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The Restless Flycatcher and the Dusky Woodswallows
I reported here on 12/13 June are still there.
After thinking I heard the former call several
times over the past few days, a more concentrated search found a
single Restless Flycatcher feeding and calling softly in the trees on
the NE & E side of the dam at 16:40 this afternoon. It then flew off
into the horse paddocks to the N, and while I was trying to locate a possible
second bird, I hear woodswallows overhead, seeing about 3 of them circling high
(at least 100 m above tree level) to the SE.
As they disappeared quickly I suspected they
may have landed on the ridge itself, about 250 m to the SE. Indeed
following this up at 16:55 I located about 7 birds in a loose group mostly in
the inner branches (about 1-2 m in) of a gum tree at the top of the rise where
the track that runs behind the houses all the length of Chapman flattens
out. Suddenly this increased to 17 birds as they left this tree and formed
a cluster at the base of a large dead bit of mistletoe in the adjacent
tree, where they settled somewhat nervously for a couple of minutes. I
suspect I was spooking them as they suddenly left and alighted on
rather exposed perches nearby, so I left.
Contrary to what I wrote in my column in the July
Gang-gang, I now suspect they've been present in the area for the past month or
so, but spend the day hawking away from the area, including possibly
surprisingly high before using the area to roost overnight.
Jack Holland
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