lirralirra

Oh my goodness! It’s not every day I photograph a new species so close to home, especially such a tiny, elusive, secretive, exquisite little crake.

Imagine you’re at the lily ponds when your friend (hi Carol) points about 20m across the water and says, ‘What’s that?’ And try as you might you can’t see what she’s pointing at. ‘It’s disappeared again,’ she says. ‘Now it’s back, just wait for the lily pad to move in the wind’. But which lily pad! Eventually I saw it and it was my turn to start with the directions for Carol. It was hilarious that it was so tricky to see even when one of us would say that it was running to the right, or some such comment.

I managed to find it through the lens just once, for 0.3 of a second, during which I took four photographs. This was the first, and the best, though I’d have been stoked with the others if I hadn’t been lucky enough to capture this shot. I like the detail of its minuscule nails, the gentle curves of the leaves, and the tiny bubbles it stirred up as it moved across the lily pads.

Baillon’s Crake are listed as threatened in Victoria (Fauna and Flora Guarantee Act). They are the smallest Australian crake, about the same size as a sparrow, and their colouring makes them extremely tricky to see as they scurry around, frequently ducking for cover. I think this crake is a male as it lacks the rufous eye stripe of the female. They are beautiful little birds with their soft grey underparts and face, with rufous upperparts with some black and white streaks, a bright red iris and greenish bill – absolutely divine and such a wonderful surprise.

Happy birding, Kim

~ Facebook page Kim Wormald – lirralirra – 10K+ followers
~ Facebook group  Ethical Bird Photography
~ Etsy – prints via me at  Kim Wormald lirralirra
~ Browse prints and gifts Lirralirra Shop or contact me directly