Hi Nick,
This happens all the time and I am confident it would have been happening
since cars and windows came to Australia. My nephew in Melbourne sent me
film of this same sort of thing last week. In that case, the bird
specialised in spending most of the day flying between one parked car and
another.
Philip
-----Original Message-----
From: Canberrabirds
On Behalf Of Nick
Payne via Canberrabirds
Sent: Thursday, 7 July, 2022 2:32 PM
To: Canberra Birds
Subject: Magpie-Lark playing with cars
I have several times now observed a Magpie-Lark playing with cars at the
intersection of La Perouse St and Flinders Way in Griffith. The bird
perches on the roof of a stationary vehicle that is waiting at the stop
sign on La Perouse to turn left or right into Flinders Way. When the
vehicle moves off, the Magpie-Lark launches off the roof, flies
alongside the car making a few darts at its reflection in the side
windows, and when the car has travelled ten or fifteen metres from the
intersection, the bird leaves it and returns to the intersection where,
if there is another car waiting at the stop sign, it alights on the car
roof and then repeats the performance.
I first observed this behaviour several weeks ago, and have seen it
three or four times since then, the most recent occurrence being this
morning.
Nick Payne
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