Sitting by a pool of water with the camera is one of my favourite pastimes.
The ‘trick’ is to be observant and patient, as many species of birds will soon become accustomed to your presence and resume their natural patterns.
Honeyeaters, of which we have a multitude of local species, are without doubt the most frequent visitors and locally its Yellow-tufted and Fuscous Honeyeaters that tend to dominate proceedings.
From time to time something special appears, perhaps a Yellow-plumed Honeyeater or Black Honeyeater if you’re really fortunate. In the sequence below I’d estimate that over a period of two hours there were 200+ visits from Yellow-tufted and Fuscous Honeyeaters before the Black-chinned Honeyeater dropped in. It was well worth the wait! This species is by no means rare locally, I hear it on most visits to the bush, but it is seriously outnumbered by other honeyeaters and always a delight to observe.
A couple of days later at the same spot, a real highlight – a juvenile Black-chinned Honeyeater – evidence of successful local breeding.
Fuscous Honeyeater, South German Track, Muckleford State Forest, 3rd January 2020
Yellow-tufted Honeyeater
II
Black-chinned Honeyeater
Juvenile Black-chinned Honeyeater, 5th January 2020
HI Geoff,
I spend many hours just sitting and waiting by a patch of water. In a bit of a boggy, water-filled rut last year I had a beautiful Hood Robin and Speckled Warbler turn up. The Hooded Robin, especially, hadn’t been seen in that particular forest for many years. Very exciting. Thanks for sharing your wonderful images.
Thanks Marlene, they are two nice birds indeed! All the best for 2021. Cheers, geoff