Hello from Coquette Point,
The female olive backed sunbirds are busy renovating old nest and building new ones. Meanwhile the male birds are preoccupied with territorial displays. One male bird was upset with the side mirrors of Robert’s truck. He got so upset at the reflection that in the end Robert covered his mirrors with a bag.
The female olive backed sunbirds are busy renovating old nest and building new ones. Meanwhile the male birds are preoccupied with territorial displays. One male bird was upset with the side mirrors of Robert’s truck. He got so upset at the reflection that in the end Robert covered his mirrors with a bag.
On Thursday I heard the male sunbird’s courtship song. I dropped everything and got two photos of the male with his pectoral tuffs extended.
The song is quite beautiful it is a single extended long, alto note and the photo clearly shows the chest extended as he sings. The morning light caught the iridescent blue bib feathers. Several females in a tree nearby seemed unimpressed by his display and chattered together before they flew away.
The lace goannas are on the hunt for food. I caught two goannas climbing a coconut tree. The small goanna was close to the top of the tree and the large, almost two metres, climbed up the tree behind it.
So far, only one small flock of metallic starlings have arrived, normally at this time of the year I see hundreds of these birds. There is plenty for them to eat with the macarangas still in full fruit and some strangler figs are also fruiting. Good to see fig fruit ripening and there is some falling on the ground for the cassowaries.
This strangler fig is growing on a wattle that was broken by cyclone ‘Larry’. A good example of the rainforest cycle.
I was amazed to see the matriarch cassowary Jessie allow the chick ‘ Q’ to walk up beside her. ‘Q’ was cheeping as she approached ‘Jessie’.
I was amazed to see the matriarch cassowary Jessie allow the chick ‘ Q’ to walk up beside her. ‘Q’ was cheeping as she approached ‘Jessie’.
‘Jessie’ for the most part ignored the chick and walked up to the feeding station. Then chick ‘Don’ came out of the forest and both chicks approached the feeding station.
Jessie thought this was a bit much and the chase was on. While ‘Jessie’ was chasing ‘Don’. The chick ‘Q’ caught sight of me in my hidey-hole and came up to investigate, while all the time chirpping. I am sure it was asking, will you be my friend?
The algal blooms are still coming in the Johnstone river on every high tide. This week the froth almost covered the whole river mouth.
Every afternoon two great white egrets fly up the river to their home in the mangroves and I use their guttural calls as the signal to finish work in the nursery.
Cheers from the frothy banks of the Johnstone River.
Yvonne C.
Every afternoon two great white egrets fly up the river to their home in the mangroves and I use their guttural calls as the signal to finish work in the nursery.
Cheers from the frothy banks of the Johnstone River.
Yvonne C.
