Aussie Aussie Aussie! Azure Azure Azure!
There, sitting on a low branch of willowy-looking tree, partly obscured by leaves and twigs, just three metres away and almost at eye-level, was a most beautiful Azure Kingfisher!
There, sitting on a low branch of willowy-looking tree, partly obscured by leaves and twigs, just three metres away and almost at eye-level, was a most beautiful Azure Kingfisher!
I looked up at the tallest tree ahead at the edge of a small clearing in the forest, and there, bathed in glorious, golden afternoon light, was the Pacific Baza! I could have cried in elation, having gone in a split second from dejection to unbridled joy.
After reading multiple reports over the past fortnight of Azure Kingfishers being spotted along the Yarra River, I was determined to see one, and so planned a multi-stop birding day out in bushland within an hour’s drive from Melbourne’s CBD. The weather forecast called for a 50% chance of a light drizzle in the morning,…
A friend over at The Research Whisperer blog once told me that a good blog post is written in a conversational tone. I have tried to take this advice on board, but more than a decade of working in the research space has had its effect on my writing style: it still has a matter-of-fact and impersonal…
It was some months since we last did a ‘big birding day out’ so we were really looking forward to the Queen’s Birthday long weekend in early June. I had read intriguing bird reports from a small reservoir on the outskirts of Bendigo, so I was eager to try my luck. ‘Crusoe Reservoir’ and ‘Number 7 Reservoir’…