Most are welcome, a few are not.
So here's a rundown on some we encounter.
Sulphur Crested Cockatoo, Yellow Tailed Black Cockatoo, Galah |
The sulphur crested cockatoos usually arrive in flocks and are very interested in our lemons which they devour in quantity. They like the unripe plums, peaches and pears too. We have plenty of lemons and have given up trying to protect the other fruit so they are not a problem.
The black cockatoos have adapted to eating the newly formed cones on the exotic radiata pine trees that are grown in Australia in plantations for cheap timber and paper pulp. They arrive in very noisy screeching flocks into our pine tree at that time of the year. Unfortunately it grows next to our studio and they drop the partially eaten cones on the corrugated iron roof which sounds like someone is shooting at us.
Galah can also be an Australian slang word for a stupid person. It is apt as these birds carry on in their flocks in quite crazy ways. They are grass seed eaters.
Gang Gang Corella |
Even more colourful are the Rosellas and King parrots. The former like the native flowers for nectar. The latter only seem to come when our catoneasta has its berries ripe. They are usually in pairs and the female is much duller than the male.
Crimson Rosella Eastern Rosella King Parrot |
Regular visitors are Kookaburras. They are a member of the kingfisher family and are carnivorous. They eat worms, lizards and even small snakes. They stalk their prey, catch it and then dispatch it by hitting it on a hard surface before swallowing.
They can become very tame and people regularly feed them meat scraps etc. We have resisted doing this to keep them wild and non dependent.
I have experienced them stealing sausages off Bar B Qs and people's plates during park picnics.
Their call (or laugh) is considered the sound of the Australian bush but they are just marking out their territories.
The dreaded Koel.
The Common Koel is a large migratory cuckoo which flies to Australia from New Guinea, Indonesia and possibly the Philippines arriving usually in September. It breeds mostly in Queensland and NSW as far south as our area. They remain until March or April, when they return to their non-breeding grounds.
It has the most annoyingly loud call which can go on for hours and hours from VERY early morning to dark.
So there you have some of our feathered friends.
There are many more but will leave that for another time.
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