After the rain last night Mulligan's Flat was
wonderfully aromatic this morning with little fresh carpets of blossom under the
flowering gums.
Amongst highlights in Mulligan's a party (10+) of
White-throated Needtails swooping low over the canopy.
A pair of Leaden Flycatchers with a dependent
young so recently out of the nest (during the night?) that it could hardly fly.
Amazingly cryptic amongst the eucalypt debris. Had it not called would never
have seen it.
Also seemed to be an unusual number of Bronzewings
evident, flushing one or two every hundred metres or so.
With regard to Geoffrey Dabb's "Unusual year?" post
of 21/12 found 2 nesting colonies of White-browed Woodswallows right along the
road from Mulligan's to Sutton. Coming from Sutton, the first is where the
gravel road begins after E. Tallagandera (sp?) Rd. between the yellow Gravel
Road sign and the red and white Water Bores ad. Second is just down the hill
from Mulligan's where there are pines on each side of the road and yellow box in
profous bloom much to the delight of the bees. Stopped the car because I heard
screeching Little Lorikeets (20-30) in the canopy but found myself under
"attack" from White-brows choosing an alternate target to the Sulphur-Crested
Cockatoo they were harrying.
Merry Christmas
Shaun
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