Bizarre Tree Martin behaviour

On the Birdlife East Gippsland camp last week in the Omeo area, we observed Tree Martins picking up leaves and small pieces of straw from the road and flying around with the items for a short while before letting them fall to the ground. They were doing this in groups of two/three birds only a few metres from where we were standing on a gravel road. This happened for a good ten minutes. Some birds flew around us at a height of one to two metres then went back to the spot they had picked up the item. It almost seemed [anthropomorphically] that adults birds were teaching younger birds ... something!

We were fascinated.

Picking up straw

Take off. One each way

I find it very hard to catch martins and swallows in flight

Take off with leaf

Around the chicane we go
Other bird still on road in bottom left corner of image

Leaf still onboard

Geoff Park at Natural Newstead has observed similar behaviour in Fairy Martins just this last week.

Just magic. f8 and be there.

BLEG Spring Camp at Omeo

A selection of birds photographed during the Birdlife East Gippsland [BLEG] camp based in Omeo. I was there for three of the four days. It was great.

Magic. f8 and be there.

Satin Flycatcher, female

Gang-gang Cockatoo, female

Pallid Cuckoo

Black Snake, sunning

Flame Robin, male

Jacky Winter with the next generation

Nankeen Kestrel

2014 Hooded Plover Biennial Count -- Take 2

The next day, Saturday 15 November, I drove to the end of a track heading east from Paradise Beach where an oil pipe comes ashore. I walked 4 kms east then 2 west from that point. Still didn't see a Hooded Plover but came across a group of mixed shore birds. Four Pied Oystercatchers, one Great Cormorant [very nervous bird -- the only one to fly off], one Whimbrel [who walked off], one Pacific Gull and five Silver Gulls.

Vast enlargement will see these bird pixels

 I also saw ...

One Shell logo

One set of deer prints 

One seahorse

One dead muttonbird