Category Archives: Fauna

With running streams and ponded water all around, it’s a duck’s life for sure just about anywhere in the Outback at the moment.

There’s plenty of birds on the wing and wildlife spread far and wide.

I could hardly be classed as wildlife but I’m on the move again too, which mean’s no access to the internet and no posts until at least late next week.

These, I think are Maned Ducks near water on Anna Creek Station in the far north of South Australia but I am more likely to recognise a duck on a cricket pitch than these fast movers.

Emus enjoying the wildflowers.

I suppose you can call Salvation Jane a wild flower because it’s mostly out of control around the central and southern Flinders Ranges.

It looks pretty enough though.

A Rainbow Bee Eater – fast moving an elusive. Fairly common to a widespread area of central Australia. His name also describes his main source of food together with other insects too.

Sometimes an idea or a plan for a landscape photo gets ambushed by something more interesting.

A cattle trough had possibilities as the background in a shot but it turned out to be a far more entertaining venue.

While I was setting up a bunch of cockatoos blew in and started drinking, completely oblivious to me standing behind tripod and camera only a few metres away.

It seemed like a good idea to just stand and watch what happened. I wasn’t disappointed.

The cockies kept moving in as though they owned the place…pigeons, galahs and others having to wait for a lull in the activity.

Three emus turned up next. Their height and weight clearly indicating their status in the pecking order.

One of the emus towered over the others, who may have been his off-spring, but he was the most skittish.

It turned out he was so tall that he had to get down on his haunches to drink at the trough, something he was very nervous about, particularly as the new arrivals weren’t far away.

The sheep had no qualms about stepping right up for a drink as if it was for their exclusive use.

All in all an interesting hour…almost like standing in the bar at the pub except there wasn’t a beer for miles.

Old Man Emu….easy to see in amongst the trees and undergrowth…….but spot the four chicks he is carefully protecting.

Even with a good lens on the camera with the chicks in full view, it is easy to see how nature protects them.

All the stripes and speckles on their feathers seem to blend in….the edges of their bodies also blurring with the surrounding features.

First image f8 @ 1/40th sec ISO 100, focal length 300 mm
Second photo f7.1 @ 1/640 sec ISO 200, focal length 300 mm