Babbler

Babblers although larger than noisy-miners are still small, gentle birds that can be easily preyed upon by hawks and other predators.  They stay in their family groups, constantly moving and flitting about so as to confuse any hungry eyes watching them with  the wrong intentions. They are generally very shy and quite nervous birds and don't project the immense self-confidence that we've seen in quails for instance.

They like hovering in muddy patches, or near gravel, stone, logs and barks looking for insects.

We noticed their friendship with the magpies soon after we became friends with Maggie and his sisters Cindy and Tammie. 

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The birds and wildlife have had a wonderful summer this year, inf act the best in over a decade.  New wildgrasses have sprung up covering the hillsides due to the extended rains and are providing plenty of food and shelter this season in contrast to years of dry, burnt summers.   Check out the pics below to see what they have been doing.

(click on the 'next' button to forward through the slides).

Previous Slide 1/36 Next Willie and Nellie learning to sing against the cloudy skies Lush green grasses fill the paddocks The eagles are a hunting up above while Rainbow lorikeets are sorting out territorial boundaries below The babblers have moved in having negotiated their rights The wallabies are enjoying the rich pickings along with Bertie Vicky Mindy and Kenny Billy's family is happy too Larry and Harrie are singing to glory The Crested pigeons are thrilled to boots Maggie's son Monty has found new friends Kenny wants to get up close and personal Gabriel Tuks joined the bat creche and returned to the colony Charlie Girl is fully recovered and adores Pete Jack is much happier now he can fly further Wallabies relax in the shade at the Long Grass Wildlife Refuge Jack adores Gabi Wild grasses spring up along the roadside the whole valley is green - for a few weeks at least One eyed Curly the currawong is looking healthy and well Gumnuts are a plentiful Butterflies delight Billy's brood is growing up Frieda is all black and white but still as friendly as ever Noisy miner is planning another clutch 2 eggs in here while the nest is being fortified wild grasses abound filling the bushy landscape to the joy of the birds and animals The galahs are keen to show their nest and pose for the camera The peewee too wants to be seen  read more »

When Ron rescued a small bird running desperately for its life from a crow, little did he know how much joy and learning the day would bring.  The full story is in our blog A Lucky Rescue Makes A Happy Family and in the pictures below.

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What is a sweet, cute looking babbler doing, all by herself or himself?  read more »

Driving to work this morning Ron saw a small bird walking awkwardly on the road, desperately trying to get away from a crow, while two of its friends who were trying their best to distract the crow were having no impact.  Ron stopped the car and picked up the bird.  He or she could not fly and it was hard to tell whether it was permanently injured.  The bird was so happy to be picked up and Ron felt he certainly didn't want to be eaten by the crow.  By the time Ron turned the car around and brought him home, holding him gently in his hand, the bird looked very comfortabl read more »

Babblers are small, flock birds that often fall prey to predators.  Their size and vulnerability however does not stop them from making friends with other species.

The babblers loved our dogs, because they knew they were safe when the dogs were around. Both Scotty and Benny would chase any hawks that tried to land on the gate or trees in our yard. read more »

The Babblers are vulnerable to attacks from larger predatory birds like hawks and eagles. While they would fly off at the slightest hint of disturbance, we noticed that they seemed to like hanging around the magpies.  read more »

 Babblers are flock birds. They flit about enormously and are very hard to catch for even a second's stillness. I guess they rely on their constant movement to confuse any predators. When they saw me trying to photograph them, at first they were nervous. Then they liked the attention and actually stood still for half a second and I managed to get a few reasonable shots. read more »