Southeastern Australia 2024
Here are some of the birds that Ethan managed to photograph when he was in Victoria, Tasmania, NSW, and southern Queensland.
Bush Stone-Curlews have got to be some of the stupidest birds out there. Ethan observed this one standing with her beak pressed up against a glass window and when he returned nearly three hours later she was still there.
Monarch Flycatchers are in many ways the ideal birds. They do all the things that birds should do: perch in trees and consume insects, but with an otherworldly grace and nobility rarely found in the Animal Kingdom. On the left is the Black-Faced Monarch and on the left is the White-Eared Monarch.
Although it was once a noble Monarch Flycatcher (and technically still is), this vile bird was seemingly corrupted in the Pits of Utumno until it became the Magpie-Lark, a twisted mockery of all that is beautiful and true in this world.
Ethan’s opinion of the Acanthizids only continued to grow as he spent more time in Australia and they have now firmly become one of his top 3 bird families. Counterclockwise from top right: the Striated Thornbill, the elusive Tasmanian endemic Scrubtit, the Tasmanian Thornbill, and the robinesque Yellow-Throated Scrubwren.
Ethan was very happy when a flock of Apostlebirds showed up and allowed him to clear his first polytypic family. Ethan is pretty sure this one is a “James” but can’t say whether its father is Alphaeus or Zebedee.
Ethan’s Lyrebird pictures aren’t pretty but he managed to clear another family and even got to see the Albert’s Lyrebird (left) doing an out of season dance. At first Ethan felt a bit bad for Albert since he will forever be tied to the notably non-superb Lyrebird before realizing that the Albert in question was Albert the Prince Consort and feeling less bad because he already has a podocarp and half of a pretty good museum named after him. Superb Lyrebird on the right.
The Australian Brushturkey is just like a normal turkey except it is even nastier and it is a megapode instead of a turkey. If you look closer, each of the dimples on its wattle is actually a festering sore and Ethan swears he saw one shake itself and release a Brushturkey-shaped cloud of dust that hung in the air for a second.
A few more Fairywrens to bolster Ethan’s Malurid collection. Maybe next time he will find some Grasswrens. On the left the Purple-Backed Fairywren and on the right the Superb Fairywren.
A couple of sultry Estrildid Finches. On the left the Beautiful Firetail and on the right the Diamond Firetail.
Just as Ethan was finally closing in on these Hooded Plovers, a brisk wind created a mini-sandstorm in front of the birds. At first Ethan cursed Zephyrus but he eventually decided that the flying sand is sort of cool and makes the photo more “dynamic.”
On the left is the “chunky” Green Catbird in the process of emitting its terrible cry that recalls a dying cat screaming. On the right is the male Regent Bowerbird sitting above a dumpster (which has been cropped out).
Ethan was extremely hyped to see his first Bird-of-Paradise but he has to admit that although she was a cool bird by most measures, she didn’t live up to the family’s spectacular reputation. At least it can only get better from here.
Although the first couple Eastern Whipbirds he met were quite shy, he eventually encountered some that were less wary than their western cousins, just as he had hoped.
Ethan’s gradual progress towards recording a member of every avian family continued with the slightly gnarly Magpie-Goose (left) and the amusing Australian Logrunner (right).
The Tasmanian Nativehen: a cool name for a cool rail.
Ethan continued to make progress on his Honeyeaters. On the left is the Spiny-Cheeked Honeyeater and on the right is the Scarlet Myzomela which evidently believes itself too cool to be called a Honeyeater.
On the left is the Pale Yellow Robin which was a welcome sight to Ethan after days of being harassed by Eastern Yellows. On the right is the Rose Robin which Ethan thinks looks pretty good for a dimorphic female Petroicid.
Ethan wonders what Forest Wisdom the Tawny Frogmouth would impart if only it could talk.
Ethan was happy to double his Bristlebird collection with this Rufous Bristle. He didn’t have any cheese to feed it so he had to settle for this relatively distinct shot as it quickly scurried across a sand dune.
A majestic Forty-Spotted Pardalote. Ethan saw a bunch of these endangered little fellows in the tree canopies but they wouldn’t come down to his level so he eventually gave up and just staked out their house.
A pair of very nice green birds. On the left is the Rose-Crowned Fruit-Dove and on the right is the relatively elusive Turquoise Parrot.
Here are a couple critically endangered Swift Parrots. It has gotten to the place where Leonardo DiCaprio has gotten involved so you know it is serious. Hopefully he can figure out some way to stop those pesky Sugar Gliders.
When the rowdy flock of Grey-Capped Babblers these two were members of swooped over Ethan’s head he involuntarily said “oh, no” and it only got more sinister when he turned around. Probably time to leave Australia for now and head somewhere where the birds aren’t conspiring to kill him.