Seasonal? matters

[martin butterfield <>]

After the deluge last weekend, and in expectation of a larger deluge this weekend (check the expected amounts in http://www.eldersweather.com.au/nsw/southern-tablelands/queanbeyan) I decided to see if there was any water in Foxlow lagoon.  Indeed there is a good lot there,  Surprisingly there were no ducks or other waterbirds visible from the view point on the road.  

On my way there it was astonishing to see the signs of the floods last weekend.  Palerang Shire have graded the road but judging by the position of the debris in the fences and bushes the water must have been nearly a metre deep in places leading down to the sharp bends 2km out of Hoskinstown.

In terms of bird life it seemed that the large flocks of birds I would expect in Autumn are already beginning to form.  Magpies were in groups of 8 - 10 (rather than 2 or 3) and Eastern Rosellas in flocks of 6.  Starlings were in the 50 - 100 range, mainly around the very heavily berried hawthorns.  Only one flock of about 40 Little ravens.  In contrast, near the junction of Widgiewa and Captains Flat Roads a family party of Australian Grebes included one very downy chick - surely only 2 or 3 days old.

Martin