31/07/2026
Post dawn preening session.. gold on gold!! Turn up the volume to appreciate the ambiance - little grass birds, ravens, swans, gulls, musk duck, oystercatcher etc and of course the stars of the show, the orange-bellied parrots themselves. One of the rarest birds in the world and cryptic, collective observation efforts have only reported about 11 individuals on the mainland so far this season. That is out of a wild population of about 86 individuals that migrated north to winter on the mainland from the South Western tip of Tasmania - their summer breeding ground. I sat with seven of these beauties for over an hour while the fog swirled around the salt marsh then lifted on this chilly last morning of July. (The other birds are black shouldered (Australian) kite and brolgas.
