Back at last from an over-long trip away and, as ever, very pleased to be home. Many thanks to Michael Wood who stayed here while we were away and maintained the monthly listing of birds that we’ve been undertaking here since 1988 – adding a couple of records of Budgerigars in June – spp 218 on the house list. Spring has taken hold around the Lockyer Valley, lots of nesting going on, and Horsfield’s, Shining and Little Bronze-Cuckoos all seen and heard in the garden over the last few days. Eastern Ospreys returned here a couple of years ago, after an absence of seven years, and have been seen here most months since , but on Sunday 4th August we had two birds here together for the first time. White-backed Swallows were practically a daily bird here through the 1980s and early 90s and eventually petered out from our house list in 2004 – the same year that we lost the Ospreys. On Monday last, Eileen and I were feeling like a break mid-morning and we set up a couple of outdoor recliners on the main verandah mainly with a view to watching the treetops at leisure. Several raptors came by, multi-honeyeaters in the treetops, hordes of Fairy Martins, a small group of Rainbow Bee-eaters landed in a dead tree across the creek – THEN, elegance personified, one striking White-backed Swallow glided straight past us from upstream and over (or under) the bridge on Flagstone Creek Road. Well, I saw one – Eileen reckons there were two! So, exciting to be home – don’t feel like going anywhere for a while. Bill Jolly Abberton, Helidon, Qld (27º 34′ 21′ S; 152º 08′ 21′ E) =============================== To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) to: birding-aus-request@vicnet.net.au http://birding-aus.org ===============================
Welcome Home Bill. Jude —–Original Message—– Sent: Wed, Aug 14, 2013 8:08 pm Back at last from an over-long trip away and, as ever, very pleased to be home. Many thanks to Michael Wood who stayed here while we were away and maintained the monthly listing of birds that we’ve been undertaking here since 1988 – adding a couple of records of Budgerigars in June – spp 218 on the house list. Spring has taken hold around the Lockyer Valley, lots of nesting going on, and Horsfield’s, Shining and Little Bronze-Cuckoos all seen and heard in the garden over the last few days. Eastern Ospreys returned here a couple of years ago, after an absence of seven years, and have been seen here most months since , but on Sunday 4th August we had two birds here together for the first time. White-backed Swallows were practically a daily bird here through the 1980s and early 90s and eventually petered out from our house list in 2004 – the same year that we lost the Ospreys. On Monday last, Eileen and I were feeling like a break mid-morning and we set up a couple of outdoor recliners on the main verandah mainly with a view to watching the treetops at leisure. Several raptors came by, multi-honeyeaters in the treetops, hordes of Fairy Martins, a small group of Rainbow Bee-eaters landed in a dead tree across the creek – THEN, elegance personified, one striking White-backed Swallow glided straight past us from upstream and over (or under) the bridge on Flagstone Creek Road. Well, I saw one – Eileen reckons there were two! So, exciting to be home – don’t feel like going anywhere for a while. Bill Jolly Abberton, Helidon, Qld (27º 34′ 21′ S; 152º 08′ 21′ E) =============================== To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) http://birding-aus.org =============================== =============================== To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send the message: unsubscribe (in the body of the message, with no Subject line) http://birding-aus.org ===============================