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human-bird friendships

Thornbills

thornbill close upThornbills or Yellow-bottoms as they are fondly called are no more than 10 cms long.  But their hearts and their awareness can match any human.  One morning, we walked into a freshly turned paddock trying to photograph a couple of peewees on the other side.  Our eyes caught some movement along the ground, almost like leaves rustling in the wind, except the  read more »

This Year's Challenge - Larry Again

27 July, 2008 - 23:17 — Ron

Each year we've been blessed with our friendship with Maggie and his family and friends, there has been a different emphasis. Nothing has been the same two years in a row. This year, making sure we don't lose contact with grey butcherbird Larry, his family and friends, has been the big challenge. Previously, he had the territory over the road, and the pied butcherbirds Butch and family had the territory behind our house. (The two species have a single territory map, and don't share land.) Although Butch and gang don't want Larry to come, the situation worked out okay.  read more »

What a Bird!

9 July, 2008 - 22:01 — Ron

Larry the grey butcherbird has been having trouble from the new pied butcherbird group just up the road. When everyone else had been fed and had gone away, I sneaked out into the yard to look for Larry and the other grey butcherbirds.  read more »

Striated Pardalote

scrub wren on a postThis bird is a special friend.  From tip of the beak to the end of the tail the bird is no more than 11 cms long.  Don't let this picture fool you, it has been magnified heaps.  read more »

Wild Bird Talking - Success Story - Ken Charms The Galahs And Saves His Tree

5 May, 2008 - 14:58 — Gitie

One of my friends had some exciting news for me. 'Tell Gitie, what she says works', was the message her friend Ken had asked her to convey to me.   read more »

Now You See Me, Now You Don't!

Who is that calling so loudly, interrupting my reverie?  It's not a sound I hear often and never before so loud.  Yes, I'm definitely being called. 

But outside there's no one to be seen.   Hey, wait a sec, who's that calling me from behind the leaves in the bottlebrush?  Which is really strange because in all the years we've had this plant, no bird has ever visited it before, even though it is meant to be a bird-attractor.   read more »

Friarbirds

friarbird on grevillea bushFriarbirds visit our yard in spring for a few weeks.  They have an unusual call which sounds like they are talking to you and saying 'What ya doin?" and they repeat it often as they sip the nectar in the grevillea bushes.  They also like the nectar in the lemon and orange blossoms.  The first year of our friendship with Maggie (magpie) I would often sit outside at the  read more »

Making Friends and Influencing Humans

19 February, 2008 - 20:32 — Ron

Maggie never forgets to impress and delight all his many friends and acquaintances, human or bird. It's his 'thing', the complete network builder. Yesterday, for example, I left for work in the car, and a few hundred yards up the street, the neighbour's dog (not a bad chap, but he chases cars) - you guessed it, chased the car. As it happened, I then remembered something I had to take with me, and stopped the car to check the boot (that's the trunk, for our American friends) to see if I had remembered it.  read more »

Lynell's Maggie - A Reader's Tale

Reader Lynell sent us this story and pictures:

It’s so nice to find a site that features Magpies. I just wanted to share some photos of my Maggie. We actually had a Mum & Dad live here for the past 3 years. 
 read more »

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