I was driving around the Western Treatment Plant at Werribee when I noticed a Fairy Martin sitting out in the open, it seemed odd as it stayed longer than I thought it would, especially at a site that is teeming with raptors.
Fairy Martin (Petrochelidon ariel)
1/2000, f/7.1, ISO 800
It spent most of it’s time looking around and quietly calling which confirmed that it was a juvenile waiting to be fed.
Fairy Martin (Petrochelidon ariel)
1/1600, f/7.1, ISO 800
Finally a parent bird arrived with a bill full of bugs that it had caught on the wing.
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Fairy Martin (Petrochelidon ariel)
1/1600, f/7.1, ISO 800
There was a remarkable balancing act going on as the parent hovered and the fledgling tried to keep its balance.
Fairy Martin (Petrochelidon ariel)
1/1600, f/7.1, ISO 800
At one point the parent bird’s wing collected some cobwebs and the fledgling spread its tail as it leaned backwards.
Fairy Martin (Petrochelidon ariel)
1/1600, f/7.1, ISO 800
When the parent bird left, the fledgling looked so tiny as it re-balanced itself on its cobwebby stick.
Fairy Martin (Petrochelidon ariel)
1/2000, f/5.6, ISO 800
I parked the car quite a distance from the first Fairy Martin so have included this closer image of a bird I saw later in the day.
Happy birding
Kim
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