A scruffy Aussie icon

I haven’t had many spare moments this week but the few I’ve had, have been spent sitting on the back steps watching a comical fledgling magpie demanding worms from its over-worked dad.

 

magpie-fledgling-2-kim-wormaldAustralian Magpie (Cracticus tibicen) – fledgling
1/1000, f/5.6, ISO 1600

 

Such a scruffy little bird! I love the muddle of plumage it has at the moment with plenty of its baby down still on show. Its fluffy bloomers and pigeon-toed stance make me smile, and I am intrigued by the lightly fringed feathers coming through on its underparts as the adult birds don’t share this detail.

 

 

magpie-dad-kim-wormald

Australian Magpie (Cracticus tibicen) – male
1/1600, f/7.1, ISO 400

 

Every time I’ve watched this little family the female has been foraging quietly by herself while the male, above, strives to feed himself and his offspring. Adult magpies have red eyes, unlike their brown-eyed babies.

In the image above, the dad has a dazed expression as he peers at the ground ready to dive towards anything that moves. While I’ve been watching he has caught a range of critters, but mainly worms.

 

 

magpie-fledgling-kim-wormald

Australian Magpie (Cracticus tibicen) – fledgling
1/1000, f/6.3, ISO 1600

 

The juvenile occasionally attempts to forage for itself by looking curiously at the ground. I saw it catch what may have been its very first worm. It was the tiniest worm I’ve ever seen and the baby maggie was so shocked by the experience that it dropped it and walked away looking very puzzled. I could watch these funny birds for hours.

Happy birding, Kim

 

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Exhibition closes soon! It’s exciting to see red dots continuing to blossom on the images, and to meet many interesting visitors to the gallery – my thanks to everyone for the wonderful feedback, sharing the beauty of our birdlife has been more fun than I could have imagined.

Where:  Mont de Lancey Historic Homestead, 71 Wellington Road, Wandin North  03 5964 2088

When:  until Sunday 11 December 2016 – open Wednesdays to Sundays, 10am – 4pm

 

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