black and white bird is the mudlark which has a loud
ringing call. I saw a pair of these birds down near the dam. As
they build a mud nest, perhaps they were looking for some
suitable material.
07/08/1963
A starling came down our chimney yesterday. It was evidently
looking for a nesting site. Starlings often make nuisances of
themselves by nesting in roofs and chimneys. They eat many grubs
and insects during the year so they are quite useful birds
really.
08/08/1963
There are many gulls on Lake Goldsmiths now. Last year they
nested there so I suppose they will do so again. Seagulls often
come to our schoolground. Last year they became quite a nuisance
because they stole the hens’ food at every opportunity.
09/08/1963
A pair of swallows built their cup-shaped mud nest in one of the
tanks at our school.
12/08/1963
Today we saw the brolgas again – three of them. They were
dancing or rather prancing about. Quite often these birds
perform queer dances. If frightened they fly away, uttering
loud, guttural cries.
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