This walk was the first one over 10km that I had done in about 3 years. It was also the first walk where I overexerted myself to the point of vomiting.

If I’d packed money or my phone, I would have called a taxi after I’d passed Fyansford common. I’ll talk about the walk itself in a separate post; this is primarily focused on the birds I saw.

Birdwise, it was an awesome walk. I passed through multiple types of environments as was able to sit down and observe what I saw. It was a bit difficult at times, as the path is also used by cyclists and people walking their dogs.

I saw my first red-browed finch! I know they are fairly common but I hadn’t gotten a decent look at one. As soon as I saw it, I guessed at the name although I had to go home to be sure. I don’t know how the name fell into my head; I’ve been reading far too many lists about bird sightings along the barwon.

I also saw a common bronzewing, which was a relief. I hate being the moron that misses out on seeing common birds.

This guy is a fan-tailed cuckoo, which is another first.

It turns out that this little fella is a bog standard willy wagtail. I was going through my book, flipping back and forth, until I realized that this is what wagtails look like when their tail is down. Duh.

I have no idea what the little bird in this picture is. I don’t think it’s a honey eater and it certainly doesn’t look like the baby version of the other bird. I think it’s a beautiful photo but man, I suck at ID’ing.

I’ve hesitantly ID’d this bird as a masked woodswallow, but I’m not confident in that. Just looking at the picture makes me feel dizzy though.

Parrots

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a crimson rosella in the inner suburbs. It was a bit of a surprise.

Red rumped parrot. They appear repeatedly in many of my old photos.

Baby duckies

There was a guy and his sun kayaking alongside the path for quite a bit. It was somewhat annoying, as their noise scared away a lot of the birds. Then I noticed they’d stopped and were looking at this.

Of course, I stopped to get some photos. The son got out of his kayak and walked closer to try and get some pics. The duckies weren’t too pleased about this and swam further up the river.

I got some really beautiful shots, including the one below of a wood duckling, but this post is already photo-heavy as it is.

Darter

FYI: I just realized that you can tell its a darter because the beak isn’t hooked like a cormorant. Huzzah!

I was walking close to the edge when I saw this darter posing. They are a common sight, but I always love getting close up shots.

He was feeling uncomfortable and had different plans.

I love this shot. I can’t wait to show Seth. And he’s such a strong swimmer!

 

~

Despite getting sick and hurt, it was a very good walk. I realized that I am learning a lot and am enjoying putting my knowledge into practice. Those that are smarter then me having been doing it considerably longer AND have a car. This frustration is across the board.

The birdwatching/hiking is allowing me to explore the thought processes surrounding my anxiety disorder in a safe setting. I get confronted with stuff but there is no external pressure and judgement. It’s like I can train my mind without being watched. It’s kinda awesome 🙂