banksia bird heaven

soft banksia cones
rainbow lorikeet crisps
ready for snacking

We have a local indigenous Banksia tree growing by our front gate. Currently it is flowering and a variety of birds, Noisy Miners, Wattle Birds and Rainbow Lorikeets are daily visitors. The Lorikeets are big in numbers and very noisy so when they arrive anyone else feeding tends to disappear. This is my contribution to Ronovan Writes #Weekly #Haiku #Poetry Prompt #Challenge 349 CRISP and Soft. Visit this site to see how other poets respond to Ronovan’s challenge.

painted birds

nature paints

rainbow of colour

lorikeet

A rainbow lorikeet caught in the right setting and angle looks like a Paul Gauguin painting. I have shared them in a number of haiku posts but they keep demanding new appearances. This is my contribution to the one a week Photo Challenge and this week for number  43 the challenge is PAINT . For this years 52 weekly challenges planned by Cathy and Sandra visit Cathy’s blog at  https://nanacathydotcom.wordpress.com/one-a-week-photo-challenge-2017/

 

Rainbows of feathers

proud displays

rainbows of feathers

high and low

Two of our most colourful birds, one obvious and one discreet. The Rainbow Lorikeet here feeding on early Spring blossom is now a common sight in our suburb. The brilliant plumage is clearly evident. The second image is a male Common Bronzewing. These birds are not common in suburban Melbourne. We are fortunate in our city of Bayside to have many golf courses and parks that provide shelter and food for a large variety of indigenous birds. The Friends of Native Wildlife, ( a local government supported environmental group I belong) to have identified a secure fenced area around a golf driving range  that provides  shelter for  a small number of Common Bronzewings. We plant native food ground cover   these birds feed from. We also lead education walks in our parks and were delighted to meet this beautiful male and his mate resting beside a dam in a golf course on a recent bird walk.

seed feed

lorikeets

take easy seed feeds

in the heat

A small group of 2 adult and three young Rainbow lorikeets drop by our front yard every day recently assuming the seed stick is eternal. They may take anywhere between a week and 2 days to demolish it. If they discover no stick is waiting a dreadful din begins with lots of screeching and screaming with the young ones doing antics on branches  a bit like acrobats on the high wire  until a new stick appears. Then they settle into a quiet chortling amongst themselves even nodding off to sleep at times. Can you spot the 3 young ones in this last image?

This is my contribution to the one a week week Photo Challenge  and the challenge this week is SEED . For this years challenge planned by Cathy and Sandra visit Cathy’s blog at  https://nanacathydotcom.wordpress.com/one-a-week-photo-challenge-2017/

birds before jewels

for colour

diamonds and pearls lose

to rainbows

Give me a few minutes of watching Rainbow Lorikeets messing about like this pair a few nights ago than worrying about the insurance value of a diamond ring or string of pearls.

This haiku is my contribution to https://ronovanwrites.wordpress.com/2016/04/25/ronovanwrites-weekly-haiku-poetry-prompt-challenge-94-diamondspearls/

where haiku poets from around the globe spin their art of words and imagery.

Nesting

craning necks

protecting their nest

eggs of gold

Rainbow Lorikeets are nesting at Ricketts Point and have to protect their nests against other parrots, Indian Mynas, Ravens, Currawongs and the intrusions of human photographers.. It will be interesting to see evidence of any fledglings in a couple of weeks.

This is my response to
RonovanWrites Weekly Haiku Poetry Prompt Challenge 70 Crane&Gold. This weekly challenge to haiku creators comes up with some incredible haiku. To see this weeks look here https://ronovanwrites.wordpress.com/2015/11/09/ronovanwrites-weekly-haiku-poetry-prompt-challenge-70-cranegold/

spring is here

seeking nesting site

bird of rainbow beauty

a brief flash of red

This haiku image is shared on Ronovan’s haiku/poetry weekly challenge, please visit at

https://ronovanwrites.wordpress.com/category/haiku-prompt-challenge/

These rainbow Lorikeets are now making final decisions and feeding up around our place as the nesting season begins. There were 8 of them in our back yard busily feeding and posturing . Two stayed behind and checked out an inadequate possibility in a Liquid Amber before moving on. They do return almost every day. Should we go out and buy a nesting box in the chance they may use it??

early spring

 

a hollow tree trunk

inspection completed

nesting to begin

Spring is arriving in South eastern Australia  and birds of all varieties are responding to their natural instincts, urgings and behaviours. These Rainbow Lorikeets at Rickets Point have completed their inspection of a hollowed Coastal Banksia and seem fairly confident it will be suitable. Now they will have to defend this nesting site against other Lorikeets, Indian Mynahs, micro bats and possums over the coming weeks.

hungry

 

last of the blossom

kaleidoscope of colour

rainbow in the tree

As Autumn slowly descends on Melbourne nectar seeking birds are out early and still searching near dusk for Banksia cones and other nectar sources that still hold food for them. This Rainbow Lorikeet along with a small flock was feasting on the Banksia’s at Ricketts Point. The evening before we had come across one of these birds who displayed the symptoms of a drunk. It had feasted on so much nectar it could hardly fly and staggered through the air to this same tree and rocked on the edge seemingly ready to regurgitate the lot at any moment. Unfortunately I had no camera so returned the following afternoon looking for some action. This bird was quite sober.