Hobby eating gravel

One of the highlights of a birding expedition last Saturday across Fogg Dam causeway, just south of Darwin, NT, was seeing an Australian Hobby on the ground in one of the dirt parking areas. As I was driving between stops rather than walking the length of the causeway (because of the crocodile warnings), I managed to get within a couple of metres of the bird, even with the car window open. The hobby was carefully inspecting, then selecting and swallowing small pieces of red gravel from the parking area – it must have swallowed 6-8 pieces while I was watching.

 

Full bird list at https://ebird.org/australia/view/checklist/S57388884. One of those locations where a spotting scope would have been useful. Water level was low and many birds were at some distance.

 

Steve

 

 

 

 

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