Friday, March 11, 2011
Spotted Quail-thrush
Had the pleasure of photographing this spectacular male Quail-thrush in the Kitchener section of the Werakata National Park, south of Cessnock.
I first observed him flushing from the track and after some patience and playback he eventually walked right up to me and started feeding. He was very aware of the playback but wasn't at all concerned. As the tape played the typical high pitched contact call he would respond softly and continue feeding.
At one stage he froze and dropped to the ground. As I was wondering what this behaviour meant a Brown Falcon shot through the bush and continued on. Almost immediately the quail-thrush realised the danger had passed and continued on.
Eventually I had to get moving (mainly due to my legs being covered in ants). As I walked away the bird followed for a bit before slipping back into the thicker vegetation.
Other birds seen on my Kitchener walk included Yellow-tufted Honeyeater, Jacky Winter, Speckled Warbler, Buff-rumped Thornbill, Spotted Pardalote, Rufous Whistler, Peaceful Dove and Rainbow Bee-eater.
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You saw Bee-eaters!!! You bugger.
ReplyDeleteGreat story with the Quail-thrush. Never seen one, but must head back to Kitchener and see what I can find.