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This afternoon we went for a drive to see some birds and stopped near
the dam on Pine Ridge just off Stockdill Drive, Holt. Only thing unusual (and a
little surprising) was a Dollar Bird hawking from atop a willow.Walked along the
fence a short distance and saw a Black Angus bull 70m away in the
paddock. A flock of small birds landed over near the bull but we couldn't
tell what they were. Intrepid brats climb through fence. "Get outa there, that
bull could charge," I warned.
"That big heavy thing couldn't run, anyhow he's 'way over there." someone
said.
"Get back through the fence now!" I shouted, "You never take a bull for
granted."
Linda returned quickly, but Junior got stuck, one foot either side of
the wire netting. "Look out! Bull's coming!" [it wasn't] Linda yelled, "Go, go,
go!! "Can't, my jeans are caught on the wire, help me. Help!" Junior
wailed. We stopped laughing long enough to release the wriggling brat
while El Toro chewed his cud and watched. "That animal wasn't about to
charge, he's peaceful. I'm surrounded by fools," the ungrateful little ingenue
sniffed.
When all were calm again we headed to Stromlo Park with a brief stop at
Coppins Crossing where two White-fronted Chats flushed from near the rocks
landing on a fence but were off again soon as we moved towards them. At Stromlo
Park we saw no chats but counted a flock of 26 Red-rumped Parrots (unusual for
them to flock in such numbers during spring?). "Tail light parakeets," Samantha
said, now fully recovered from her taurene trauma. Five King Parrots including
one resplendent male. Three Gang-gangs overhead and a perched light phase Brown
Falcon. B. Falcons often fool me in that phase, and as usual there was much
argument cocerning the ID until I called in Simpson & Day. We scared
up two Common Bronze Wings that were poking about in dead fall beneath a
tree.
John Layton.
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