Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Floods and Fairy-Wrens

These first two photos were taken during one of the big floods we had at the end of January and into February. This water is running into Carland Creek and a few hours before this had been over the road. There had been a fire go through the area a while ago and the burnt bushes are Hakea. In the second photo I focused my camera on the bushes and seed pods which made an interesting pattern in front of the flooded gully.

I see Fairy-Wrens quite frequently but like most wrens they seldom sit still to have their photos taken! I saw these Red-backed Fairy-wrens (Malurus melanocephalus) beside the road out at Inskip Point very early in the morning. The male is all black down the front. It looked as if he had been ruffling the feathers on top of her head.

 They didn't stay sitting still together for long. The female flew off deeper among the branches where I couldn't see clearly enough to photograph her again but the male flew around from branch to branch. First he had a good preen then he gave me good views of his colorful side and back feathers. I am always intrigued by how the red on his back shows different shades in different light.



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and for more bird photos visit Wild Bird Wednesday.

36 comments:

  1. brilliant little birds! very cute!

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  2. Beautiful colours on the Red-backed Fairy-wren Male.

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  3. Great shots, love the second one with the focus on the seed pods. And the Fairy-wrens are adorable birds. Love the coloring on the male. Beautiful photos, Mick!

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  4. What wonderful environment you live in !

    robert geiß

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  5. Love the layers in your first couple of photos! And such delightful perspectives of the wrens! Extraordinary red tones! And how wonderful to see the closeness between the two birds!

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  6. Love your photos, the birds are adorable!

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  7. Great shots on this beautiful birds !

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  8. A lovely serie of photos!
    Well done!

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  9. Fairy-tale magic those birds are! Such bright beautiful red and the birds are just little round charmers.

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  10. Love the first two images, Mick, even if they do show 'difficult times'. Those Fairy Wren images are super. What amazing birds they are - even the female is beautiful in a sudued sort of way. Thanks for sharing.

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  11. that´s a gorgeous pair. A lovely couple. And what a surprise to see the males back. Really nice change.

    The first scenery shots are gorgeous too.

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  12. What amazing photos of those beautiful wrens. That flash of color took me by surprise!

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  13. Great photos! These are such sweet birds.

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  14. Hi Mick...These are stunning...just adorable Wrens!! The flash of red's is amazing!!
    Love your very first photo!!
    Grace

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  15. What a lovely couple. Great shots!

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  16. Oh my gosh, those fairy wrens are awesome! I've never seen or heard of these before. How amazing that you were there to capture them. :)

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  17. Very nice pictures of the pair interacting. I enjoyed the photos.

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  18. Incredible Mick! That second shot of the pair, with the female looking toward the male is adorable.

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  19. Having heard so much about the fires there I am surprised to see so much green.
    I have to say those Fairy-Wrens are the cutest feathered couple I've ever seen!
    Nice captures Mick!

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  20. Wonderful shots of the birds. They look cute.

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  21. Nice pictures you show Mick. Thanks for the comment on my blog. Hanne Bente

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  22. The couple looks so cozy, beautiful photos of them.

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  23. Stunning shots Mick. That first picture doesn't give any indication of how much red the male has in its plumage, and then wow it really shines.

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  24. Oh my goodness, what adorable little birds, and I love their name! Beautiful shots!

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  25. Beautiful birds, great pictures of the pair.

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  26. Wow! Gorgeous shots, Mick! Nicely done!

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  27. What adorable little birds ... they look so soft to touch.

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  28. That's a good bit of water you have, there!
    Fantastic shots of the wrens!
    Very surprising color on the male.

    -- Wally

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  29. What sweet photos of a cute couple! Love the detail and texture of the feathers in the photos :)

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  30. Wonderful looking bird! The Plovers can be a bit of a pain - they used to give my MOL's cat all kinds of grief!

    Cheers and thanks for linking to WBW- Stewart M - Melbourne

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  31. Wow, how beautiful they are! Never seen those birds before!
    Greetings Pia

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