canberrabirds

flying bugs and more woodlswallows

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Subject: flying bugs and more woodlswallows
From: "Nicki Taws" <>
Date: Wed, 9 Nov 2011 17:26:17 +1100
Shortly after the band of thunderstorms passed over Cook at lunchtime, the sun shone forth and almost immediately the Pied Currawongs began "whooping", which in this weather usually means the flying ants are emerging. Sure enough a horde of currawongs, Red Wattlebirds and Noisy Friarbirds were conducting acrobatics over a cluster of ant nests and continued the feast for several hours.
 
At about 4.30 a flock of c. 100 woodswallows went chirping overhead but were too high to determine species. While I was watching them several Starlings (which we almost never see here) were hawking lower down for flying bugs (ants or others). Then I noticed a Nankeen Kestrel hovering and snatching something in the air. I thought a flying ant wouldn't be worth the effort for a kestrel so maybe there were other flying bugs. Then, even more surprisingly, a Brown Falcon came through and with almost the same hovering motions as the kestrel plucked insects from the air.
 
cheers
Nicki Taws
 
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