Spring is in the process of springing: the magpies are engaging in aerial flirtations, the grey fantails are displaying, and today I snapped a new bird for my list, the tiny Spotted Pardalote, busily engaged in collecting nesting material. But with these hopeful signs, it seems the local raptors' habits are changing. This isn't based …
You may recall that the previous raptor post drew heavily on pious English poet Gerard Manley Hopkins to relay the beauty and power of these birds. But there's enough to be said about mankind's fascination with raptors to fill a plethora of books -- the ancient sport of falconry, for a start, is one of …
It's winter now -- and following the freakishly wet summer we've just endured, we're experiencing some deep cold, such that Archie's water bowl freezes overnight and we keep the fire going all day. When it comes to local wildlife -- particularly the feathered kind -- I expected a bit of a dearth, with all the …
Idly musing as Archie and I wended our way down the Commonwood path the other day, I had a minor epiphany. That's a way of saying I realised something I hadn't realised before and felt a bit silly that it hadn't occurred to me earlier as it should have been obvious. This can happen when …
The other day Archie and I were going for walkies through Braidwood, taking in the essential Australianness of our our surroundings: the gum trees, the Kookaburras, the utes chugging by on the King's Highway. And then something popped into this scenario that caused a bit of a jolt -- a reminder of a different time, …
You can't spend too much time away from a Willie Wagtail's brood because by God, they grow up fast. It's five days since we noted the joyful arrival of the chicks -- and scrawny, bald and unappealing little scraps they were, too. So we took a turn down to Commonwood this lunchtime to catch up …
Off to Sydney last week looking for work, so the Willies were left to their own devices for four days or so. Somehow I don't think they minded much. Yesterday, late afternoon, I took Archie down to Commonwood Farm to check on progress -- and work out the kinks after driving back from the metrop. …
'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 …
The old saying, "one swallow does not a summer make" is undoubtedly true. You'd think so, too, given that it can be traced back to Aristotle, pretty much the father of western thought. Or possibly another even earlier ancient sage. The point of the proverb is that a single instance of a phenomenon doesn't necessarily …
Hey, I’ve missed you too. January steamed by really fast and although various things happened, in the way things do, none found themselves onto these pages. I have a couple of half-written, rather uninspired pieces that may well make their way here eventually, but they had nothing of the excitement that gets them over the …
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