My Nature Blog
I’m starting to develop a reputation as being good at spotting things after seeing this lizard (and, later, a treecreeper.). I saw movement on the opposite side of the track and a number of us stopped to take a photo.
I thought it was curious to see it as it was pretty cool in the wet forest. Grace actually saw a tiger snake later in the day!
Ahh, Toolangi. A place so magic that it rivals the Otways – and I’m besotted with the Otways.
I’d done a bit of reading prior to the trip so I knew what other birds would be in the area. Pilot bird, satin flycatcher, superb lyrebird and olive whistler were all ones I was keen on, although I didn’t really think I’d have a chance at any of them.
Fortunately, luck was in my favour,
I finally saw a satin flycatcher! It sounds silly, but I get annoyed when such common birds elude me. I’m a lot better at being a patient birder but I still get really insecure at my lack of knowledge.
It was really hard to get a photo of this but it didn’t matter. I could clearly see what they meant about the blue sheen! I’ve now seen the three main flycatchers in the area and will be doing some basic research on them. My friend recommended that I read the field guide multiple times but it’s very hard me to make the connection between information I read and the birds in the field until I’ve actually seen them. An online contact has recommended I go to the local uni and read about some of my favourite birds in HANZAB and I’ll probably be doing that over the holidays.
Facebook friends were going nuts over this bird and everyone was really keen to see it. It was hard for me to understand what the hype was about. Apparently they are here every year but are just easier then normal? It is an incredibly beautiful bird but I assumed that others, like myself, had seen it elsewhere already. I’d seen it O’Reillys.
Why get a fleeting glimpse when you may be able to get a better look elsewhere?
I don’t know if I’m naive or just tired. All I know is that I was more focused on the robins. I did learn a lot about them.
Knowing there call is key to finding them. They can be pretty elusive but like to hang around the same areas. Getting a photo is hard because they hide behind foliage. If you hear the call and are patient enough, chances are you will be able to get a decent photo. Patience is key 🙂
I’ll be keen to see what others see and share over the coming months. I bet once everyone has twitched it, the traffic to the area will die off. This may help to get better photos.
Everyone was focused on looking for the monarch when I saw a robin move. I asked the others what it was. “Probably a scarlet,” someone said. They were completely focused on finding the monarch and didn’t look. It didn’t look like a female scarlet so I took a number of photos so I could check when I got home.
Facebook friends confirmed that it was, in fact, a flame. Flames have moved into that area and others saw males on the day. I’ve finally knocked it off my life list! Not that I was in a real hurry to get them anyway, but it was becoming an embarrassing dip.
Incredibly beautiful bird and looking forward to studying it more next year.
I was also fortunate enough to see a Bassian Thrush earlier in the day. Grace, who is an extremely skilled birder, was able to see one and waved at us to come over. My photos turned out shit but we got great views. It was a humbling experience. When with others I am less patient, because I’m hyper aware of being on a time frame. I’m too anxious about infringing on their time and staying too long that I never pay enough attention to where I am. I figure that I’ll come back another day and bird at my own pace.
I need to slow down and talk with my birding companions so I can fully relax and enjoy myself. We also saw tree martins collecting nesting material. A great time to visit if you like photos of birds preparing nests.
I need to figure out how to get back there. Very seriously considering a tour so I can hit many of the areas that fascinate me and get a basic understanding of the birds that elude me. Alternately, stay at an airbnb room in Boronia and hit the Dandenongs area as much as I can.
I knew nothing about Toolangi. It had a couple of pages dedicated to it in my book about finding birds in Vic, but all I knew was that it had lyrebirds and leeches. As fate would have it, I wouldn’t only glimpse one of those species last Sunday. And, sadly, it wasn’t the lyrebird.
This was my first outing with the Vic Birders group. I was a bit nervous, seeing as I’m new to birding AND struggled socially. I needn’t have worried though. Everyone was incredibly friendly and helpful, and I left feeling calmer and happier then I’ve felt in a long time.
Like many others, I was up at an ungodly hour to get to Toolangi by 7.30am. Many others were there earlier. It was a struggle to get up that early but it was worth it. It was a fantastic days birding.
One of the first birds I saw was an eastern spinebill. It is as beautiful as I expected but is also a lot smaller. I’ll have to go to the botanical gardens to get closer photos of it. I dipped on a lot of birds early on as we were in one of the cars towards the back and many birds flew away before I could get there.
When I got there, though, I met someone that I had met previously at Balyang! We had bumped into him at Balyang during the winter and chatted briefly about the Southern Boobook he had seen there. I had visited there a number of times afterwards with on luck – and had sent Glenn a profane text about how I couldn’t find the f***er. A soon as I saw Matt at Toolangi he said “Oh, I’ve met you and your partner before!”
It helped me feel more relaxed and he is a pretty cool guy. He is a snake catcher and told me that yes, snakes can strike fast even on a slow day. I shouldn’t have been so complacent when I previously saw one at Jerringot.
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Also saw a rufous fantail which was fantastic.
I have a fondness for robins. I can’t explain why. They are more interesting then wrens. I think it’s because they are so dainty.
The first bird I saw was a pink robin, which was exciting. I’ve only really seen the Eastern Yellows and, once, a scarlet. The colouring was so bright. It was beautiful. Andrew Allen was kind enough to show me the difference between the species using his app. I should probably get a field guide on an app – I’d left my guide in the car as it’s HEAVY. Everyone that day was helpful towards me and answered my newbie questions. I really appreciated how I was treated as an equal despite my huge gaps in knowledge.
Andrew had the same lens that I did which just confirms that the main fault lies with the lens itself – we must have gotten a dud. I also got a leech on me early on in the trip. The words ‘it’s cute’ escaped my mouth before I could stop myself. I assumed they were a lot larger and more painful. Mums attempts to make us terrified of leeches have failed.
Anyway, apparently the pink robin (female) has been seen around Geelong botanical gardens. Methinks I need to visit there without family (Glenn or Seth) so I can bird without interruption or fear that I’m boring them.
The above two photos are a rose robin. You can tell because the grey is lighter and the markings are different. It was a lifer for many.
In terms of subspecies – there are no other races of rose robin. It looks like there is a Tasmanian subspecies of pink robin that I’ll have to track down. Darn my obsessive brain!
This is a lifer… I think. My notes say that I have already seen it, but I can’t find any record of it in my images. Weird. Regardless, it was awesome to add another honey eater to my list. I also saw a yellow faced honey eater and got very blurry photos of a crescent honeyeater.
White throated treecreeper. The only thing that annoyed me about the day is that people would hear bird calls, say what they were, and walk on without looking for them. Most of them had seen those birds and I didn’t want to slow anyone down. There were many birds I so desperately wanted to see – and this was one that I found by accident! I saw movement and was photographing it when someone walked up and said what species it was.
This is less of a complaint, it’s more about how I want to return there so I can bird at my own pace. Being such a newbie really limits things. And, I know that people would have helped out if I spoke up, I just didn’t want to take away from their experience.
Between Toolangi and Murrundindi
These photos were taken along the drive to Murrundindi. It was really funny. We’d drive, stop and listen, then keep on driving. I got photos of these trees because it was really sad to see.
I was a bit knackered when I got to Murrundindi. It was a beautiful place but the day was heating up and I had learned not to exert myself. I didn’t walk as far as the others and missed out the skink, but I still got to see this little guy. Maybe it’s the yellow faced honeyeater? 😉 It’s hard to keep track.
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It was a really fun morning and I really felt like I was around my kind of people. Everyone loved nature. Everyone wanted to learn. None of the bullshit associated with high school and the social media sphere. Passionate people. The kind of person I want to be.
I’ll probably be backing off of birding somewhat for the rest of the year and focus on freelance stuff. Was toying with going to Mud Islands tomorrow but my budget says I’d be better off staying here. I do want birding and bushwalking to be a large part of my life, I just need to figure out how to balance it with managing anxiety and work.