A wide range of birds enjoy visiting my fig tree, including the fabulous Lewin’s Honeyeater.
Every time I see these birds I think of them as the crescent moon birds as their yellow ear patches catch the light and look remarkably moon-like.
I was photographing through a window, hand-holding heavy gear in horribly low light, with a dangerously low shutter speed. Even the tiniest movement when using a 600mm lens will cause the image to be blurred so I was a bit chuffed to capture some nice, sharp shots.
The pale yellow edges of the feathers on their underparts is quite exquisite and reminds me of the doodles I use to create during lectures.
A couple of weeks ago I wrote a post called ‘Slender puff balls’ where I mentioned how different a bird can appear depending on its pose. Which is why I’ve shared the second and third shots here where the long, thin bird turns into a short, round one.
Lewin’s Honeyeaters have comparatively sturdy bills and a purple-blue patch beside their crescent moons. This is an adult bird as its iris is blue, youngsters have a brown iris. Their rapid-fire call is very distinctive and always welcome regardless of how many figs they eat.
Happy birding, Kim
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