Eco-Friday blog post
Yes, National Bird Week is a thing! And it is happening this week across Australia. For those of you who didn’t know that it was a thing, it originated way back in the early 1900’s, when the 28th of October was pronounced as the first ‘bird day’ by the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union. These days, it is organised by Birdlife Australia, and has the noble goal of inspiring everyday Australians to get involved in bird conservation efforts.
One of the ways it supports this is through the organisation of the Aussie Backyard Bird Count, one of Australia’s biggest ‘citizen science’ events. Everyone is encouraged to get out in their backyard, or local park or other outdoor space, and spend 20 minutes observing and registering the birds that they see. Simple, but a hugely effective way of monitoring how our native birds are faring around the country.
Now, I will be honest, it was a struggle to set aside a full 20 minutes to just sit and observe! Time is a luxury we don’t have a lot of at the moment whilst our build is underway, but we wanted to be involved in the cause! So without further ado, here is my list from my 20 minute observation:
Kookaburra x 3 Magpie x 5 Sulphur crested cockatoo x 2 Pale headed Rosella x 2 Rainbow Lorikeet x 3 Miner bird x 3 Pheasant Coucal x 1 Brush turkey x 1 Miner bird x 3 Fig Bird x 1 Magpie Lark x 2 Azure Kingfisher x 1 Purple Moorhen x 1 Willy Wagtail x 1 Scarlet Honeyeater x 7
It was really amazing sitting and observing the BirdLife with a purpose. We know they are there and admire them regularly, but haven’t ever stopped to consciously count them before. We are blessed to have a huge variety of birds here, and at different times or places this list could have been populated with many other species, as it really depends where you are on the property as to what you are more likely to see. I positioned myself near a tree where I had previously observed the Scarlet Honeyeaters, but was pleasantly surprised at how many I could see in one place and in a short window of time. If I had been over closer to one of our dams, I would have observed more water birds, closer to the crossings more kingfishers, towards the mountain more cockatoos and small birds! The more time we have spent out in nature the more notice we have taken of habitats and habits.
There are only a couple of days left of the count, but I highly recommend taking part to any of our Aussie friends. It’s fun and informative, and contributes to a nationwide data bank that helps with conservation efforts, so a win all round! The link can be found below. Happy twitching!
