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Spent last weekend caretaking a Wagga property while the owners took a
break. Had to patrol the property twice daily looking for trespassers which are
a darned nuisance during weekends. Also had to feed a few cattle, so
loaded hay bales on back of a ex-army 1942 Ford Blitz truck which was an
immediate source of fascination.
Fed the beeves and mounted our patrol as the Bratz took turns at
standing on the passenger's seat and poking their heads out the observation
hatch in the turret searching for interlopers and enemy aircraft.
Disappointingly, we encountered neither. Suddenly,
Linda-in-the-turret startled me, "Aquila the Hun at twelve o'clock!
Rat-a-tat-tat!! she shrieked.
"Stop acting the fool up there or get down," I growled. Then, "Oh,
well done, Linda!"
A Wedge-tailed Eagle was perched on the dead crown of a big Yellow
Box tree 100 metres away. As we sneaked uphill towards it, using the truck as a
hide, I stalled, hit the starters and the old Blitz roared back to
life with a resounding backfire. Aquila the Hun took off into the sun and
soared. A few moments later it was joined by its mate and we glassed them for
five minutes until they descended behind a distant hill.
In a stretch of Cypress Pine country we saw 10 White-winged
Choughs, 12 Grey-crowned Babblers, pair of Red-capped
Robins, ~ 50 Crested Pigeons and seven Apostle
Birds. In eucalpt scrub we saw ~ eight Spotted Pardalotes,
a Grey Butcher Bird, an early-bird Willie Wagtail building a nest
and scored a Male Hooded Robin which the Bratz said looked like
an executioner with his black cape. Quite so, m'dears. At various
points we saw six male Flame Robins perched on fences.
Stopped outside a derelict cottage and flushed two owls (Southern
Boobooks we thought) from Pepper Trees. Entered the cottage looking for
trashpackers and saw a cast iron stove with the oven door ajar. Samantha yanked
it open and everyone sprang aside as a Brush Tail Possum leapt out and
fled across the paddock. "No roast possum tonight, girls," I said.
A cluster of winter-bare willows by the river contained five
Cattle Egrets, three Pied Cormorants, seven Little Black
and fifteen Little Pied Cormorants, five Darters and a
White-faced Heron. We binoed a fox beneath the trees for a few
minutes and it seemed to be chewing at the guano encrusted leaf litter.
Withdrew leaving Reynard to his novel repast and had our picnic lunch.
We saw three Whistling Kites soaring and heard them whistling as we
watched ten Peaceful Doves lined up on a dead branch. Other riparian
highlights: Golden-headed Cisticolas, Brown Quail,
Red-kneed and Black-fronted Dotterels, a male Musk Duck, ~
30 Grey Teal some of which perched on fence posts. Grew tired
of counting Pacific Black Ducks, Australian Wood Ducks and
Masked Lapwings. Saw White-faced and White-necked Herons,
two Royal Spoonbills and two Great Egrets. Acting upon reliable
information, we parked the Blitz on a rise overlooking the lagoon, stood on
the turret so we looked down into reeds and spotted a Black Swan on its
nest. Clearly heard Little Grassbirds but couldn't spot them. On the
flats, in a couple of acres of dead River Red Gums ring-barked back in the
1940s but still standing, we saw 23 Australian Pelicans, a lone
Australian Hobby and, completely blasé to the little raptor's presence,
about 200 Common Starlings. Also in the precincts 35 feeding
Straw-necked Ibis took no notice as we rumbled slowly by ~ 25m from them.
At least 20 Welcome Swallows flittered above the lucern paddock probably
pursuing myriads of midge-like insects swirling in the winter sunshine.
In the homestead orchard Yellow Rosellas ( yes, yes, Christidis
& Boles puts them as Crimson Rosellas but I don't) far outnumbered
Eastern Rosellas while Red-rumped Parrots were thick on the
ground. One time we counted a flock 43 ground-feeding Red-rumps. Another
time, a huge flotilla of Magpie-larks drifted overhead, a quick but
conservative count indicated at least 55. A big English Walnut tree and
surrounding ground held a rich feeding flock: Yellow-rumped and Brown
Thornbills, Grey Fantails, Willie Wagtails,
Magpie-larks, Red-rumps, a male Flame Robin and a Grey
Shrike Thrush. An Eastern Yellow Robin clung sideways on the walnut's
trunk and pounced intermittently as Yellow Rosellas chewed at walnut
husks. Then a platoon of free-range turkeys arrived and commandeered the
ground litter causing the fowls of the air to flee.
We noticed five Red Wattlebirds fussing, flapping and squawking
as they feasted on fallen, rotting quinces. Now and then, one fluttered up into
the tree, landed on a branch, perched unsteadily, descended to an ungainly
landing and sat back on its tail for a second looking a tad disoriented. We
concluded they were inebriated. A condition brought on, we thought, by imbibing
the fermenting fruit.
I was woken early Sunday by heavy things landing on the roof followed
by an eerie sound as if veloraptors were sliding down the corrugated iron
using their talons as brakes, then muffled thumps as whatever they
were landed on the ground. Chose to remained beneath the doona and heard the
Bratz haring down the hall and out the door. They returned intact and reported
the turkeys had camped in a big tree next to the house and were jumping onto the
roof, "skiing" down the slope and launching back to Terra Firma. During
breakfasts, a Grey Shrike-thrush landed on the verandah railing
and called until it received its customary spoonful of crushed cornflakes.
Then a sparrow landed and cleaned up the crumbs. Surprising, because I spent
much of my younger years there and never saw a sparrow on the place. But, this
particular sparrow had another surprise under its wing, we positively identified
it as a Eurarasian Tree Sparrow. The species is patchy/unusual in Wagga,
but here's this one little dodger a good 24km from of town. Hope it has a
mate and propagates. We just like 'em.
Quickly now, Sunday's highlights: Aquila the Hun back in his Box
seat but we didn't disturb him this time. Five Black-shouldered Kites
perched in trees all within the one fifty acre paddock. A Pied Butcher
Bird hopping about on deadfall while two Grey Currawongs tore at the
bark. Checked the Pepper Trees but no owls. However, sent a rather
belligerent trashpacker packing out of the cottage and over the boundary
gate with the welcome backup of our good friends, Paddy and Trumby, the
blue cattle dogs. Much merry schadenfreude ensued. No doubt the Bratz had
much to tell when they returned to Canberra.
John Layton
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