And just like that, it's spring! Today had that steamy kind of heaviness which I both love and hate. I don't love it when it gets too hot and humid but right now it's perfect because you know the season has finally changed. And the animals know it too - they're everywhere! And boy are they looking for love - the Eastern Spinebills are literally bouncing off each other midair 😂
It's like they were all just waiting for a decent amount of rain to wake them up. Speaking of, I can hear the creek, the first time for ages actually and it's full of calling frogs (note to self - go frogging!). And very exciting for me I found my first Jumping Spider of the season in the camellias, and then another, and another. There was also some type of lady beetle, a very young mantid, and my favourite, the golden bummed ants are out and about. Gah! Excited! And to top it off we had a lovely big storm this afternoon while I was curled up in bed with the pups. See! Spring! I told you.
But before all that, I dropped back in to see if I could get some photos of those fairy-wrens in eclipse plumage - had a touch more luck today and caught a quick snap of a lovely boy changing into his fancy arsed breeding plumage - I LOVE them when they are in this stage - they are cute AF - so I'm sure I'll head back again tomorrow. I couldn't stay long at all today though because (and this wouldn't be a Backyard Zoology post without a washing reference and you guessed it...) I had sheets on the line and the pre-storm massively dark clouds were rolling in. So just as I packing up this little lovely flew right in front of me.
These guys were my nemesis last season - they fly into the long grasses and catch small spiders and grasshoppers, all the while balancing on the the tall stalks - so you can imagine how good the photos would be if only I could actually do the whole photography thing better 😂 But I think because I hadn't even expected to see one of these birds, and it just appeared right in front of me as I was heading home, I didn't have a chance to really try and be a photographer and just snapped off a handful of pics before it flew off again. And somehow the photos are (pretty much) in focus. All in all a brilliant day. Bring on spring!
Golden-Headed Cisticola
Thirroul
