Sometimes when you're too busy to go birding the birds will
come too you.
Earlier this week at James Cook University here in Townsville
I bought a cup of hot chips and took a seat at a table next
to to the lushly vegetated creek that runs through the
campus, which in general contains many pockets of native
bushland and is well treed throughout - a great place for
birding.
Before long a Blue-winged Kookaburra swooped past my face and
without landing took a chip, knocking over the cup and
spilling chips and tomato sauce over my notes. I bit later
this happened again (although the cup stayed upright this
time) and 3 Blue-winged Kookaburras then perched in a tree
several metres away. I briefly coaxed one of them onto my
table.
Meanwhile Australian Brush-Turkeys were racing around the
area fighting over scraps. Until recently I only ever saw
them in the early morning, often sorting through the bin in
front of the library or foraging in the garden beds but now
they seem to be a permanent fixture around the tables outside
the refectory. One of them was definately much fatter then it
should have been. A group of Common Mynas and a pair of
Magpie Larks were also purposefully combing the area and a
Blue-faced Honeyeater was picking at an apple core on the
ground nearby. Other sightings during lunch were Spangled
Drongo and Yellow Honeyeater. It was quite entertaining and I
never did read over the notes I had out.
Cheers
Tim Dickson
Townsville
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