Last weekend we went down to Sydney, the rpimary purpose being to take the
children to Taronga Park Zoo. However on the Saturday I got an hour or so
at Maroubra.
The sae was flat clam and there was no wind, so there was no point going
out to the point, but I lurked aroudn the Lewin's Rail areas, and indeed,
as it was late afternoon, and cloudy and overcast they were very vocal. One
incedent in particular was very amusing. I was standing on the path only 10
meters from where you climb through the fence and on the north side (in
very short, beaten-down rushy grasses) and invisible Lewin's as doign its
'jk-jk-jk-jk' call, and from the other side of the path (low bitou),
another was squealing and burping at it. I was standing between them on the
path, probably less than 10ft away from either and the volume was
incredible. But I never once saw either of them,a dn even retreating down
the path and waiting didn;t get me a view.
Having seen Lewin's Rail before I was quite happy simply to experience
their calls, and I agree with the person who siad, in reponse to my
Gloucester Tops report that bird calls/song has its own fascination.
However I, at any rate, have to the SEE the bird at some stage before I can
begin fully to appreciate the song/calls.
The next day at Taronga Park I saw two noteworthy things. One from a
captive Little Button-quail was its platelet forming behaviour. The little
bird was walking all around the opne floor of the enclosure, pausing to
rotate and kick the leaf-litter outwards every two ro three steps. But so
rapid was its progression that looked like a little waltz it was doing.
Delightful, and I behaviour I am unlikely to see in the wild.
The other was a two wild Rainbow Lorikeets flying at full speed, one
centimeters behind the others tail, straight in to a spout on a euclaypt.
It was a small hole, but they flew staright in, one after the other at full
speed, and thereuopn disappeared. Unless yuo happened to have been looking
at that very moment you would know they were, presumably, breeding, in that
hole, as, once inside, they did not show themsleves again.
John Leonard
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John Leonard (Dr),
PO Box 243,
Woden, ACT 2606,
Australia
http://www.spirit.net.au/~jleonard
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