14 March 2012

Little Wattlebird nurtures her little one, Koel!

Just last weekend, I was able to get a birds eye view of the Juvenile Common Koel waiting on it's foster Mum to bring a feed along.  My, it seems plenty big enough to manage that for itself!  Sitting in one of the flowering, native banksia shrubs, out in the bush corridor.

Mum was hovering back and forth poor girl.  Koel never seems to let up harping throughout the day.  I know because the nest is in the tall bottlebrush next my side boundary fence.

Here she is; diminutive in comparison; the Little Wattlebird.

Traditionally the Koel will lay a single egg in a nest, and perhaps several nests.





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22 comments:

TexWisGirl said...

that koel has beautiful markings! poor mama bird! doesn't know why she's raising such a behemoth!

John @ Beans and I on the Loose said...

Interesting. Wonderful photos. As for Sinbad and respecting the birds, he's pretty unique in that. I'll let him come out with us while we set on the deck. He'll just lie there on the table casually watching the birds come and go with little interest. Now if a squirrel comes by it's a whole different issue. I have to get him and put him back into the house.

Karin M. said...

Wow .... amazing shots, you had a happy day to take these great photos.
...fantastic and wonderful...
Best regards, Karin

Mary Howell Cromer said...

Oh my, so do these birds do this often? We have several species that will place eggs into another species nest, for them to raise and it always seems sad. I always wonder about such mysteries like this and how they came about. Enjoyed this post~

FAB said...

Thanks for sharing this action Carole. That's a new species for me to see.

mick said...

Great photos. It always amazes me the way such small foster parents manage to keep a Koel chick fed.

eileeninmd said...

Is the baby is one holding open its wings? Wow, what a big baby. The mother bird looks small. Great series!

theconstantwalker said...

Is this your equivalent of the Cuckoo we have as a summer visitor in the UK?... Parents laying their eggs in another species nest...?

Grandma Barb's This and That said...

Hi Carole, You have the most interesting birds there. The poor mama is probably wondering what kind of monster she is raising.

Tatjana Parkacheva said...

Very nice captures.

Regards and best wishes

Brian King said...

Funny how they will care for the "intruder" baby even though it's not their own. Perhaps they can't tell the difference. Wonderful photos, Carole!

Unknown said...

Really interesting post!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

Horst in Edmonton said...

Our Cow birds do that here in Canada.

Carole M. said...

Thanks everyone for your comments; always a good feeling to know others are enjoying your photo posts.
Mary: This is characteristic of the Koel (a cuckoo specie) to do this. I doubt they do it any other way.
Eileen: Yes, you got it, the koel is the larger, speckled bird (with it’s wings open).
Andrew: Yes, no doubt the equivalent of your own summer visiting cuckoo; also the Channel-billed cuckoo (with that large beak), that I’ve posted on in the past. They’re the two familiar to me, but there may be other species.
Horst: Now I’d like to see a photo of your cow-bird

Anonymous said...

This definitly reminds me of a Brown-headed Cowbird. Thank you for sharing Mum and her "baby".

cindyrina said...

i like your style in photography...so natural and spontaneous!

joo said...

beautiful and unusual birds!

Anonymous said...

It's markings make me think of a hawk. Nature is so interesting. Why would a species of bird not want to stay and raise it's young? We do have the cowbirds in the states that do the same. Thank you so much for stopping by my place earlier and saying hi!

Barb said...

I have never heard of this particular bird before, but I do know Oz has some amazing birds. Great picture essay.

Phil Slade said...

Great picture Carole. You seem to have lots of sunshine down in Oz. can you send some to the UK please?

Nadege, said...

Amazing plumage, great camouflage for this bird in this setting.

Anonymous said...

Some avian adaptations are hard to accept by people, but they have allowed some species to survive.
The Koel is an attractive bird.