White-Faced Heron and Corellas

The White-faced Heron (Egretta novaehollandiae) is the most commonly seen heron in Australia. Every few months we even see one having a wander in our own suburban backyard. While on holidays over New Year I spotted one walking along the edge of the Bay, looking for something to eat. They feed on fish, amphibians, crustaceans and insects, although it caught nothing while I was watching.

This one is a young White-faced Heron as it has not yet developed the characteristic white plumage  around the face. The male and female have a similar appearance and while breeding have long feathers along the head, neck and back.

They do not migrate and can be found in nearly any habitat where water is present.

You may remember me sharing about the flock of Corellas flying with Master J's r.c.plane a couple of weeks ago, also while on holidays.

As mentioned, one of our other children caught the incident on their iPod but we didn't have sufficient internet coverage to upload at the time. Now home, we have uploaded it. 

You can stop the "blog music" by pressing pause on the You-Tube clip at the very bottom of the page so as to appreciate Corellas, they are quite noisy! You'll understand why I asked Master J to stop flying with them so early in the morning. Corellas feed mostly on the ground, eating grains, grass seeds and sometimes fruit.

Sharing at World Bird Wednesday.