This week’s weather has been pretty interesting with more rain and more wind interspersed with sunshine.
It was the ‘sunshine’ part that made this week’s images possible when this New Holland Honeyeater turned up to bathe. The birdbaths are nestled beneath trees, quite a long way from my window but I thought I’d try getting some shots – they’re not brilliant but I like its fluffed up tummy feathers and spiky head feathers.
New Holland Honeyeaters are about 18cm from the tip of their bill to the tip of their tail. They weigh about 20g, which means you’d need to be holding three of them to weigh the same as a fairly average chicken egg.
The direction of the sun meant that the distant background of Swamp Paperbark trees was in shadow, providing a dramatically dark background. The image above shows the yellow wing patch more clearly than usual, though the yellow edge to its tail is hard to see.
Each month Australian Photography features a single shot from a photographer who is a member of the Australian Photographic Society – see the information box in the bottom right of the article. Choosing Gannet Discipline was an easy decision, not only because it was an AGNOTY finalist but because it offers a light-hearted glimpse into the secret world of gannets.
Happy birding from home, Kim
~ Facebook page Kim Wormald – lirralirra
~ Facebook group Ethical Bird Photography
You really can’t trust the paparazzi… just when you thought it was safe to have a bath.
Brilliant series.
And huge congratulations on both being an AGNOTY finalist and on the featured photograph and story.
Haha! That made me chuckle EC, and we need all the chuckles we can get at the moment!
Hehe the tufty NHH is so sweet! I love the dark background.
Congratulations on the write up! It looks brilliant!
Thanks heaps Alyssa!
Congrats on the published photo, Kim, how lovely that so many can enjoy it and get to know more of our amazing bird life through your lens. You wonder how those little birds don’t blow away in the wind we’ve had recently.
I totally agree with you about the wind Syndy! A few years ago I watched some amazing footage from a guy in the US (I think) who ventured into the woods during high winds to look for birds. He found them on branches, pressed against the trunks of trees. It was remarkable to see.