‘Tis the season to procreate, and once again the flora and fauna of Braidwood and surrounds is having at it with gusto. We’ve been fortunate to witness the courtship and subsequent shacking-up of a number of feathery species, and rather late in the day, it occurred to me that this would make interesting ‘content’ (to ornithology spods anyway).

So let’s start with the Kingfishers. Long story short, this species — or genus, or whatever — has long been a bit of an obsession for me, but finding them was nigh impossible and when I did, they proved to be a shy and retiring kind of bird. This was my first:

Clearly, much to be improved upon. Then a very accomplished local nature photographer — check out the work — very kindly told me of a pair of Sacred Kingfishers nesting in a nearby park. And that was a boon: if you crouched quietly in the cover of the nearby long grass, it wouldn’t be long before a parent would appear on a branch near the nest, often holding a morsel for the nestlings within, and make a few dummy swoops at the hole before popping the food in. It was riveting — like some kind of birdie soap opera.

There were challenges, of course: it’s pretty dark in there under the canopy almost any time of day, and nailing some shots — particularly the parent popping out of the hole after time spent with the kids, or the kids themselves — would require a great deal of sitting and waiting, which takes more time than is available to most.

I visited the tree again yesterday and waited an hour, but didn’t see anything. Seems the kids have grown up and, ah — flown the nest. I think I saw one of them a little later, posing nicely in the late-afternoon sunshine, which would be a nice conclusion to that little episode of avian life.

But meanwhile, another developing situation revealed itself, this time at fave dog-walkies spot Commonwood Farm. Now let’s not get our hopes up: this involves nothing as flashy as a Kingfisher: we turn our focus to the very common Willie Wagtail (Rhipidura leucophrys) — a sociable and easy-to-photograph bird lacking bright plumage or predatory habits.

Not that your Willie is without appeal — their musical trilling always lends a busy, happy atmosphere to the scene, and their fluttering mid-air bug interceptions are great to watch. I’d love to get a few action shots of those.

Anyway, about a week ago, I noticed a tiny, beautifully-built nest in a tree very close to the path, and idly snapped a shot of it. It looked to be abandoned, maybe last summer’s, so not too exciting.

And then, a few days later, as I was passing, I noticed . . .

It’s a mama Willy sitting on her eggs! And despite the vulnerable position of the nest, she’s resolute — even the prying of the big, inanimate glass eye of the camera looming at her failed to budge her. With every fibre of her being, she’s committed to protecting her clutch. It’s quite moving to see. I found myself wishing very fervently that she gets to raise a successful brood.

So here’s what I’m thinking: I’m going to pop by every few days to see how Ms Willie is getting on — and I’ll post any developments here. I can also mention any further Kingfisher sightings, and any others that come along. Hell, this blog needs something to kick-start it.