dadirridreaming

Mucky Mother Nature

dadirri7 — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 23:14:19 +0000

silver gulls on the kelp wrack

After days of seaweed building up at our end of the beach conditions were perfect this morning for a big maggot hatch.

high tide flooding the kelp mass

The seaweed flies have been busy laying their eggs in the stranded kelp, now the young wrigglers are providing a rich feast for seagulls and fishes.

seaweed fly maggots hatch in their millions

I love the warm smell of decaying kelp, and just as well, since we make a kelp tea to fertilise our vegetable garden. Kelp is high in nutrients and is a vital part of the beach eco-system providing food and sustenance for scores of creatures.

gulls eating maggots as they wash into the sea

When we see the beach like this there is an instant reaction of ‘Yuk!” followed immediately by an appreciation of and fascination with the intricate cycles of life, waves of life and death, and the amazing beauty of it all.

Moorhen Update

dadirri7 — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 00:01:42 +0000

It is four weeks today since the baby chicks appeared on the dam, with both their parents protecting and feeding them. Last week one of the adults vanished, hopefully just into a nest to raise a second brood. Apparently this is quite common, although to my uneducated eyes the first chicks seemed rather small and vulnerable. These earlier young will help to raise the second brood if that is what eventuates. Another loss this week, we are now down to three chicks, so the eels are getting fat. The remaining adult has been busy constructing more safe platforms for his chicks to stand on, safe from attacks either from below or from the bank of the dam. Now it has become obvious that one chick is much larger than the other two …. I wonder why? Just better at rushing for the food? This weeks photos with captions … stop the slideshow to read them!

Click to view slideshow.

http://dadirridreaming.wordpress.com/2012/02/05/moorhen-chicks-growing/

http://dadirridreaming.wordpress.com/2012/01/31/more-moorhens/
http://dadirridreaming.wordpress.com/2012/01/29/moorhen-chicks/
http://dadirridreaming.wordpress.com/2011/12/21/dusky-moorhen-gallinula-tenebrosa/

Morning Birds

dadirri7 — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 02:18:30 +0000

Another overcast morning here on the NSW south coast, perfect for birds to feed in the grevilleas and bathe safely in the dam with joyous impunity. I went out with the camera to capture a glimpse of the mature male Satin Bower Bird, coming to snatch a few of the last ripe grapes …here is his cheeky head emerging from behind a stainless steel strut. Can you see his rich blue black colouring? He has to be at least five years old to have his mature colours!

Male Satin Bower Bird in the grapevine

Right behind him I noticed the Little Wattlebirds feeding in the large Grevillea ‘Moonlight’. These medium-sized honeyeaters have a comical voice, not at all musical, so for many years we referred to them as the ‘Yoiks!’ There is a recording of their voice if you follow the link above.

Their loud cry can be quiet disturbing early in the morning in suburbia where they feed on the plentiful natives shrubs in gardens. Here we have plenty of room for them, they typically gather in large groups to bathe in the dam, calling loudly, darting into the water and splashing, then quickly dashing back to a low tree branch. Maybe next time I will catch some bathing pictures to share. In the photo below you can see a small moth feeding on the nectar of the same flower too, it looks like a Wasp Moth.

Little Wattebird in the Grevillea 'Moonlight'

Wattlebirds love company!

There were others feeding in the Grevillea too, here is a Crimson Rosella eating the young seedpods.

Crimson Rosella

I hope you enjoy sharing my morning birds today!

Moorhen Musings

dadirri7 — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 10:28:21 +0000

Life on the dam has been intriguing in the last 10 days. The two diligent adults fed and protected the remaining four young until last Saturday (almost two weeks since they emerged from the nest). On Saturday morning I heard a loud and seemingly urgent cry from an adult, and I went out to investigate. I could not see any chicks. The male (I presumed) was standing on a heap of reeds he had crushed down near the stepping stones, calling loudly and sharply. I searched both dams and the lily pond but could not find the other adult. Eventually two chicks appeared, and over time the other two also returned. I have not seen the missing adult at all.

What has happened? Was he calling his lost family? Or was he declaring his territory, and protecting the female who has gone to nest again? Only time will tell. Meanwhile here are photos from the past week, 9th -14th February. One exciting event unphotographed was the adult suddenly rushing to the stepping stones where a small red-bellied black snake was crossing the dam. The Moorhen sounded a warning cry and pecked the snake who looked very pained and scuttled for safety!

Click to view slideshow.

Growth Vs Protection! What is your Perception…?

dadirri7 — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 08:21:09 +0000

Reblogged from consciousintegration:

For quite some time now one of my favorite subjects has been the arena of Epigenetic Biology and Unified-Physics; simply put, it is how our interaction and perceptional beliefs of our environment will impact upon our Cellular Biology and the resulting DNA along with it. Epigenetic ‘s means that we are no longer at the mercy of our genes and that we are NOT destined to fall into the same genetic conundrum as our forefathers. THANK THE UNIVERSE! With the latest published findings of Nassim Haramein and …

reblogged with permission …this is great stuff, read and enjoy

Waterlily Nectar

dadirri7 — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 11:24:16 +0000

Late afternoon reflections in the lily pond, silvery water, visiting bee.

Your innermost sense of self, of who you are, is inseparable from stillness. This is the I Am that is deeper than name and form.”
Eckhart Tolle

Red-capped Plovers

dadirri7 — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 03:59:44 +0000

The Red-capped Plovers are in breeding plumage again, and we witnessed a bit of argy-bargy on the beach yesterday. There were three birds, an adult pair and a juvenile male, foraging on the sand, when suddenly the adult male flew at the younger male who was apparently having ideas about the adult female. In a moment all was calm again, and I caught some lovely shots of them in the diffuse light.

Click to view slideshow.

“The Great Way has no gate; there are a thousand paths to it” – Wumen

Yellow Robin in the Pawpaw

dadirri7 — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 21:26:07 +0000

Yellow Robin in the Pawpaw

Today the Yellow Robin came onto the terrace to catch an insect, so I grabbed the camera and caught him as he retreated to the pawpaw, where he turned to face me just long enough for this capture. Our Australian Yellow Robins are not closely related to American or European Robins, but rather belong to the Corvida parvorder which also contains Fairy Wrens, honeyeaters, pardalotes and crows.

“Surrender yourself humbly, then you can be trusted to care for all things.” Lao-Tzu

Bower Birds

dadirri7 — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 03:56:13 +0000

Our grapes are ripe now …. large bunches of black grapes, Chambourcin, hanging over the patio on the northern side of the house. At night all sorts of furry creatures come and nibble, so there are grape skins and seeds and sticky juicy bits all over the tiles in the morning. From dawn the bower birds take over, landing on the metal roof with a clunk, then stealthily eating grapes until hunted off by a bird with more status. They gather in nearby trees to check that the coast is clear. We net some grapes for ourselves with sufficient success, and don’t mind sharing the others. I had the camera in my hand when this adolescent bower bird appeared yesterday. The look is typical, peering about to check for safety, whilst ready for flight!

Click to view slideshow.

Waterlilies

dadirri7 — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 02:33:57 +0000

Click to view slideshow.

“You are pure, calm Spirit. It is time you remember who you are: the blessed soul, a reflection of Spirit.” – Paramahansa Yogananda