Getting on for 40 years ago, I went on a BOC Beginners' Outing to
Jumping Creek near Warrandyte. The sky was full of birds which looked
just like Starlings - same flight silhouette and anhedral wing-angle -
with the important difference that they had white tail tags and much
faster zooming flight, almost as if jet-assisted. Maybe they were just
a little chunkier than Starlings
So I asked Roy Wheeler, who knew everything. His answer "Dusky
Wood-swallows!" I have never forgotten this.
I subsequently learnt that the Wood-swallows are the only passerine
group of birds capable of soaring flight. They also have powder-down, I
don't know why. They are still high on my list of favourites.
Anthea Fleming
in Melbourne
Lee & Margi wrote:
Hi,
Coincidentally, the day before this thread started I was driving home from
work and while stopped at the traffic lights I noticed a bird flying over
that had the shape and flight of a Woodswallow. It looked too dark for our
usual White-breasted Woodswallows so I watched as it landed on some
powerlines only to have my mystery Woodswallow turn out to be a Starling.
Cheers & Happy birding
Lee
Hervey Bay - QLD
===============================
www.birding-aus.org
birding-aus.blogspot.com
To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
send the message:
unsubscribe
(in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
to:
===============================
===============================
www.birding-aus.org
birding-aus.blogspot.com
To unsubscribe from this mailing list,
send the message:
unsubscribe
(in the body of the message, with no Subject line)
to:
===============================
|
